Celebrity bag collections are almost addictive to look at. The mixture of private wealth and paparazzi interest makes for incredible bag-spotting, and it’s easy to get carried away in imaging what it would be like to march into any designer boutique and pick whatever you wanted to take home. What’s harder to imagine is what the bill would look like, and what that kind of habit would add up to in the long run, especially if your preferences run toward a brand that tries to keep its pricing structure close to the vest.
That, of course, is where we come in.
We’ve noticed lately that Kris Jenner has acquired some eye-popping exotic Hermès bags in the past year, which join her already enviable handbag collection. On top of that, Hermès has a long-standing policy of not “gifting” bags to celebrities, so we know she (or someone–it’s possible one or two were a gift, considering the social circles Kris runs in) paid for what she has. And although we probably don’t have photographic evidence of every Hermès bag in her closet, we certainly have a lot, which is why everyone’s favorite momager is our first test case for a little bit of handbag math.
It’s difficult to say what many of these bags cost when they were brand new–we don’t know when Kris purchased them and it’s difficult to tell from photos whether a bag is niloticus or porosus crocodile, for example–but Hermès bags are unique in the scope of resale information available about them on the Internet. Also, it’s likely that Kris purchased some of these through a third-party dealer; Kim has sold bags that way in the past, and some of the models in Kris’s arsenal were no longer being made when she started carrying them, which further complicates the purchase price scenario.
With that in mind, we decided to estimate what Kris’s bags would be worth if sold today. To do that, we pored over auction listings both past and current on Heritage Auctions, where we know the Kardashian-Jenners have a business relationship, as well as pricing from other reputable resellers. Below, check out our estimates for each bag, as well as the total.
Hermès Birkin in Ebene Leather and Natural Toile Fabric, 35cm
Estimated Sale Price: $11,000
Hermès Birkin in Black Togo Leather, 40cm
Estimated Sale Price: $12,500
Hermès Black Matte Crocodile Birkin
Estimated Sale Price: $42,500
Hermè Bougainvillea Birkin, 25cm
Estimated Sale Price: $14,000
Hermès Braise Shiny Crocodile Birkin, 35cm
Estimated Sale Price: $96,000
Hermès Electric Blue Birkin, 35cm
Estimated Sale Price: $19,000
Hermès Graphite Birkin, 35cm
Estimated Sale Price: $13,000
Hermès Beton Matte Alligator Birkin, 35cm
Estimated Price: $72,000
Hermès Himalayan Crocodile Kelly Bag, 25cm
Estimated Price: $116,000
Hermès Kelly Long Wallet
Estimated Price: $2,000
Hermès Sellier Kelly Bag, 32cm
Estimated Price: $8,000
(Note: This is the estimate we’re least satisfied with; we couldn’t find a pink sellier Kelly of this size in any reseller’s past or present inventory, and color can weigh heavily on how much value an Hermès bag retains.)
Hermès Limited Edition Candy Birkin Bag
Estimated Price: $12,000
Hermès Shiny Electric Blue Crocodile Birkin, 35cm
Estimated Price: $61,000
Hermès So Black Birkin, 35cm
Estimated Price: $32,500
Hermès White Birkin, 35cm
Estimated Price: $12,500
Hermès Vermillion Kelly Pochette
Estimated Price: $10,000
I’d be making that face if my handbags were worth this much, too.
Grand Tote: $534,000
As it turns out, building a family entertainment empire will buy you a lot of Hermès.