Overexposure

[keodi]

VO, I can't count it from last year Christmas only, I would if increases had been more standard for Chanel. Hopefully they don't become standard this is obviously too much if it's something they continue yearly from now on.
I count it from their last increases which were over 2 years ago.
Also, most bags did not increase $1k.

thanks for sharing that, I assumed that this was something routine for chanel so it's good to know, but I hope we don't see another one for a while..

 

[Swanky]

this is all merely my opinion of course. . . .

I can see what you're saying but can't totally agree with you, LV does have a lot of increases on a regular basis but it goes like 4-6% at a time 2-3 times a year and it's not across the board, every bag/line seems to increase differently and some decrease at times, it's sort of a "adjustment" that they go through.....some of their reasoning is the weakness of the dollar which can be justified to some extent, I think they also need to pay for their expansion projects. I've even been around buying LV at times of a full price decrease due to the Euro. If Chanel followed closer to LV increase practices this year jumbo would only be up to $1850 (or for the past two years it would be $2150) not $2600. I understand Chanel hasn't had major increases in a couple of years but that just doesn't justify $1000 in one year. Just to compare, I know of a particular LV bag that was about $1500 close to 5 years ago which is now about $2000, much more reasonable of a price increase to me. Sorry using LV as such a base but it's the only other brand I know very well.

to me, part of the difference is most of the LV's sold aren't leather. I know for positive that when I was in that Forum it ws usually monogram pieces people were sad about increasing.
For example, if we compared Balenciaga to Chanel, I think Chanel would be increasing at a much higher rate compared to another designer that sells mostly leather items.
Does that make sense :s
Seems more reasonable, to me, that completelely handmade leather pieces would go up more.

"LV does have a lot of increases on a regular basis but it goes like 4-6% at a time 2-3 times a year"

that's still close to 20% per year, that actually equals a couple of the Chanels that went up a lot. 20%/year times 2-3 years is 40-60% . . . this is what I was thinking, LV and Chanel are increasing at similar rates if you look back more than 12 months.
But again, most of Chanel didn't increase that much.
Mostly their Timeless Classics which hadn't had a raise in a very long time. I think maybe they're trying to really protect the integrity of their Timeless Classic ligne as well but not allowing it to oversaturate the market.
LV does it small and slow, Chanel waited more than 2 yeras and did it in a big, painful way/all at once.

I'm sure they increase for different reasons; location of factories, cost of leather, time to quilt/assemble, etc. . . .
It is hard to compare the 2 and I only did it because LV is the only other brand I'm reasonably educated on as well.

Again, this is merely one gal's assumptions, as far as I know the CEO or PR of Chanel hasn't issued a definitive stement on it, so all we can do is assume.

 

[FanAddict]

Thanks for your input, Swanky. I have not spent time on the other forums (besides YSL) because I am not really interested in those bags...yet.

Chanel's marketing strategy, once again, is transparent - to sell as many overpriced bags as they can, each season, then bemoan the fact that they're overexposed, and then attempt to regain some of that caché with price increases, knowing full well that the majority of those hooked on the prestige of owning one will buy again.

 

[Lola24]

HI Swanky, like I said I don't disagree with you, you're right a $2000 all leather Chanel bag is more valuable and may be more difficult to produce than a $2000 multicolor canvas LV bag, but I'm just comparing price to price. The fact of the matter is that most of us are a little taken back by the increase of the jumbo which is 60% over the course of a year.... I think it started at $1600?? so $1600 X 1.6 = $2,560. That kind of percentage increase takes LV and most others years to get up to, that's all I'm saying. Sure the all leather LV bags are much more expensive than their canvas but none of them have gone up that drastically in a year either. I'm not bashing Chanel, and this seems to be affecting their flaps the most but it's still kind of disturbing. I'm not tying to create tension or make others defensive about it, it's just when you put this into perspective it's upsetting. I'm looking at re-doing my kitchen and now a jumbo flap is going to be more expensive than the Viking refrigerator I'm looking to buy......

I just wanted to add, I agree that maybe the increases didn't happen for a couple years and they are making up for it now and then some, but I know myself as a customer would be less angry with a 10% increase twice a year every year then what they did this year. It justifies the fact that we are not their important customers and it makes me think about why I should support their brand.

 

[FanAddict]

now a jumbo flap is going to be more expensive than the Viking refrigerator I'm looking to buy......

that is sad, sad sad!

 

[Lola24]

^^ haha, oh and my granite counter top is only going to cost like $3,000, I don't have a huge kitchen but it's not tiny either by far....... Sorry don't want to be so off topic. If Chanel doesn't want the overexposure then they may start to get what they want.....

 

[lorenzo94580]

now a jumbo flap is going to be more expensive than the Viking refrigerator I'm looking to buy......

Yes! I know! For me it's as expensive as my mortgage! (And I live in California!)


Crazy!

 

[Lola24]

^^ haha, it's MORE expensive than my mortgage and I live in an expensive East Coast state near the ocean.....bought our house at a good time but regardless.

 

[missisa07]

ITA. I don't mind increases here and there to go along with inflation and what not, but the Jumbo doubling in price over only one year is just plain wrong!!! I'm getting mine pre-increase for $2,250, but it does bug me that I could have gotten it a year ago for $1,6xx.

 

[Syma]

I think it is simply a question of supply and demand. Chanel have found that many of their seasonal bags/ seasonal flaps have huge waiting lists before they even hit the shop floor as such it is difficult to cope with the demand therefore by increasing their prices they are hoping to curb the demand, only time will tell if it will work!

 

[missisa07]

I think it is simply a question of supply and demand. Chanel have found that many of their seasonal bags/ seasonal flaps have huge waiting lists before they even hit the shop floor as such it is difficult to cope with the demand therefore by increasing their prices they are hoping to curb the demand, only time will tell if it will work!

Chanel bags will always be wanted and in demand. It's impossible to reverse that at this point. It's just that the people that want them won't be able to afford them anymore thanks to Chanel's new exclusivity principle. ush:

I really want the black GST now, I hope this Nov 1st increase is the last for a while. I would hate to save and save and save and then get hit by ANOTHER increase.

 

[IntlSet]

As unfortunate as it is, most people buy bags less for what they are than for what they represent. No matter how much Hermes toots its horn about "quality," there is no way they spent anywhere near the $8K+ to make a Birkin in their factory... and nobody who dropped $8K on a Birkin can say it was for quality alone. After all, one could have a very luxurious custom bag in exotic skin created for 8K by a no-name craftsman. Birkins have some of the largest profit margins of any luxury product -- undoubtedly, Chanel does as well.

What disappoints me about Chanel and its overexposure is not that they are attempting to remedy the fact with price increases: after all, simple minds believe that expensive things, by merit of their mere cost, are superior products. I think if there were less logos, less cheap materials (come on -- vinyl??? PVC???) and more pioneering, edgy designs, Chanel would lift itself out of the overexposed, bordering-on-cliche quagmire they've gotten themselves into thanks to lines like the Cambon. I'm not knocking these bags or the ladies who buy them, but the result IS overexposure.

I would prefer Chanel limit the quantity of bags it puts out, like Hermes does, rather than raise prices. After all, how many Cambon bags does this world really need... they released way too many, in my opinion. These quickly produced, under-designed, fast "It-bags" in cheap materials Chanel has come out with that have no enduring value really have hurt their image, in my opinion.

Edited to add: I too own some of the overexposed, overly-logoed Chanel bags, so I am buying into the marketing machine, too.

 

[missisa07]

As unfortunate as it is, most people buy bags less for what they are than for what they represent. No matter how much Hermes toots its horn about "quality," there is no way they spent anywhere near the $8K+ to make a Birkin in their factory... and nobody who dropped $8K on a Birkin can say it was for quality alone. After all, one could have a very luxurious custom bag in exotic skin created for 8K by a no-name craftsman. Birkins have some of the largest profit margins of any luxury product -- undoubtedly, Chanel does as well.

What disappoints me about Chanel and its overexposure is not that they are attempting to remedy the fact with price increases: after all, simple minds believe that expensive things, by merit of their mere cost, are superior products. I think if there were less logos, less cheap materials (come on -- vinyl??? PVC???) and more pioneering, edgy designs, Chanel would lift itself out of the overexposed, bordering-on-cliche quagmire they've gotten themselves into thanks to lines like the Cambon. I'm not knocking these bags or the ladies who buy them, but the result IS overexposure.

I would prefer Chanel limit the quantity of bags it puts out, like Hermes does, rather than raise prices. After all, how many Cambon bags does this world really need... they released way too many, in my opinion. These quickly produced, under-designed, fast "It-bags" in cheap materials Chanel has come out with that have no enduring value really have hurt their image, in my opinion.

Well put! I think that increasing the prices won't make Chanel less overexposed either!

People will still shell out the big $$$ to get Chanel bags, even if they can't really afford it. So basically the consumer is just getting ripped off, while in the end Chanel is still selling the same amount of bags post-increase.

Take the oh-so-famous Jumbo for example. It's almost doubled in the past year but I just bought another one.

The only way to curb overexposure, like you said, is to limit the SUPPLY not try to curb the demand.

Oh Karl, what are you up to?

 

[keodi]

What disappoints me about Chanel and its overexposure is not that they are attempting to remedy the fact with price increases: after all, simple minds believe that expensive things, by merit of their mere cost, are superior products. I think if there were less logos, less cheap materials (come on -- vinyl??? PVC???) and more pioneering, edgy designs, Chanel would lift itself out of the overexposed, bordering-on-cliche quagmire they've gotten themselves into thanks to lines like the Cambon. I'm not knocking these bags or the ladies who buy them, but the result IS overexposure.

I would prefer Chanel limit the quantity of bags it puts out, like Hermes does, rather than raise prices. After all, how many Cambon bags does this world really need... they released way too many, in my opinion. These quickly produced, under-designed, fast "It-bags" in cheap materials Chanel has come out with that have no enduring value really have hurt their image, in my opinion.



good point..

 

[chanelspell]

.

What disappoints me about Chanel and its overexposure is not that they are attempting to remedy the fact with price increases: after all, simple minds believe that expensive things, by merit of their mere cost, are superior products. I think if there were less logos, less cheap materials (come on -- vinyl??? PVC???) and more pioneering, edgy designs, Chanel would lift itself out of the overexposed, bordering-on-cliche quagmire they've gotten themselves into thanks to lines like the Cambon. I'm not knocking these bags or the ladies who buy them, but the result IS overexposure.

I would prefer Chanel limit the quantity of bags it puts out, like Hermes does, rather than raise prices. After all, how many Cambon bags does this world really need... they released way too many, in my opinion. These quickly produced, under-designed, fast "It-bags" in cheap materials Chanel has come out with that have no enduring value really have hurt their image, in my opinion.

Edited to add: I too own some of the overexposed, overly-logoed Chanel bags, so I am buying into the marketing machine, too.

Exactly!
As I mentioned in another thread ,Chanel can't "target" the exclusivity of a brand like Hermes on one hand while producing cheap material bags massively on the other!
There is no way to have it both!