Category Archives: Clothing and Accessories

The Queen’s Handbags

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Walking down Regent Street on a sunny afternoon this week and one cannot forget how important 2022 is for Her Majesty the Queen, 70 years doing any job is virtually unheard of so a celebration to mark the occasion is certainly befitting.

Whilst we look forward to not only an extra bank holiday, but many celebrations around the United Kingdom and the world, Queen Elizabeth will no doubt take it all in her stride in a simple and understated manner, much like her handbags.

The queen has always been known for supporting and almost endorsing Launer Handbags. The Queen Mother had purchased one in the 1940s after Sam Launer had relocated to the United Kingdom after Nazi persecution in Czechoslovakia during The Second World War, and it is rumoured that the queen still owns these pieces that date to before she came to the throne. The brand was awarded the Royal Warrant in 1968.

The royal collection of Launer handbags now comprises over 200 individual pieces though, with the favourites reportedly being the Traviata, the Diva and of course, the Royale. It is said that she orders around five pieces per year with custom elements to each, and no doubt Launer will have made sure to make something special for this year’s celebrations.

The values of these bags are almost insignificant compared to many others that we see on a day-to-day basis, with values usually being less than £3000, but they are all hand made in Britain and command a strong following with Lady Margaret Thatcher being another fan of the brand.

It is hard to imagine, but a considerable amount of time and effort has been placed in providing the queen with the perfect bag. It must have long handles so it doesn’t get in the way when she is meeting people, it must also be fairly lightweight as she doesn’t keep much in there during the day – apparently only a pen, spectacles case, lipstick, hand cream and mints make it into the royal handbag.

If you are ever lucky enough to meet the Queen at a function of any sorts though, be aware if she places her bag on a table and looks around the room….This gives her staff a five minute warning that she is ready to leave and to prepare!

So congratulations to The Queen, and to Launer for 70 years of a true British Icon, may there be many more.

The House of Gucci

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Alastair Meiklejon, Senior Valuer

This week marks the long awaited (for me at least) release of The House of Gucci on streaming services around the world. The Cinema release was of course one of those impacted by the pandemic, but thankfully not to the same degree as No Time to Die but realistically, nothing could be that delayed.
The film tells the story of Patrizia Reggiani and her downfall as the long-suffering wife of Maurizio Gucci, part of the much fabled and respected fashion house. Whilst the film takes some interesting turns and slight elaborations on history, what cannot be debated is the importance the house has in the world of fashion – be that in couture, handbags and even jewellery.
There are some things the Italians just do better; fashion, wine, and arguably cars (if you have read my article on Alfa Romeo, then you will understand my thoughts on this subject) and some of the classic designs in the handbag world have evolved from the house.
My personal favourite must be the 1947 Bamboo model, with perfect proportions and the daintiest outline. In a tan calf leather, it can be matched with anything, be it dressed up or down – as comfortable at dinner, as it is at the polo.
The great thing about Gucci, is that it sits at an affordable level, it doesn’t try to be Hermes, nor would it want to, the pieces are unique and instantly identifiable whilst maintaining a mid-level price, and for years have been very affordable, this however has changed in the last three years when the inevitable price increases have hit every fashion house, with Gucci being amongst Chanel, Hermes and Louis Vuitton seeing an almost 25% uplift
in replacement values.
The jewellery that Gucci produces is always bombastic and designed to create (and usually divide) opinions, its sits in a position that knows its place – whilst not high end it is good quality and more about design than its components, and over the years they have produced some stunning pieces, again my favourite pieces are a pair of 1970s silver cufflinks that are simply the definition of Milan in the era, not subtle but with enough flair to
get away with it.
With a lot of ‘fashion jewellery’ it sometimes is relegated to the bottom of the jewellery box along with Chanel and Dior pieces, however again with the price increases we are constantly seeing, perhaps it needs to be looked at in more depth – with the respect it deserves.

Keep on Running…a look at the Sneaker (Trainers!) Collector’s Market

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Why do people collect? Sometimes it can be a fascination with a subject matter, and sometimes a desire to be a completist – to own everything produced by a certain artist, or manufacturer.

A few years ago, I was asked to value a sneaker (that’s trainers here in the U.K.) collection and my eyes were opened to a burgeoning sub culture that is on the increase and shows absolutely no sign of abating.

The collection comprised around 250 pairs of mint (‘boxfresh’ in sneaker speak) shoes that had been bought as art pieces and collectables, rather than something anyone would ever dream of wearing. It included rare pieces from manufacturers that we all know, such as Nike and Adidas but with particularly limited runs and designed by musicians and traditional artists.

The collector was keen to tell me about the way in which the market has changed over the years, and nowadays it involved waiting in line at a retailer and being allowed to purchase only one pair of sneakers. On some occasions, he had recruited friends to go with him so that he could buy more than one pair. The value of the shoes traditionally doubled as soon as they left the store and could be seen for sale on internet sites within hours.

signed pair of Nike Air Jordan 1s

Signed pair of Nike Air Jordan 1s

For insurance, the collection was valued at £480,000. This no doubt will have changed in the last 24 months, with markets changing in the same way as traditional art and new designers dominating the hierarchy of sneaker chic, it’s a culture that just keeps on running…
Even Sotheby’s on-line store features a trainers section. In fact, the signed pair of Nike Air Jordan 1s above have become the most expensive trainers sold at auction, fetching over £460,000 at their online auction of 17 May 2020.

The Nike Air Jordan 1s were game-worn by Michael Jordan in 1985 after being made exclusively for the legendary NBA Chicago Bulls player.

Nike Air Mag Back to the Future 2016 – £26,500

One of recent year´s most famous sneakers – owned by, for example, the Slovakian rapper Rytmus. This reference to the legendary movie Back to the Future was released back in 2011 in a quantity of 1500 pairs. Several years later, in 2016, fans demanded a re-release, which they got – but only 89 more pairs were made, which pushed the Nike Air Mag Back to the Future 2016´s into the top 10 of the most expensive sneakers

Nike Air Mag Back to the Future 2016

Nike Air Mag Back to the Future 2016

Nike Moon Shoe – over £330.000

This shoe was designed by Nike´s co-founder Bill Bowerman for the 1972 Olympics qualifiers. It’s the only remaining preserved pair of this shoe, and it is also unique because the sole was literally made in a waffle maker!The sneakers were auctioned off at Sotheby’s by collector Miles Nadal in July 2019, officially making them the world’s most expensive shoes for many.

Nike Moon Shoe 1972

Nike Moon Shoe 1972

Converse Fastbreak, worn by Michael Jordan – £144,000

This is where we start reaching astronomical prices. This crazy price tag wasn´t caused by the sneaker´s rarity or the use of expensive materials. The third pair on our list was owned by Michael Jordan himself – he won the 1984 Olympic games in the USA in these shoes.

Converse Fastbreak worn by Michael Jordan

Converse Fastbreak worn by Michael Jordan

Air Jordan 12 OVO (Drake Edition) – £75,600

What you see in front of you is the result of a collaboration between the Jordan brand and rapper Drake’s brand OVO (October’s Very Own). At first glance, they don’t seem like anything special. However, at a Toronto Raptors game, Drake gave a pair of these sneakers (with a retail price slightly over $200) to one lucky fan, who managed to sell the shoe for an incredible $100000 on eBay, which made them the second most expensive Jordan sneaker at the time. A lesson to be learned from this is that going to a Toronto Raptors game might be worth it, not only for the entertainment value.

Air Jordan 12 OVO Drake Edition

Air Jordan 12 OVO Drake Edition

 

Out of the Closet – are your clothes insured adequately?

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As a general valuer, I still find it remarkable that the most shut off and private room of the house, is usually the one that hides the biggest mistakes, faux pas, successes, lucky finds – and ultimately valuable items in the property.

The humble wardrobe has for years been the item that comes last in a hierarchy of importance throughout the home – after paintings, sculpture and antiques it would almost seem vulgar to add up those collections of cashmere jumpers and boxed sets of Agent Provocateur underwear that you haven’t quite found the right time for.


So why is the wardrobe often overlooked? One could argue that accumulation plays a big part in this – if a client spends £2000 on a coat, would they contact their broker? Maybe not, but after five years of a new winter warmer every year, that figure starts to rise rapidly…also clothing just being a functional item went out in The Stone Age, clothes have been about style, exclusivity, and quality for centuries and that has created a fairly modern phenomenon – the clothes collector.

Whilst we all have items in the closet that hardly ever get used (for me it is a pair of trainers, used exclusively from January 1st – 7th annually, and a rather ill-advised pale blue suit bought for a garden party in the mid noughties) there are clients of mine that seasonally will spend over £100,000 on clothing and it will only be worn once or twice – this isn’t unusual, and strangely it seems to be becoming more common.

If you haven’t read my previous article on Birkin handbags, please do – it will give you an insight into this fascinating subject and go some distance to explaining why these items receive so much attention and earth-shattering prices. Shoes for many people fall into a similar category of not just simple things that you purchase and wear, but footwear that is lusted after, desired, and envied.

With all of these things considered, does that mean that every HNW client has £1,000,000 of clothing – no, but what it does mean is that a lot of these clients have not considered that the suit they had made at Henry Poole will no longer cost them £2,000, and that pair of Ferragamo’s may have even doubled since they bought them before that cruise, even a simple pair of jeans is almost £100 these days, and I wonder how many people have factored in swimwear or scarves?

What is very clear is that today’s collectables can be displayed, or worn and they all can still change value at an astonishing rate and need to be reviewed regularly. One of my current favourite trends is the astonishing market for rare basketball sneakers (that’s trainers in English) where the secondary market surpasses even Rolex for the biggest increase in value as soon as they walk, or at least are carried out of the shop.

Whilst a valuer cannot go through every drawer in a dressing room, it’s important to establish the client’s taste and style. Getting to know the client and their spending habits is vital to an accurate valuation – that and a keen eye for a pair of Gucci loafers…

Hermes Birkin Handbag

Hermes – Birkin Handbags

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20th Century Iconic Art, without the Baggage

A handbag is by definition an item of luggage that carries one’s items in a simple and yet practical manner. However, in the world of designer and haute couture pieces, it’s much, much more than that.

In the last 20 years, collecting has waned in numerous fields, long gone are the days when that ultra-desirable piece of porcelain from Eastern Germany caused a furore in the auction world… there are however a new breed of collectors who consider exclusivity, style and quality to be of a far higher imperative than age or other factors.

The best place to start with any overview of handbags is the classic Birkin by Hermes. Whilst it is nowhere near the oldest, or most original bag on the market – it defines what has become the phenomenon of collecting what many might consider to be an everyday item.

Hermes Classic Birkin 35

The Birkin was originally designed by Jean-Louis Dumas in the early 1980s and named after the English actress and sometime muse of Serge Gainsbourg, Jane Birkin. Designed to contain all that a lady needed from make up to a hairbrush, and no doubt a few packets of Gauloises.

Since its initial launch the Birkin has become what can only be described as the near definition of a Veblen item, with demand far outstripping availability. It was an instant investment from day one and many collectors now long for those early bags that represented the ethos of the Birkin, in maybe its purest form.

When looking at collections of handbags, one is often struck by the lack of use that these items actually have. I have clients that purchase a £25,000 bag for Royal Ascot, and it will see the light of day for maybe 12 hours at most, then become relegated to the ‘also ran’ shelf at the back of the undoubtably extensive wardrobe.

Hermes Birkin exclusive design by George Condo – gifted by Kanye West to Kim Kardashian

What still shocks me, and usually the owners of these glamorous items, is their ever-increasing values. The most basic, (if the word ‘basic’ should ever be applied to a Birkin), usually increases by at least 15% each year. The very nature of the way that these are produced means that replacing an item, like for like, is pretty much impossible unless you can find one on the ever increasing (but often over inflated) secondary collectible handbag market.

Naturally, over the years bags that have been long since discontinued have gained an almost legendary, mythical status with some exotic skin models reaching astronomical figures, well into the £100,000s bracket. What’s strange is that there are still some bags out there that were purchased still in private collections that are used every day, and the owners have no idea of their potential value.

As a valuer I see, on a weekly basis, these iconic, almost legendary pieces of artwork relegated to a general contents category when it comes to insurance, when in fact they exemplify a modern collectible – certainly not just baggage.

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