A luxury expert believes that Hermès Birkin bags will double in value within the next five years. James Firestein is the founder of luxury resale and authentication platform OpenLuxury, and he told Fortune that the steepest price increase he's witnessed was when a Black Togo 30 Birkin doubled within that time frame.
James noted that it was more common for it to take at least a decade for the price of a Birkin to double. “I know several instances where people have doubled their money based on buying it 10 years ago, and reselling it today in pristine condition,” he said.
“The resale value of particularly the Birkin and Kelly bags over the past 10 years has outpaced gold,” he continued. The luxury expert estimated that 25% of Birkin buyers keep the bags as investments in storage, while 75% actually use the bags.
Hermès has had lawsuits filed against it, being accused of making it too challenging for the everyday person to get their hands on a Birkin. One lawsuit says that customers are required to have “a sufficient purchase history” with the luxury brand in order to purchase a Birkin.
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The lawsuit went on to state that after getting a good-standing purchase history, “customers who are deemed worthy” are then offered a luxury bag. Attorneys wrote that “the unique desirability, incredible demand and low supply of Birkin handbags gives defendants incredible market power.”
