My spouse doesn't spend a lot of money, at least not relative to other stories I hear

That said, she wants to buy a $2K Louis Vuitton bag as something that will both last and appreciate in value

I don't understand the allure, but I remember Nervy saying buying a nice bag that will last is worth it.

Told her it's the equivalent of me going out and buying a nice breitling watch, but it's not something I desire and accessories like this just make you a target for thieves more than anything.

Help me understand the desire for this

Is it your purse?

That's my purse


I don't know you.

Ghost of Bisbee said:

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My spouse doesn't spend a lot of money, at least not relative to other stories I hear

That said, she wants to buy a $2K Louis Vuitton bag as something that will both last and appreciate in value

I don't understand the allure, but I remember Nervy saying buying a nice bag that will last is worth it.

Told her it's the equivalent of me going out and buying a nice breitling watch, but it's not something I desire and accessories like this just make you a target for thieves more than anything.

Help me understand the desire for this

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It's not the $2,000 bags that are increasing in value. Those are the moderately priced, mass produced bags that are targeted towards middle class consumers who buy them because they think that's what rich people buy.

Buy her the LV before she discovers Hermes.

You can buy plenty of fakes on Harwin in Houston and at most new crap flea markets. Take her and buy her one she likes and remind her to quit trying to live beyond her means.

Ghost of Bisbee said:

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.....Told her it's the equivalent of me going out and buying a nice breitling watch, but it's not something I desire and accessories like this just make you a target for thieves more than anything.

Help me understand the desire for this

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What are a few of your more expensive personal possessions or activities? Country club membership, season football tickets, guns, golf clubs, fishing gear, outdoor tools/equipment, motorcycle, etc.

You may not want a fancy watch but many people spend amounts on items others consider unwarranted. Do you have any such expenditures?

You said she doesn't spend a lot of money. Buy her the $2,000 bag. Get her what she wants. Then take her out for a meal and tell her how happy you are to have her.

I am sure there are things you spend money on she doesn't see any value in. Based on your posts on B&I, for a once in a few years expense, this would be a trivial amount of money for you. Not really worth racking your brain over.

Now if she starts wanting a new one every other month then that becomes a different situation.

Surprise her with a Birkin purse.

She'll tell all her friends.

agz win said:

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Take her and buy her one she likes and remind her to quit trying to live beyond her means.

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Why do you assume it's beyond their means? My wife has a a Louis Vitton purse that had about the same impact on us as a purse from TJ Max when we were in our 20s

I'm admittedly kind of a high end purse and shoe *****. They make me happy; not sure I can explain why. They're just beautiful and the quality and craftsmanship brings me joy. My ex is a watch guy and has gifted me a couple of nice watches that I do really love, but just don't quite feel the same way about as I do my bags and shoes. So it's not just that I like expensive stuff.

That being said, a $2k Louis Vuitton is not going to appreciate in value. The bags that appreciate are Chanel, Hermes, Dior, etc in the $10k-$40k range. I'm not saying you shouldn't buy it for her, because if it makes her happy and you can afford it, then absolutely she should have it. But using appreciation as a justification for a bag in that range isn't realistic.

We'd like to see YOUR bags. IYKWIM.

Bottega Veneta or GTFO…

At least I THINK that's how you spell it….gave one of those to my daughter for her Bday….

Get her a $2000 purse, you get a $2000 gun.

Animal Eight 84 said:

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Surprise her with a Birkin purse.

She'll tell all her friends.

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Unless he's going for the second hand market, he'd have to get an appointment first. And given the topic of the thread I doubt he's moving in those circles.

I still don't understand the appeal of luxury goods. Now this thread is making me think we should spend more money on these damn bags. Who gives a **** about keeping up with the joneses?

I have a Swiss automatic watch I didn't break the bank for, and it works great

What's wrong with a knockoff?

FIDO*98* said:

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agz win said:

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Take her and buy her one she likes and remind her to quit trying to live beyond her means.

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Why do you assume it's beyond their means? My wife has a a Louis Vitton purse that had about the same impact on us as a purse from TJ Max when we were in our 20s

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Only assumption is they haven't figured out pants with stretchy pockets eliminates needs for purses.

just make sure you go with her so you can get a couple glasses of champagne out of the deal

Hi! Sorry I'm late.

Ghost of Bisbee said:

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I still don't understand the appeal of luxury goods.

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If you are a middle class American, everything you probably use is a luxury good. Your house, cars, TVs, cookware, blender, etc. It's all relative. Is 2K something you have to account for or is it simply numbers changing on a computer screen? Keeping up with the Jones's is when you're spending money you don't have or you can better spend elsewhere to obtain something you probably shouldn't buy. If you'll feel the 2K, she probably can live without it. If 2K is a drop in the bucket, make your wife happy

You're right, here's my deal. I am (generally) not a materialistic person. And yet, I dropped my first adult paycheck on a large Burberry bag. It's the first and last expensive bag that I've bought because I don't need to buy another. Technically you could say I didn't "need" that one, but it's out of character for me and I wanted it.

A couple of things.
- A classic, luxury bag is always in style and in season. It spans decades - no exaggeration. And what I mean by classic is that it uses the classic / traditional designs that the brand is known for. (Eg. the normal LV print for Louis Vuitton is one of their classic designs).

- High end bags are well made and will last a lifetime. I'm not talking about Michael Kora, Coach or Kate Spade - most of that stuff is crap. But I'll have my Burberry bag until I die and it will last that long.

- She only needs to buy one because of the aforementioned reasons. My Burberry bag is a certain size - I can put a laptop in it and everything else a normal purse holds - and I only have one bag that size. So instead of buying a bunch of different ones in different styles and designs, I have 1. I spent the money and picked a size that I knew would be useful for many, many years and it's been perfect.

RE: not understanding luxury goods.

When I have a really hard week, one of my favorite things to do is go to Bob's / Al Biernat's / Eddie V's / Uchi / high end restaurant where they trip over themselves to take care of you. It's not cheap, but being in the upscale environment with someone doting on me helps me to relax and remember that I'm doing pretty well, no matter what. Having a nice bag - or a nice watch - can sometimes serves as a soothing reminder for me as well.

Appreciate all the thoughts here, especially from the ladies who know about these bags and can relate.
If it's like how men view nice watches, I'm starting to understand the appeal

I like blue bonnet's suggestion, too

We are fairly frugal, so this will be a rare purchase for us. At least until we become TexAgs millionaires

FIDO*98* said:

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agz win said:

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Take her and buy her one she likes and remind her to quit trying to live beyond her means.

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Why do you assume it's beyond their means? My wife has a a Louis Vitton purse that had about the same impact on us as a purse from TJ Max when we were in our 20s

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She still like it?

gggmann said:

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Buy her the LV before she discovers Hermes.

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I was curious lol. Just a Hermes bag strap costs $3500. I got a friend who does leather work that'll make something nicer than that from a strip of leather that'll run you $15

wangus12 said:

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gggmann said:

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Buy her the LV before she discovers Hermes.

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I was curious lol. Just a Hermes bag strap costs $3500. I got a friend who does leather work that'll make something nicer than that from a strip of leather that'll run you $15

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Really? In that case, I'd to like to order 100 Hermes replica bag straps from your friend.

Purses don't appreciate in value….

one safe place said:

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You said she doesn't spend a lot of money. Buy her the $2,000 bag. Get her what she wants. Then take her out for a meal and tell her how happy you are to have her.

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This is a bad precedent to set.

FIDO*98* said:

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Ghost of Bisbee said:

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I still don't understand the appeal of luxury goods.

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If you are a middle class American, everything you probably use is a luxury good. Your house, cars, TVs, cookware, blender, etc. It's all relative. Is 2K something you have to account for or is it simply numbers changing on a computer screen? Keeping up with the Jones's is when you're spending money you don't have or you can better spend elsewhere to obtain something you probably shouldn't buy. If you'll feel the 2K, she probably can live without it. If 2K is a drop in the bucket, make your wife happy

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This. We live better than like 95% of the world. We just don't realize it. I grew up poor and something that cost like $50 seemed super expensive. Now I make the occasional $50 impulse buy on something that looks mildly useful but I can still live without.

gggmann said:

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Buy her the LV before she discovers Hermes.

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https://mightychic.com/products/hermes-birkin-30-bag-diamond-himalaya-blanc-crocodile-palladium-hardware

Hermes Birkin 30 Bag Diamond Himalaya Blanc Crocodile White Gold Hardware

$ 525,875.00

Don't fall for the bs of "appreciate in value". Are you going to sell it later? No. So it is a dead investment.
I know a friend who bought a Rolex watch for 25k or so and is claiming that it has appreciated. Then sell the damn thing.

I had a relative that bought a little convertible Mercedes Kompressor and on the one hand griped about how much service cost at the dealership but then tried to justify it by saying a Mercedes is "an investment".

LupinusTexensis said:

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Get her a $2000 purse, you get a $2000 gun.

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The fact that consumers (not just women, look at cars) prefer something with branding plastered all over it instead of something custom or bespoke tells you that the perception of others is more important to them than the utility or actual value of the item.

You could both moderate your levels of consumption (and by that, I mean she could occasionally also shoot a $3,000 firearm, pay for more ammo, and still be under that $4,000 pricetag).

It doesn't work that way. For one, psychologically, we place a premium valuation on things we own through the endowment effect. This is readily shown through experimentation, like the coffee cup experiment.

For two, people buy luxury goods to enjoy them, not necessarily as investments. The expectation of appreciating in value certainly influences the economics and the decision making, but that doesn't mean that an appreciation in market value should trigger a sale or that such an appreciation is enough to overcome the endowment effect. Think of the watch like a vacation property. You buy it to use it and enjoy it, it's a luxury not many people have, and it's real estate that will most likely appreciate. 15 years after buying it, it may be worth 50% more than what you paid, but if you still enjoy it, there is no utility in selling it. It's nice to know that it has appreciated, but unless the appreciation is worth substantially more than the utility of the property and the enjoyment of having it, there's no reason to sell it. As long as your friend still likes the watch, there's no reason for him to sell no matter how much it has appreciated.