Ask anyone what the most difficult bag in the world is and chances are they’ll say it’s a Hermès Birkin.
The colorful bags are made in limited quantities and are supposedly only offered to customers who have a long purchasing history with the brand.
And, with a starting price that easily exceeds $10,000 and a limited quantity shipped to the brand’s boutiques each year, it has become a luxury and indulgent item that only a few can attain and afford.
But in recent months, there have been rumors that a new piece de resistance is on the rise: the Margaux bag from Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen’s very expensive brand The Row.
The Row’s Margaux bag, which has been seen on celebrities including Kendall Jenner (pictured in 2023), has been dubbed the new Hermès Birkin.
Ranging in price from $3,490 to $6,810, the bowling-shaped Margaux bag comes in several different sizes, as well as a variety of colors and finishes.
The Birkin comes with a starting price that easily exceeds $10,400, and a limited quantity ships to the brand’s boutiques each year.
The bag, now sold out, has been dubbed ‘The New Birkin’ by many savvy TikTok users. with fashion even calling it a “future relic in the making” in an article published last November.
The brand, founded by Mary-Kate and Ashley in 2006, prides itself on having no loud logos, labels or prints.
“The Margaux was introduced six years ago, but gained greater prominence during the recent ‘quiet luxury’ craze, which is an aesthetic The Row is closely associated with,” Anthony Barzilay Freund, editorial director of 1stDibshe told DailyMail.com.
“It has recently been promoted by some key influencers, including Rosie Huntington Whiteley and Kendall Jenner, which has caused a rise in its appeal,” Freund explained.
Ranging in price from $3,490 to $6,810, the bowling-shaped Margaux bag comes in several different sizes, as well as a variety of colors and finishes. Potential buyers can choose from deliciously luxurious leathers to soft, indulgent suedes.
The bag’s price makes it a “luxury investment,” Freund told DailyMail.com, comparing it to that of a bag from low-key designer Bottega Veneta.
“The Margaux is positioned as a versatile, ‘workhorse’ bag, with a roomy interior and a sleek, simple exterior that makes it perfect for many uses and environments, just like the Birkin,” Freund said.
Now it seems it can’t stay on the shelves.
Actress Jennifer Lawrence is also a big fan of the bag, and will debut it here in a deep purple-brown color in 2023.
“The Margaux was introduced six years ago, but gained greater prominence during the recent ‘quiet luxury’ craze,” said 1stDibs editorial director Anthony Barzilay Freund.
The bag also comes in another shape, known as ‘EW’, which is still just as expensive as the other models.
Content creator Lili Sisto She was one of the first people to start using the bag on TikTok before it became popular.
The piece was gifted to him in September 2023 as payment from a brand he worked with, and while it was something he had been eyeing for a long time, he didn’t think it would become such a big trend.
“I still don’t think the bag is trendy as it can be in your closet forever, but it’s interesting to see how many people are obsessed with it,” Sisto told DailyMail.com.
According to Freund, in the last six months, searches for “Margaux” on 1stDibs have increased more than 300 percent compared to the previous six months.
He explained that the increase began in October and ‘reached a peak’ in January 2024.
Some of the brand’s items, like zipper-front combat boots, have gone viral in the past, but most of its pieces, like cashmere sweaters and tailored suit pants, are meant to be just as off-guard. and luxurious that go unnoticed. naked eye.
New York City-based influencer Madison Rae She bought her bag last fall and was able to get it by calling The Row store on the Upper East Side.
It turns out that they had one left, a size 15 in taupe leather, which they delivered to his house that same day.
The bag has become extremely popular on social media, and many influencers and fashion experts have purchased theirs, such as Lilly Sisto (left) and Delia Atenea (right).
Influencer Madison Rae is another big fan of the Margaux bag
Rae, who resides in New York City, also owns a Birkin bag in addition to her Margaux bag.
Rae told DailyMail.com that the bag had “exceeded” all of her expectations.
“I’m a mother of two young children and a self-proclaimed bag lady,” she explained.
“I walk or take the subway everywhere and sometimes I need to carry a bag that can hold a lot, but at the same time makes me feel elevated and organized.”
But while it may have been possible to get the bag even last fall, it’s not as easy to get your hands on anymore, much like the Birkin.
According fashion business, 85 percent of bags “presented to online retailers, including Bergdorf Goodman and Mytheresa” had sold out, citing data from retail analytics firm Edited.
The bag is currently sold out on The Row’s website, as well as at Saks Fifth Avenue, Mytheresa, Matches Fashion and even UK stores like Harrods and Selfridges.
Rae admitted that not being able to find the bag online made her want it “even more.”
“I think it’s a trend, not a fad,” Rae explained. “He’s having a big time right now, but he’s still low-key and with everything about The Row, you only know it if you know it.”
Over the next five years, the resale value of the bags is estimated to be between $2,000 and $3,000, Freund told DailyMail.com, and possibly even more.
“I still don’t think the bag is trendy as it can be in your closet forever, but it’s interesting to see how many people are obsessed with it,” Sisto told DailyMail.com.
Over the years, the Birkin bag has been very popular with celebrities like Cardi B and Heidi Klum.
Freund said buyers had reported that the bag was “well-constructed and durable,” key attributes for a successful resale.
However, he said it was difficult to predict its exact future resale price due to “fluctuating tastes in fashion, as well as the bag’s unproven history and longevity.”
“Availability is also a huge factor in the vintage market, where scarcity dictates prices,” he said.
“While the Margaux is almost constantly sold out online, it is still continually produced, which may affect the value of the bag on the secondary market over time.”
But as cute and covetable as the bag is, is it really the new Birkin?
Some customers aren’t so sure.
“I don’t necessarily think it’s the new Birkin, but I do think it’s one of the “It” bags out there right now,” Delia Atenea of Mom loves fashion bloghe told DailyMail.com.
“A Birkin is a Birkin and I think you can have both and style them very differently,” continued Atenea, owner of the size 17 black leather bag. “I find the Birkin a little sexier, while the Margaux is more minimalist and elegant”.
Atenea noted that she believes some of The Row’s sales tactics mirror those of Hermès and how they sell Birkins.
Interestingly, The Row’s Margaux bag was first introduced in 2018, but seems to have only recently caught on.
Freund admitted that while calling Margaux the “new Birkin” was “catchy marketing,” he said it was “a little hyperbolic at this stage.”
“The Row is an interesting and unique brand, but nothing can compete with the prestige and legend surrounding Hermès and its Birkin or the bag’s proven track record in the market,” he told DailyMail.com.
“It might be more appropriate to call this bag the new alternative to Louis Vuitton’s Neverfull, Chanel’s Grand Shopping Tote or YSL’s Sac de Jour,” Freund continued.
However, Atenea noted that she felt the tactics The Row was using to sell the bags were beginning to mirror those of Hermès due to their limited availability.
“They simply pulled all the Margaux bags from third-party retailers, which made the bag harder to get, and they have been sold out lately,” she told DailyMail.com.
Freund also noted that The Row’s Margaux was only in its sixth year of production, while Hermès Birkin would celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2024.
As Rae told DailyMail.com: “Let’s let Margaux be what she is and Birkin be the Birkin.” They can coexist!’