7 fun facts about Hermès' Birkin, Prada's new jewelry line + how to get a job at Vogue

plus the updated list of fashion jobs and internships

Oct 14, 2022

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7 Fun facts about the Hermès Birkin Bag

Ever wondered how the Hermès Birkin Bag became the most desirable bag and has maintained that unreachable status for over three decades?

Let us tell you the story in these 7 short points.

It all began on a Paris-London flight in 1981 when the actress, singer and it-girl of the moment Jane Birkin dropped her belongings by chance in the plane. And just like in a movie, the executive chairman of Hermès himself, Jean-Louis Dumas, helped to collect her belongings. Jane said not being able to find a suitable bag for her everyday needs as a young mother, so the two began discussing the ideal roomy and classic bag, and started sketching it right away.

It’s hard to imagine that the bag, officially created in 1984, didn’t become famous overnight. In the early 80s, Chanel heavily dominated the luxury market, meaning the Birkin didn’t take off in the status we know it as today until the mid-to-late 90s.

Finally, in 2001 the Birkin officially received the ultimate status symbol projected by the iconic, fan-favourite Sex and The City show. When the bag was used as a plot, showcasing Samantha Jones skipping the five-year waiting list with the help of a celebrity client for the coveted it-bag. It is said that even after the episode was aired, the Birkin waiting list tripled in length.

Speaking about the waiting list, the Birkin Bag has always been an accessory of high demand but limited access. While the 90s and early 00s were filled with waiting lists (6 years being the longest recorded!), now you can’t just walk into an Hermès store and buy one. All you can do now is become important enough or spend enough to be offered the infamous bag. What’s more, Hermès also places a limit on how many Birkin bags each client can purchase per year.

Many celebrities managed not just to get one bag, but get an entire collection! For instance, Victoria Beckham, who is often spotted with the renowned bag in a variety of colors, has been reported to have a collection of over 100 Birkins, estimated to be worth over two million dollars.

The price of the first Birkin bag is said to be around $2,000, while today the prices are ranging anywhere from twelve thousand dollars to half a million.The most expensive bag sold to date is the coveted Hermès Birkin Himalayan bag, which sold at an auction for just over $500,000.

All exclusively hand-made in France, all the Hermes signature bags are crafted by a group of 180-250 artisans who take care of cutting, perfecting, and stitching them. The factory can only produce 15 bags a month, and it is said that 48 hours of careful craftsmanship by the artisans is needed to create one single Birkin bag!

Want to learn more about the process of creation of the infamous bag, and how it became so exclusive? Head over to our latest article on Glam Observer to learn more curious facts!

What's happening in the industry this week?💚

London Fashion Week: part 2

Due to Queen Elizabeth’s passing, some brands had to postpone their fashion shows that were held in a second-round between the 6th and 13th of October. The list of the fashion houses to present their collections included Alexander McQueen, Roksanda, Raf Simons, Prada, Celine, Moncler, Off-White, Marc Jacobs, among others.

Apart from the runway shows, the British Fashion Council prepared a programme of over 450 events and experiences to celebrate creativity in London, with a key focus on sustainability, upcycling and zero-waste craftsmanship. Notable moments during this week include the opening of the new Marc Jacobs flagship store on Regent Street, Prada’s global launch party for its new fragrance “Paradoxe”, and the special event for Björk “powered by Gucci” hosted by AnOther Magazine.

Thom Browne is the new chairman of the CFDA

The Council of Fashion Designers of America named Thom Browne as its next chairman, who will assume the role effective Jan. 1 for a two-year term, succeeding Tom Ford.

The designer became a member of the CFDA in 2005. Since then, he has won the CFDA’s Menswear Designer of the Year award three times: in 2006, 2013 and 2016. Browne is also a past member of the organization’s admissions committee and serves on the selection committee for the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund.

Yves Saint Laurent's New Exhibition

There is a new exhibition opening today called “Gold: Les Ors d’Yves Saint Laurent” at the YSL museum in Paris, marking 60 years since the couturier’s first eponymous collection by exploring his love of glitz. The concept was imagined by Elsa Janssen, the director of the museum, who also serves as curator for this exhibition. Her main idea behind this project was to remind that besides being a great designer, Saint Laurent was also someone “solar, an epicurean with a deep notion of joy, like a festive bubble”.

The collection features famous pieces from past collections, such as three jackets with gilded buttons that make reference to the wool peacoat that opened his 1962 haute couture show; the braided headdress from Yves Saint Laurent’s fall 1967 haute couture collection and the 1966 gold evening dress that features in the David Bailey shot serving as the exhibition’s signature. Some parts of the museum also present pieces dedicated to Saint Laurent’s nightlife - such as his famous black tuxedo - that was at once a source of inspiration and escape for the couturier.

LVMH’s Fendi and Bulgari have new sites in Italy

Fendi has inaugurated this Wednesday, October 12, two ultra-modern factories designed with a sustainable approach to limit the impact to the environment as much as possible. The first one, specializing in leather goods, opened at Capannuccia in Bagno a Ripoli near Florence. The 30,000 square meter factory received an investment of more than 50 million euros, which is the highest amount made by the group in Italy for a single site. The second is Fendi's New Factory Shoes in Fermo, in the Marche region, that inaugurated on October 5 and received an investment from LVMH of 12 million euros.

As to Bulgari, it has also launched work to double the production capacity of its jewellery workshop in Valenza, in Piedmont just five years after inaugurating in 2017, what was already considered the largest jewellery production site in Europe. With a surface area of 14,000 square metres, it is planning to expand to a total of 17,500 square metres by the end of 2024, and add two new buildings.

LVMH reports a big rise in sales

LVMH has been on everyone’s radar lately, as the world’s biggest luxury conglomerate saw quarterly sales jump to 19.8 billion euros, which represents an increase of 19 percent over the same period last year. LVMH said its Fashion & Leather Goods business group recorded revenue growth of 31 % in the first 9 months of 2022, and the top brands with Louis Vuitton at the top, Dior, Loewe, Celine and Fendi, saw an increase of 22 percent, anchored by strong sales in Europe.

Jean Paul Gaultier is sued by Florence’s Uffizi Gallery

The Italian museum is suing the fashion house for the “unauthorized use” of the imagery of the famous paintings “The Birth of Venus”, “The Creation of Adam” and “The Three Graces” of Botticelli, Michelangelo and Rubens, respectively. They have been found in Jean Paul Gaultier’s ready-to-wear capsule collection “Le Musée” which was released earlier this year as a tribute to the art world.

What’s new in Jewelry 💍

Prada launches its first fine jewelry line

The luxury brand Prada will unveil next Wednesday its first fine jewelry line called “Eternal Gold”, being the first one made with 100 % certified recycled gold, meeting “Chain of Custody” standards set by the Responsible Jewelry Council. Featuring 48 pieces, Prada’s signature triangle motif is at the core of the collection that was helmed by the Prada jewelry director, Timothy Iwata, who used to work at the global innovation office at Cartier.

For its launch campaign, photographed by David Sims, Prada chose as the new faces the award-winning American poet and activist Amanda Gorman; American actor, model and singer-songwriter Maya Hawke, and Dutch-Korean-Canadian musician Somi Jeon.

Bulgari celebrates 50th Anniversary in the U.S

To mark the 50th anniversary of the Italian family jewelry business expansion to the United States, Bulgari has launched a limited-edition capsule collection of its iconic Monete collection, the U.S. Golden 50. It was imagined by Nicola Bulgari (grandson of the brand’s founder Sotirios Bulgari) who was a keen ancient Roman coin collector and launched the style in the 1970s. The U.S. Golden 50 18-karat gold collection consists of a Sautoir necklace, pendant necklace, flip ring, Tubogas cuff, chain link bracelet, and coordinating chokers, one of which is encrusted with pave diamonds.

Fashion Career Tip of the Week

Do you dream about working at Vogue one day ?

Read our latest article to discover the very best tips that will get you one step closer to your dream job at the top fashion magazine. We’ll talk about:

What to study to work at Vogue
Where to find jobs/internships at Vogue
Resume and cover letter tips

And much more!

The article is also available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Nice things 💖

Naomi Campbell at the Alexander McQueen’s Spring/Summer 2023 show “First Sight” in London.The collection from creative director Sarah Burton offered a total of 41 looks, that was described as “searching for humanity and human connection”.

To all “And just like that” fans out there: the team of costume designers of the show released a sneak peek of a piece designed by Valentino especially for the long-awaited second season. What could it be? And who will wear it?

What to watch this week 👩🏻‍💻

This week, in order to learn more about the history of the iconic Hermès Birkin Bag, we suggest you to watch the following video that breaks down the reasons behind its high prices. Enjoy!