With more and more families finding it necessary to watch where every penny goes, treating
yourself to a special, luxury purchase is a huge deal.
It's easy to look to celebrities and pop culture to see what's hot and what's worth the hefty
price tag, because if A-listers are wearing it, it must be good, right?
Not so fast.
Since that's not always the case, let's talk about some luxury brands that aren't worth
their weight in gold.
Once touted as one of the most popular handbag lines in the world, Coach has recently declined
in popularity after too many sales made them far too accessible to be considered exclusive.
Coach is trying to rectify that problem by introducing even more expensive bags to its
already pricey line and cutting back on online flash sales.
While that means things are getting better for the company, Coach is no longer viewed
in quite the same light it once was... and that's something you might want to consider
if you're purchasing one of their bags in order to make a statement.
There was a time when Michael Kors handbags were highly coveted status symbols, but the
MK bubble burst right around the same time that Coach began to lose its following.
According to Business Insider, the luxury brands had similar problems: overexposure
and increased accessibility led to a huge decline in sales.
The company is trying to turn itself around and improve its image, but it isn't quite
there yet.
While the company still markets itself as a luxury brand, if you're going to shop Michael
Kors you should wait for one of the many sales which often feature markdowns up to 50 percent.
There's something shady about the sunglasses industry, and we aren't just talking about
the lenses.
It doesn't matter if you're buying a designer pair or some cheap shades from the drugstore,
your sunglasses were likely made by the same company: Luxottica.
Luxottica has a major monopoly on the sunglasses industry, with at least half a billion people
around the world likely owning a pair made by the company.
Luxottica makes sunglasses for brands like Chanel, Polo, Tiffany, Coach, and Ray-Ban,
and while Luxottica won't reveal their exact markup, their designer shades can retail for
an estimated 20 times what they actually cost to produce.
Many of their cheaper glasses also look quite similar to the more expensive brands, making
designer sunglasses quite the rip-off.
All you're really paying for is the brand's logo on the side of the frame, which most
people probably won't see anyway.
There's no denying that SMEG appliances are gorgeous.
The retro-style brand was founded in Italy in 1948, but has become more popular since
the 1990s when it launched a line of 1950s-style refrigerators.
Today, they have other retro-inspired appliances that might look good in your kitchen but aren't
so great for your wallet or practical use, if reviews are any judge.
SMEG might be regularly praised for its sleek design and brightly-colored finish, but it
also tends to get marked down when it comes to things like general useability.
That's not the worst news.
When the brand paired up with Dolce & Gabbana, they succeeded in producing some beautifully
designed appliances... with astonishingly high price tags.
How high?
A Dolce Gabbana and SMEG blender will run you a whopping $850.
"That's insane!"
It only gets worse, because a refrigerator from the line costs a laughable $50,000!
No refrigerator is worth that much money, especially when it comes with less storage
space than the average refrigerator model.
While Prada might sell some quality goods befitting luxury brands, some of their offerings
are questionable to say the least.
For example, there is absolutely no world in which a $185 paperclip can be worth the
cost.
Sure, it's made out of sterling silver and is officially advertised as a money clip,
but if you have so much cash that you can sink nearly $200 on a money clip, then you
have too much cash for a money clip to hold.
"No I have never once experienced anything remotely like that.
NEVER."
The high price tag is in keeping with the line's other outrageously priced products.
The average cost of a purse runs into the thousands.
While Hermès still retains its ironclad reputation as being one of the world's most iconic fashion
brands, this is still a line you might want to skip if you're looking to get good value
for your money.
Let's examine the Hermès Birkin, a luxury purse that many consider to be the holy grail
of handbags.
Prospective buyers have to sign up for a two-year waiting list and fork over a five-figure sum
before taking one of these home.
Is it worth the money?
Former CEO Patrick Thomas explained the exorbitant price tag, saying:
"There's always one craftsman responsible for the whole process of the bag, from the
start to the end.
To create a single bag, it costs around 15 to 20 hours."
In other words, you're paying nearly $1,000 an hour to have that bag made just at the
low end.
The crippling cost of the Birkin may be part of the reason so many of them end up being
put up for collateral at pawn shops.
Cost aside, even the person the bag is named for, model and singer Jane Birkin, went through
a love-hate phase with the bag because of the cruel treatment endured by crocodiles
that are slaughtered for the bags.
You're far better off spending your money on a brand that is kinder to animals, not
to mention your wallet.