Hong Kong tycoon Liu Luanxiong recently announced that he would hold the auction of "Collection: Liu Luanxiong's Unique Handbags" through Sotheby's. The first part of the auction was held from January 30 to February 9, and 77 rare luxury handbags were auctioned. The second part is currently planned to be held in July 2023.
This is the largest single collector's handbag auction in Asian history. From Liu Luanxiong himself, to his two wives Bao Yongqin, "Gamby" Chen Kaiyun, and his former partner Lu Lijun, they are all top collectors of luxury handbags and jewelry. This is not the first time that the Liu Luanxiong family has auctioned their own collections.
In 1998, Baoyongqin sent 60 pieces of jewelry collections to Christie's in Hong Kong for auction, with a total turnover of more than 50 million yuan, making it one of the most precious private jewelry auctions in Asian auction history. A more recent auction was held in 2022. Liu Luanxiong auctioned a number of famous wines in his collection, and the cumulative turnover of the two auctions exceeded 100 million yuan.
The collection in this rare handbag auction comes from luxury brands such as Hermes and Chanel. The first part of the most eye-catching style is Hermes platinum handbags sold in 2006. The body of the bag is made of crocodile skin and matched with diamond 18K white gold clasps. The estimated value is about HK $2 million, while the total value of 77 collections is HK $16.31 million. (about 1.72 million yuan and 14.06 million yuan respectively)
In the past quite a long time, although several leading luxury brands, including Hermes and Chanel, have soared in global expansion, handbag products have never been the favorite of auction houses. Some of the gemstones used in luxury jewelry may take decades to be mined, while luxury handbags rely more on limited sales to preserve their value, and can be reproduced if materials and technology are in place.
Compared with antique and famous paintings, luxury handbags, although they also focus on creativity and craftsmanship, pay more attention to practical properties, which makes them lose a bit in artistic and spiritual values. However, after the epidemic, the auction of luxury handbags suddenly became popular, and led to the auction of such categories as middle-aged and ancient fashion ready to wear, high-end customized clothing, and rare trend co branding.
Sotheby's total turnover in 2021 will reach 7.3 billion US dollars, of which the total turnover of luxury goods will exceed 1 billion for the first time. Christie's global total turnover in 2021 was $7.1 billion, and the auction volume of luxury goods such as jewelry, watches, handbags and wine was $980 million, up 153% compared with the same period last year.
Behind the market changes are generational changes. According to Art Basel and the Art Market Report 2021 released by UBS Group, millennials are the people who invest most in art, and nearly 38% of them spend more than $1 million on art. Christie's and Sotheby's also said that Millennials accounted for 32% and 33% of new buyers respectively.
The influx of young buyers has brought new auction hotspots. Compared with the old generation's love of jewelry, painting and antiques, these people growing up in the era of social media are more enthusiastic about using luxury handbags as a magic weapon to show their social status. In recent years, many luxury brands have successively announced production expansion, and the old limited edition handbags have become rare and valuable.
During the epidemic, leading luxury brands such as Hermes and Chanel maintained their positioning through multiple rounds of price increases, and consumers also tended to buy classic products due to the slowdown in economic growth. But if the initial mentality is to seek novelty and preserve value, then after more and more hot money has poured in, luxury handbags have been given more and more financial attributes.
At Christie's auction in 2021, a Himalayan Kelly 28 handbag inlaid with 18k white gold and diamonds was auctioned at a record price of HK $4 million in Hong Kong. Another black crocodile bag designed by Karl Lagerfeld was also sold at Sotheby's auction for 106400 dollars, which is the most expensive handbag Chanel sold at the auction house.
The auction price of luxury handbags has repeatedly hit record highs, thanks to the highly loose monetary policies of countries, especially western countries, after the epidemic. The currency with nowhere to go has brought a new consumption and investment boom in 2021, and also made the auction price of rare luxury handbags soar. Whether it is for long-term investment or short-term speculation, people believe that this is a game of steady gains and losses, and have "killed red eyes" at the auction.
However, in 2022, things went down sharply, and the bubble showed signs of bursting. At Christie's 2022 Spring Festival Auction of Handbags and Accessories, the single price of the three Hermes handbags with the highest transaction price was more than 1.5 million yuan. There was no bid for the other type of platinum with foggy crocodile skin valued at 300000 to 400000 yuan.
Today, those really rare luxury handbags are still in hand. They are usually years away from the official launch, and are extremely rare in the market. But those styles that have not been published for a long time and have many circulating styles are in an awkward situation. When the industry is hot, it gets credit, and when the industry is cold, it is quickly forgotten.
In contrast, Hermes is one of the most stable brands in 2022 when the luxury industry is in recession. The problem is that platinum bags have gained a large number of consumers who are willing to spend a lot of money to distribute goods, but their collection value is far from being widely recognized as jewelry and watches. This is also the dilemma faced by other soft luxury categories.
This time, Liu Luanxiong offered 77 rare handbags, which may allow many handbag collectors to harvest the one they have been longing for for years. But if you want to make long-term investment, you should think twice before following the film.
