this post might be old, but it gives you some insight on Chanel’s price changes. Read on…
Why do we love Chanel so much? Somehow we feel addicted, magnetically attracted and falling deeper in love with Chanel bags every day. And what do we get in return? Chanel keeps increasing their prices every year. Maybe it’s true what they say: ‘You never know what you got until it’s gone’. Let’s take our most favorite Chanel bag as an example, the classic flap bag. The higher the price goes, the less accessible it becomes. If you and I knew that Chanel is going to double their prices five years ago, wouldn’t you buy two bags instead of one?
Will the craziness ever end? So far, Chanel have increased their prices twice. Will we be lucky enough to experience three hits in a row this year? Gosh, Chanel please have merci on us.
I know some people have waited for their dream bag for a long time (dream bag refer to Chanel classic bag of course, sight!). They work hard to save every penny they can. But they couldn’t keep up with the prices and finally gave up.
So when is the right time to buy your Chanel bag? If you are thinking of getting one, the best time will be NOW, today, within 24-hours! Don’t wait until their timeless bag go on sales, because they probably will ‘never’ ever go on sales.
Let’s take a look at the price changes in 2011, shall we?
So what do you think?
The numbers give you an indication of how aggressively the price changes. The Chanel medium/large and jumbo flap bag are our most favorite pick. Chanel jumbo jumped by 17% and the medium/large by 31%. That’s a lot of money, you could treat yourself a new pair of gorgeous Chanel earrings or a Chanel wallet. So procrastinators will get punished huh?
Do people stop buying after the price increase?
If Chanel saw a decrease in their earnings, will they say: ‘We are doing just fine, let’s continue to increase our prices so we can see our revenue go down.’ Of course not!
The opposite is true, Chanel must be seeing their revenue going up and up, that’s why they are aggressively enforcing new policies and price increases. (Did you heard about Chanel’s one bag per passport policy yet?).
‘Desire is when something isn’t there or isn’t there as you want it’. Our love and attitude toward Chanel is shifting. We start to recognize Chanel as an ultra high-end brand. People who own a Chanel bag prior to the price increases, are more proud than ever to flaunt it around. The more expensive Chanel becomes, the less accessible it will be for us and the more we want it.
So what did Chanel do with their extra profit?
Do they invest in the quality? Or in the design? Well, not really. Though we pay more for our bags, but the style, design and quality remain the same. Some people complain that the value to quality doesn’t match. But what can we do? It’s Chanel right? Is there a substitute for Chanel? I haven’t found any yet.
Is it worth buying a Chanel? Oh yeah. I love the quality and the style is timeless. Chanel reissue 2.55 exist for more than 58 years. It’s like buying gold. Buy it once and it’s forever. A friend of mine got her mother’s vintage Chanel bag as a birthday gift. How cute is that?
New Chanel prices 2012
February 2012 was the first price increase of this year. Normally Chanel increase twice a year, so we expect the next price increase to be in December 2012. Just to give you an indication of how much you will be paying, let’s assume the price increase set to be 20%. What will you be paying?
I heard a story lately. A girl wanted to buy a Chanel jumbo bag in 2011, but she waited. On February 2012, she walked into the boutique and was shocked to hear about the new prices. One day late and she was paying a few hundred dollar more. That must be worst feeling ever, but at least she got her dream bag.
Sometimes I love to imagine: ‘How much would you have saved on a Chanel bag if you bought it in 2011 instead of 2012?’
But then again, if we knew the lottery numbers of yesterday, we would have won a million dollar. But can you imagine to walk into a Chanel boutique on the exact same day that Chanel have decided to increase their prices? That would make me sad. I would still buy it, but it’s just sad.
Rumors are going that Chanel have planned their next move on the end of this year. That will be three price increase in a row. The exact date is not yet confirmed, and probably will never be. But it will be likely to be before Christmas. (You and I know why).
These timeless, wonderful, attractive, lovely, classic Chanel bags will never go on sales. Just a reminder. If you love Chanel classic bags, go get buy one, then wait for the next price increase. You will be proud of yourself for making the best investment EVER in your life.
Once you have it, it’s forever, like diamonds.
Love Chanel bags, but hate their prices.
Follow our member’s extensive detailed discussion at Chanel prices and information 2012 (Despite of the number ‘2012’, we are still active in the comment section). Or become a member and join our Chanel forum. We understand your handbag lust and we would love to have you with us.
(Disclaimer: we tried hard to collect these data’s as accurate as possible. So please use these figures as guidance)
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Hi,
Thanks for such a great article! This has been really helpful in deciding where to buy my bag. I am travelling to Europe in May 2013 (Paris & London) – and was wondering what your thoughts were.
I want to purchase the ‘Classic Chanel Flap Bag, Medium, Caviar Leather’. I am from Toronto, Canada and went into the store and saw it was $4500 CDN. I called London Heathrow Airport and they no longer sell the clasic flap bags. Would you suggest still buying it in Europe?
Thanks!
Christina
Also – do the prices quoted in your other aritcle include taxes? So the Classic Medium Flap Bag is 3100 Euros with taxes?
Which article are you referring? But usually they are included with taxes. It’s not that you get a bag cheaper in Germany because they have lower taxes than in Spain. The prices are the same in all EU countries.
I think you mean the article: chanel prices around the world 2012, yes they are included taxes =D
Hi Christina,
Heathrow was generally ‘cool’ place for Europeans to go. People who live outside EU (US, Canada, Asia etc…) come to Europe to get tax-refund. Their bags are 10 – 12% lower than the original price tag, that’s a lot of money when it comes to buy a $5k Chanel bag.
But Europeans, where do they go to get tax-refund. HK doesn’t even have VAT, I don’t think US have the same thing too, they have ‘sales tax’ that’s different than VAT (value added tax; that’s around 19 – 25% government tax on every product we purchase). But there was a Chanel boutique opened in Heathrow airport, which was heaven for the Europeans, because it was located in the tax-free area. They didn’t need to fill in any form, you just go there and buy the bag and it is ALREADY tax-free.
But for Canadian citizen like you, you can buy Chanel products anywhere within the EU and still can enjoy 10 – 12% tax-refund.
Great!! Thank you so much. I think I’ll wait to buy in May when I travel to Europe then 🙂
So the price in the UK is 2670 pounds with tax?!? I haven’t been able to contact a chanel boutique there.
Also, the heathrow store no longer sells the classic flap 🙁 called yesterday!
Currently yes, Heathrow does sells classic btw, but just not the iconic bags. For example, you can still buy the Chanel shopping tote in tiole, which is classic.
More reads: http://www.bragmybag.com/chanel-boutique-in-heathrow-airport-terminal-3-stopped-stocking-bags
Do you have plans which city in Europe you are going to visit?
Hi!
I know =( I just wish I could get the one I want …. the Medium Chanel Classic Flap! I’ll be visiting Paris & London. Would you suggest buying in one city over the other? Thanks so much for all your help!
Paris is a great experience, becoz that’s where Chanel came from. But I would suggest you to give the boutiques a call. They might not have your bag in stock and you don’t want to be disappointed when you arrive.