US: Unable to bag a Birkin, California customers take Hermès to court

How far would you go for a handbag? To the nearest shopping mall? Or maybe, the local market? For many, simply an online order would do. But when it comes to something as iconic as the Birkin, some might even go to court, as two aspiring customers in California have shown.

These two customers — evidently extremely miffed at not being able to procure the ultimate symbol of luxury — have alleged that Hermès, the French luxury design house that produces the iconic Birkin, is a monopoly and the way it sells these bags violates the antitrust law.

The case

The litigants have alleged that the company asked them to buy other Hermès products (such as shoes, scarves or belts) before they could buy a Birkin. The complaint claims that consumers “are coerced into purchasing ancillary products” from Hermès to buy a Birkin bag.

US antitrust law forbids monopolies from “forcing” customers to buy products to gain a stronghold in markets where it is not dominant.

The complaint alleges that Hermès’s “tying arrangements” have allowed it to hike the price of Birkin bags to astronomical sums and also the company’s profits.

What’s special about Birkins?

So, why have these customers not been able to purchase a Birkin? What makes them so inaccessible? Well, Birkin handbags are not only some of the most expensive in the world, they are among the most exclusive too.

Hermès, which is based in Paris, produces only a limited number of Birkin handbags a year, each one created entirely by one craftsman. A Birkin —named after actress Jane Birkin, for whom the first bag of this line was famously created — can cost anything from $10,000 (roughly Rs 9 lakh) at retail to $450,000 (roughly Rs 3.7 crore) on auction.

In November 2021, Christie’s reportedly sold a crocodile-skin Birkin for a whopping $390,000 (Rs 3.25 crore).

How to bag a Birkin

Yet, having the money in your wallet — or rather, bank — may not be enough to bag a Birkin.

“Typically, only those consumers who are deemed worthy of purchasing a Birkin handbag will be shown a Birkin handbag,” the complaint filed by the California litigants alleges.

“For all practical purposes, there is no way to order a bag in the style, size, color, leather, and hardware that a consumer wants,” it adds.

So, will moving court over a handbag help these customers bag a Birkin? How strong is their case against the iconic brand? It may be extremely hard to prove the case in court, media reports say citing legal experts.