Essay on "Hermes Birkin Bags the Cost"

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[EXCERPT] . . . .

Hermes Birkin Bags

The cost of the average handbag traditionally runs from $20-$100. However, patrons of the exclusive fashion designer Hermes are always in search of the 'next new thing' to delight their eyes and impress their friends. The Birkin Bag proved to be just such an item. Hermes is a brand that has long cultivated an image of exclusivity and the Birkin became one of its flagship products.

"Hermes bags stand alone, prominently on a pedestal of definitive grace and grandeur. Hermes bags are the most coveted creme de la creme handbags, handbags that boast waiting lists of ten years. Hermes is the designer behind the much sought after Birkin bag, a bag that celebrities simply itch to possess; and the price of this masterful creation only starts at 6,000" (Hermes Bags, 2011, Love to Know).

This price tag is obviously beyond the reach of most ordinary consumers. Defenders of the price of bag often point to its styling and modeling as a reason for its exorbitant prices. It is custom-made. However, the emphasis on hard-to-find colors and materials as a way of justifying an even higher cost for the product, the fascination with celebrities who own the coveted bag, and the high price tag when so many people cannot afford necessities have caused many to see it as an example of wretched excess (Givhan 2004).

What is it?

Hermes was founded in 1837, making it one of the oldest fashion houses today (Hermes Bags, 2011, Love to Know). It first became famous for purveying scarves. "These scarves were modeled after those worn by Napoleon's soldiers, and the liberated women of the early 1900's eagerly adopted these s

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omewhat masculine scarves. Even today, the Hermes scarf remains the most commonly-purchased item" (Hermes Bags, 2011, Love to Know).

However, the company's flagship scarves have been eclipsed by its Birkin Bags. While many of Hermes' bags are several thousand dollars, the Birkin Bag is particularly notable for "requiring several years on a waiting list. The Birkin bag can come in styles crafted out of ostrich skin or turquoise leather, with gleaming gold hardware comprising the delicate front clasp" (Hermes Bags, 2011, Love to Know).

The bags are custom-made by the hands of a single artisan and are never mass-produced. "Each bag requires a single, flawless skin, rendering production wholly susceptible "the throes of Mother Nature. If there's a drought in New Zealand, as there was a few years ago, the availability of ostrich decreases drastically. It typically takes six months to two years to find an exotic skin for a bag. After that, the entirely by-hand construction of a Birkin requires 72 hours to two weeks to complete, limiting weekly output to two or three bags" (Kroll 2007).

To drive demand and encourage current owners to covet new bags, Hermes is always featuring new models, such as its new shoulder bags. The 'classic' Birkin is black with a gold clasp. "Its hardware is gold-plated. It comes with a small padlock and keys" (Givhan 2004).

The name 'Birkin' originates with the British film actress Jane Birkin, "for whom it was designed," but its status and mythology" has far transcended the actress' celebrity to the point that the bag is better known than its namesake (Givhan 2004).

Who's doing it?

Birkin bags are seen on the arms of many celebrities across the world. They increased in popularity after being featured on a Sex in the City episode, which portrayed the publicist Samantha Jones using the name of a famous client to get a bag, pretending that the Birkin was for her client Lucy Lu -- although Samantha wished to keep it for herself (Givhan 2011). The fact that Samantha would lie, cheat, or steal to get the bag indicated that the Birkin was something desirable and elite to viewers (Givhan 2011).

The bags are deliberately sold in limited quantities. By making them exclusive, they become a badge of honor for fashionistas, rather than merely a place to store makeup and sunglasses.

How does it work?

Birkin bags used to be exclusively ordered from Hermes. Waiting lists ran for years, and specific colors and fabrics were more expensive and more difficult to obtain. However, Hermes recently did away with its mandatory waiting lists, although it remains difficult to secure a bag, making it challenging for someone even with "platinum American Express card or a large wad of cash -- to walk into an Hermes boutique and purchase a Birkin" (Givhan 2011).

As well as communicating wealth by simply having a bag, the colors and fabrics themselves suggested even higher levels of elitism on the part of the wearer. While the standard quoted prices for a Birkin is $6,000 at the lowest end of the scale, some can run as high as $85,000, such as the one "made of crocodile and has solid gold closures that are adorned with diamonds. [Even] perusing eBay in search of Birkin bags, one can find a version in matte brown crocodile priced at $22,999" (Givhan 2011).

What is its significance?

"Hermes is characterized by classic elegance. Hermes is the name for a generation of women past who possessed a certain air…an air of grace. A Hermes woman is not seen out at 2am in a nightclub, staggering along the dance floor after an excess of intoxicants. No, impossible. The Hermes woman is delicate and refined. She walks to the tune of an invisible symphony. She has a driver, a coat with a fur-collar, and her perky patent pumps are never scuffed" (Hermes Bags, 2011, Love to Know). The ability to afford Hermes and a love of Hermes show to the world that the owner prioritizes fashion and has enough dedication and connections to secure a bag -- as well as to afford one.

What are the downsides?

Of the Birkin-carrier it is said: "she is admired by all…from a distance" (Hermes Bags, 2011, Love to Know). Birkin bags are used to reinforce class status: "an image that many young women would kill to attain without the encumbrance of an au pair and charm school," that they are a member of the 'upper crust' (Hermes Bags, 2011, Love to Know) The fact that so many celebrities carry the bags is testimony to the fact that 'modern royalty' and Hermes are conjoined in the public imagination, along with the idea that it is possible to buy 'class' and money connotes human and social worth.

The mixed feelings people have about Birkin bags were manifested when Martha Stewart's decision to bring one to her trial for insider trading became public news: "And for a certain breed of woman, it is the handbag equivalent of a Rolls-Royce or a dozen illicit Cuban cigars. It is a bag that announces that one has achieved a breathtaking level of success. It can declare its owner's wealth and status from a distance of 50 paces" (Givhan 2011). Stewart's decision to carry the bag was seen as a sign of arrogance, as a way to communicate her elite position in American culture.

Finally, the fact that the bags are made from exotic animals like ostriches and crocodiles have drawn the ire of animal rights activists, even if the animals are not endangered. Killing animals for fashion is seen in some circles as decadent and unnecessary.

Where is it going?

The Birkin bag has lost some of its cache, given that waiting lists are no longer common, and 'trends' must be constantly in flux in the fashion world. At the height of its popularity, when Martha Stewart brandished it in court, one reporter wrote: "Stewart's Birkin was a hand-stitched symbol of the underlying issues -- the privileges of success -- that have so agitated her detractors" (Givhan 2011). Still, its high price continues to command public attention. Wearing a… READ MORE

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Quoted Instructions for "Hermes Birkin Bags the Cost" Assignment:

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Short Essay Assignment about HERMES birkin bags

The short essay assignment is intended to help support the analytical and descriptive skills through the production of a structured essay about a single innovation. This essay format is known as a 7 Things You Should Know article.

The 7 ThingsÂ format is adapted from articles of a similar title included in the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiatives monthly reports. These articles were created to help disseminate quick, no-jargon overviews of emerging technologies and related practices to education practitioners. The articles are written so that educators and administrators with different areas of expertise and domain specialties can read them and still appreciate their content. It is, in essence, a format developed for the express purpose of diffusing innovations.

You can read more about the development and application of 7 things articles here - http://www.educause.edu/ELI7Things

The assignment, therefore, is to write a 7 things article for sharing an innovation that you have contributed

which is HERMES BIRKIN BAGS

http://www.hermesbirkin-bag.org/

Find resources published by the innovators and other commentary about it. Consider broader implications by including other sources. Find competing innovations to gauge how this area of innovation is.

Evaluation:

You will be evaluated on the following criteria:

1-The significance of your chosen innovation. There are many innovations in

the world - choose something interesting and meaningful for you, tell your reader

why it is important.

2-Clarity of your writing. Your essay should be well written - grammatically and

logically coherent.

3-Depth of your an*****s. Have you actually investigated the innovation? Is there

a website for this innovation? Are there websites dedicated to its use? Have you been able to identify different kinds of adopters and found insight beyond what is included in the initial post?

4-Validity of your findings. Are your assumptions accurate? Have you drawn conclusions from some verifiable source? Do not simply assume that an innovation is useful, of high quality, or even wanted - find proof.

5-Quality of your sources. Each essay should include inline citations and a formal bibliography according to the Chicago Manual of Style format. (see formatting guidelines for more info)

Identify a single innovation within the article.

Keep in mind that the goal of this assignment is to investigate only one innovation. Some articles may include references to more than one innovation. For the purposes of this assignment you should select only one.

-Write about the innovation using instructions and the formatting guidelines below.

There are 8 parts to a7 thingsÂ essay. Each is described below. Keep in mind that this exercise relies on your capacity to study an innovation and interpret your findings. The descriptions below should act as a starting point.

1Scenario

A scenario is a short story about a plausible situation that helps to contextualize the innovation and the key issues associated with it. This is not a description of an innovation, rather it is a short story portraying how the adoption of an innovation changes the circumstances of adopters and those around them. Your scenario should identify at least one key stakeholder (presumably the most important one), it should portray how the stakeholder confronts important concerns associated with adoption or use, it should describe advantages (or disadvantages) associated with adoption, and should be interesting to read. This is an interesting article about building scenarios that may further improve your work - How to Build Scenarios - Wilkinson, L. (1995). How to build scenarios. Wired Magazine. Retrieved August 31, 2010, from http:// www.wired.com/wired/scenarios/build.html

2What is it?

This is a plain, simple, explanation of the innovation. It should not describe the function of the innovation, just what it is and what it does.

3Whos doing it?

Who are the critical adopters, innovators, stakeholders, and others associated with this innovation? This should not be a simplistic an explanation of whoÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s buying or using an innovation. Instead it should explore the social aspects of the innovation but describing how this innovation affects the way we interact with one another and, potentially, the way we perceive society in general. Consider the Social System feature of Rogers theory - what social system, or systems, are involved here?

4How does it work?

This is a more detailed explanation of the innovation. Your description should accurately describe how this innovation functions and how it provides the purported benefits to its adopters. If this is a negative innovation, or if there are some negative aspects to its use, your description should clearly explain how and why this innovation exists.

5Why is it significant?

What makes this innovation important or notable? What preceded it that makes it an innovation in the first place? How does its presence change the perception of other, similar innovations?

6What are the downsides?

Here is an opportunity to explain the downside of this innovation in a more detailed way. For example; what happens if some people adopt this innovation, but others do not? What issues of equality might be revealed or exacerbated by its use? Try to think broadly about how your chosen innovation may actually have some negative aspects. Remember that innovation is perceived novelty

7Where is it going?

Whats the next step for this innovation? What further innovations do you imagine might follow it? Will they be small, incremental, innovations provided by the same innovator? Or will competition or adopters demand breakthrough innovations? Will this innovation spark an entirely new area of previously unimagined ideas? Or, on the other hand, is this an innovation that will not, or should not, be adopted? Most importantly, why do you think so? What substantiates your argument?

8What are the implications of broad diffusion and adoption of this innovation?

What are the implications if this innovation is broadly adopted? How will life change for people who adopt it? How will the social systems it engages change? What if it is a failed innovation and no one adopts it? What then, are the implications? What assertions do you think that we will we be able to make about innovation, in general, if we study the diffusion of this innovation?

Formatting Guidelines

The essay should be formatted using two columns on an 8.5 x 11Â sheet according to the following guidelines.

- Your scenario should begin in the left column and flow through the right column if necessary.

- Create a column break following the scenario and continue with the rest of your analysis.

- Your document should include inline citations and, where appropriate, should make use of citation and attribution.

- Images may be included and should conform to these guidelines.

- The final page of your essay should include a bibliography and any endnotes that

are necessary. No footnotes.

- Where appropriate, you may add to these basic guidelines to enhance the visual

appeal or clarity of your work. This may include the use of watermarks, and

background images - however the text must remain clearly legible.

- The copyright information included at the bottom of the template must appear on

every page of your document (excluding the bibliography) along with a page number.

I will be sending an example of the formatting style.

Please ask any questions you have and please use *easy words and sentences and ***write it clearly and make it unique.

On the bibliography part please add website links of the informations that you have found. use citations.

For this essay I will want 5 pages however since the formatting is different you can write it by looking at the word count.(around 1500 words)

At the bibliography sources i wrote 8 but if you have less or more sources please write it. *****

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