Inside the world of £150,000 handbags
There are many lazy presumptions about fashion which tend to conclude that because it is often a glamorous, woman-centric world, it cannot also be a serious, investmentworthy one. Of course, there are countless ultra-successful businesses which show that this simply isn’t true, but I love the potent example offered up by Christie’s fast-growing handbags department; here, some of the world’s most luxurious creations are proving to be a major attraction for a new generation of young, female buyers.
“If you think about Christie’s and auctions… it can feel like an ivory tower,” observes Rachel Koffsky, 28, the house’s London handbag specialist. “This is a really accessible area. Handbags are a really functional, ubiquitous object. It creates this entry point where Christie’s becomes approachable and easy.”
Approachability is all relative but the 229 lots included in the forthcoming sale on Dec 12 span a jolly duo of black and fuchsia Chanel evening bags dating to the early Nineties with an estimate of £1,000-£1,500 for the pair (there’s plenty more in this bracket) to a diamond Himalaya Birkin, which has been given a £150,000-£200,000 guide price tag. Koffsky is hoping it might nudge her previous European sales record of £162,500, set in June for a smaller version of a similar style, off its top spot.
It is Hermès’s trio of stars – the Birkin (namesake: Jane Birkin), the Kelly (namesake: Grace Kelly) and the Constance (namesake: the fifth-born child of the bag’s creator)
– which grab the headlines in this category and with good reason. Thanks to the label’s unsurpassed reputation for craftsmanship, equestrian heritage and blingtastic detailing, these are the pieces destined to sell for the largest amounts.
A limited edition Dalmatien Birkin in orange-speckled buffalo leather was discontinued 10 years ago, but is set to be a big draw. “We’ve seen a huge resurgence in people searching for this finish now because Kylie Jenner has one. It’s really interesting how that has attracted a whole new generation of collectors. It’s a market that has really been transformed by Instagram,” notes Koffsky, who’s wearing Chanel loafers and a tomato red trouser suit by cool girl label Racil “perfect for crawling around on the floor when you’re sorting out all the bags” when we meet at Christie’s HQ in St James’s. I’m not surprised when I’m later told that she’s the one all the Jenner-influenced millennial and Gen-z new buyers want to deal with – she’s one of them. Some 31 per cent of buyers in the handbag department in the first part of this year were new to Christie’s, with an even split of American, European and Asian clients.
“When brands bring back an archive piece in the current collections, it then creates a spike for the originals,” says Koffsky. There has been renewed interest in Gucci’s archive now that Alessando Michele, the creative director, has reimagined vintage details like the house’s distinctive striping and monogram. “Two years ago, you could barely sell a Dior saddle bag for £50 on ebay but now all of a sudden you can add two zeros to that because they’re having a moment. It’s really exciting to see the market changes,” she enthuses. Lot 143 – a classic Dior monogram canvas and brown leather beauty case – also has fresh appeal thanks to the Insta-set’s love of the revived version of the same print.
We move across to a shelf of mini Kellys and diamond Birkins. “For a total novice, the easiest way to tell the difference between a Birkin and Kelly is the number of straps: two for the former, one for the latter,” she advises. A horseshoe stamp to the left of the logo denotes a custom piece – this is the sort of detail that a collector keeping their bags in a display cabinet will be sure to highlight. The most desirable Kellys are the mini 20 and the micro mini 15 – a dinky doll-size, barely big enough even for a phone. “They were made in the Eighties and the Nineties, when most people wanted big black bags and there wasn’t that trend for minis which we see now.” It’s astounding to think these tiny handbags are relations of a design originally intended to be carried on horseback, which then morphed into an emblem of Grace Kelly’s regal chic. “This piece is exceptional,” Koffsky gasps as she slips up the key cover on a fuchsia porosus crocodile Birkin to reveal diamond-encrusted padlock keys.
“At auction you find that most pieces will be more expensive than they are in the store because of the demand, whereas a diamond bag actually commands less at auction than it does at retail. It’s just one of those intricacies of the market,” she notes.
“I have some buyers who will take the diamond Birkin on the day of the auction and transfer their wallet and keys then carry it out straight away,” she says, toting £80,000-worth of handbag against her hip, then spinning it around. “Although they turn it so that the diamonds are facing inwards.”
Price-wise, the pièce de résistance is the Himalaya crocodile diamond Birkin. Contrary to popular belief, the Himalaya moniker is nothing to do with the skin’s provenance. Instead, the pale brown at the edge, white in the middle finish is achieved by removing all pigment from the skin, thus creating a pattern that looks like an aerial view of the world’s tallest mountain range. “Hermès invented that process, it’s extremely difficult to achieve so to have such a large bag which uses the technique is exceptionally rare. We’ve never offered a diamond Birkin 35 Himalaya before.”
Koffsky and I both agree that it is the lesser-hyped Constance which is the supremely elegant gem of Hermès’ portfolio. “It was designed by Catherine Chaillet who was also a mother of five children – her fifth child was named Constance. I just love that she designed a shoulder bag because she was a working woman and a mother, it really has feminist roots – she just needed her hands free,” she says. At £4,000£5,000, a 1981 tan ostrich Constance is seriously tempting.
After Hermès, it is Chanel that has the most offerings in the sale. “The pieces are extremely desirable and extremely collectible, but it’s just a matter of degree. It’s like comparing a Chagall to a Picasso,” Koffsky explains.
There are high hopes for a recordbreaking sale with a 2008 white Chanel flap bag with white gold and diamonds, estimate: £50,000£70,000. “It’s really an exceptional piece, we’ve never offered anything like this before. I don’t want to jinx anything but this is the most valuable Chanel bag in the world.”
All the rare skins and exceptional craftsmanship are no competition for the lot Koffsky would most love to land on her desk, however – Jane Birkin’s very own battered and badged black leather Birkin. A girl can dream.