

#HERMES BIRKIN BAG SKIN#
The article cited that Australia accounts for 60% of the saltwater skin trade because Australian crocs have finer skin patterns than the American alligator. It was distinguished by a semi-structured body, two rolled handles. A farmer can sell a high-end skin for about $1,000, while an egg can be worth about $35 to a collector. (Farmers also sell the meat, for food, and things such as claws and gall bladders for alternative medicines.) Birkin, 12,200 Unlike the Chanel bags dominating the 1980s, the Birkin was quietly luxurious and devoid of shouty logos. Lever, who transport them to farms in less remote areas where they grow for a couple of years before the skins are harvested. Then, the juvenile reptiles are sold to farmers like Mr. The animals are both culturally significant and an important income source for indigenous communities in the Outback, who collect the eggs by hand from swamps and incubate them until they’re hatched. The sum received is surprising when you consider that a crocodile handbag, per the article, can easily fetch $50,000: The WSJ recently covered the difficulty farmers face transporting crocodiles and crocodile skins so that they arrive undamaged. Source: Carol Ryan | "Got a Birkin Bag to Sell? That’s a Problem for Hermès" | The Wall Street Journal | | Visit The bag’s hardware is plated gold or palladium. The tight-supply strategy already pushes customers to make purchases in this market, which could accelerate this growth. A Birkin bag (shown above) is a very expensive purse with a distinctive shape, made out of exotic skins like crocodile, ostrich, and alligator. The question is whether or not the growing second-hand market for luxury retail will become a risk factor for Hermes. In contrast, most luxury label handbags sell at a 35% discount to store prices. The demand for both handbags is so high that they can generally be resold immediately after purchase for a gain (for rare colors this can be as much as a 50% to 100% gain – see the article for more details). Per the article, production and distribution is limited to 120,000 units per year. The WSJ reports that Hermes generates 25 to 30 of total sales off of two, now iconic, handbags: the Birkin and Kelly. To date the company has done an excellent job creating scarcity. The challenge facing the company is that a resale market for high-end fashion has been growing and the purchase of a used luxury item is in vogue. The WSJ reports that Hermes generates 25% to 30% of total sales off of two, now iconic, handbags: the Birkin and Kelly.
