i think i agree with suzzeee. there is no way they can have a bag made and shipped for only $8 there has to be additional costs after the bag is produced. and i think everyone should lighten up on OP, obviously she knows the risks of posting company info no need to go off on her.
Cost to Make One Carly
- Thread starter SLVDW47
- Start date
$8.00 is disappointing! I have been straying away from designer bags all together and this is just one more reason. My hard earned money would benefit me more in other ways. I wonder if that was the cost when they were making the bags in the U.S.?
Interesting. Obviously a company like Coach has lots of expenses that encompass more than just the materials going into a bag that need to be covered in their price including, in my experience, very good customer service. I could believe $8 for a signature Carly.
I also wonder what percentage of their bags are purchased at retail price. In comparison to other brands, it seems to me that Coach has a decent number of sales at reduced prices: PCE, 40% or 100% for returns, outlets, and department store wholesale.
I also wonder what percentage of their bags are purchased at retail price. In comparison to other brands, it seems to me that Coach has a decent number of sales at reduced prices: PCE, 40% or 100% for returns, outlets, and department store wholesale.
OMG! Leave the poor girl ALONE...she is trying to help US out! We complain about sticker shock on here all the time and now you don't want to know what it costs to make one? Never happy I tell you. I for one am NOT suprised! Thamks for giving devoted customers this info! I for one APPRECIATE the sharing of this info!
I for one was just cautioning her as leaking information about production costs is almost always verboten. Disclosing this type of information can be very damaging to a company.
Also, most companies have substantial G&A costs such as administrative salaries and advertising that far outweigh the price of producing their products.
And, IMO, you were being very nice and helpful to her in giving her that info. Many new and younger retail employees don't seem to have a real handle on what information they can give out - I've dealt with employees over the years who range from giving out nothing including info that should be given to customers to divulging info that is highly confidential simply because they were very young, not well-trained and did not understand the ramifications, either to themselves or to their company, of that information being given out. I have never known a company (and I work in internet marketing and thus deal with companies all the time so I do know about this) who did not consider anything to do with finances (other than what would be released in a corp. financial statement for a public company) to be confidential! Almost all Requests for Proposals that I get from clients and advertising agencies these days come with a confidentiality clause!
I think you were being very helpful in warning her and I hope he/she takes that warning to heart - while, we all love to get "insider" information, I personally don't want to see someone fired over this or for this Forum to have legal issues because of the content posted on here.
Also, please keep in mind that even if this $8 figure quoted is accurate, I sincerely doubt that is the true cost of a Carly - there are many more costs that will get added onto that bag before actual profit is calculated - so while Coach is making a huge profit - one in the 800% plus markup range at full price - they are most likely not making $391 profit on a $398 bag!
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I think IMO like others have said this has to be the cost of the raw materials that go into making the bag. EVERYTHING is overpriced and marked up these days. And like Suzzeee I like pretty things too!
Personally I am not shocked in the least. Designer items in demand always have a huge markup. I wouldn't be surprised if most LV Mono or Damier pieces costs much more to make either. If Coach can continue to sell goods at their current markup rates then more power to 'em I say.
It likely does factor in the labor and transportation and everything else. No, there is no possible way anyone could make ONE Carly for $8, but when you take the amount they spend on the materials, overhead, labor, transportation, advertising and everything else and split it up over the millions of bags produced, the per unit costs equal out to incredibly small numbers.
And it isn't as though the OP has posted her full name, address and working location! Perhaps she is disseminating classified information, but it only makes us, as consumers, stronger to be better informed. We like to think that the items we pay hundreds for are worth more than the average bag, but we pay more for the name than we think. Nothing wrong with that, as long as we are aware of what we are doing and why.
And it isn't as though the OP has posted her full name, address and working location! Perhaps she is disseminating classified information, but it only makes us, as consumers, stronger to be better informed. We like to think that the items we pay hundreds for are worth more than the average bag, but we pay more for the name than we think. Nothing wrong with that, as long as we are aware of what we are doing and why.