In today’s installment of Closet Confessionals, we meet a retired sports coach living in South Florida who has also lived in Connecticut and New York. An immigrant who has called the US home for more than half her life, CC 267 got her first designer bag when she was 30, building a collection of Chanel, Dior, Prada, Givenchy, and more.
As someone whose look hasn’t always met traditional fashion standards, CC 267 has experienced inferior service before, but many times, she’s had SAs who were wonderful. Take, for example, her very first Boy Bag, which was purchased on Fifth Avenue in New York. That bag remains near and dear to CC 267 to this day!
Though this collector hasn’t felt the need to grow her collection in the last couple of years due to increasing prices, lower quality, and simply not loving anything enough to buy it, her holy grail is an H Kelly! Read the full CC below and don’t forget to submit your own!
Basic Bio
Your Age? 41
Your Gender Identity? Female
Where do you live? Florida
What is your occupation? Retired Sports Coach
What industry do you work in? Healthcare
What is your annual salary range? Total household income? $150,000
Are you a PurseForum member? No
Onto The Bags
How many bags do you own? Less than 20 now.
What bags are in your collection?
- Chanel (few Boy Bags, Classic Flaps, few runway specials)
- Celine (few older box – my favorite )
- Gucci
- Prada
- Givenchy
- Dior
- Off- White by Virgil Abloh – love them for daily use
How much is your collection worth? Counting only new ones plus or minus $50,000.
What is your most expensive bag? Well- most expensive was large Chanel double flap bought in store a few years back (now also appreciated in value most) but most valuable surprisingly is Chanel Graffiti tote which was actually impulse buy after I saw it on the runway – I never thought I would buy a fabric bag, however somehow last few years it became a collector’s item which means I could easily sell it for much much more/
Do you ever experience buyer’s remorse after purchasing a bag? If so, how do you deal with it? Not really I’m really, really sensible, and I do my research. I never ever buy a bag without thinking about it first.
Do you feel a desire to downsize your collection? If so, what factors are driving that decision? Replacing a bag with a different bag I may like more 🙂
What age did you get your first designer bag, and what was it? 30 years old – for my birthday
Walked into Chanel on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan and bought a grey lambskin large Boy. Fun fact – I was wearing sweaty gym clothes and flip flops, and my head was shaved on one side. My SA was amazing 🙂
Is there a specific bag you are looking to purchase next? Always looking however haven’t bought a bag since March of 2022. I’m not particularly impressed with what’s on the market, and prices don’t match the quality.
Do you have a ‘holy grail’ dream bag you’ve always wanted to own? Hermès Kelly. Young and sophisticated at the same time. It’s hard to match that.
Any particular bag that holds a special sentimental value? My first Chanel Boy.
Do you feel like your bags change people’s perceptions of you or how you’re treated? Unfortunately yes. I’ve had the privilege of living in affluent parts of New York, Connecticut and now in South Florida and I’m also an emigrant with an accent therefore I always get asked the question of how do I like living in USA. I’ve been here for always 20 years so it’s home, but unless people’s perception is that you belong and know how to assimilate (look is a big part of that) you are put in a questionable category. Just my experience.
How do you take care of your bags? Boxes and dust bags. Intending to rebuild my closet with special places for them 🙂
On Shopping
How often do you buy new bags? Not often,
How has your bag collection changed during the past few years, and why? Stayed mainly the same
I don’t feel anything is worth spending money at the moment.
Do you prefer shopping for bags online or in-store? Why? Always do research online. Buy in person.
Which stores do you frequent the most? Used to shop most designers in New York City, now South Florida malls.
Have you ever returned a bag after purchasing it? Why did you make that decision? No
Do you ever buy second-hand bags? Where do you buy used? Yes – Yoogis Closet and Fashionphile.
Do you ever donate or gift your old bags? If so, to whom? Yes give away, I’ve also sold a few.
Do you feel that social media or influencer culture pressures you to buy more bags or certain brands? Funny but no, actually I’m every marketing strategy nightmare. You could see what the companies are doing and why and the trends behind and what masses are buying doesn’t ever appeal to me.
I think that’s because I have a very strong sense of what I like and don’t like and looking at the big picture, trends pass very quickly and classic style stays.
Do you consider your bag purchases financial or emotional investments? Both. Actually because of the price increases, my Chanel bags could give me a small fund for anything life may throw my way. It’s a comforting thought.
Do you follow the latest fashion trends when deciding on your next purchase, or do you prefer classic styles? Classic through and through. However when Karl Lagerfield designed Boy everyone was on the fence. History proved him right.
Are sales associate relationships instrumental to your shopping? Not really.
Do you enjoy shopping beyond just acquiring something new? I like knowing what’s out there mainly from a social and economical point of view. But when I venture to go to the mall in South Florida I feel like I landed on different planet. I feel very old 🙂
Have you ever felt you received inferior service at a store or boutique due to your appearance, ethnicity, or gender? Yes. Like I mentioned before my appearance was not what the fashion world values. I’m muscular with interesting haircut. Most SAs assume I live in spandex. Wrong.
I hate gym clothes, training is done and the gym clothes come off. Assumption is I don’t care about fashion and how I look which cannot be more wrong.
What factors may dissuade you from buying a bag, even if you like it? Quality, what brand stands for etc.
Is there a brand you outright refuse to buy? Why? Not really, but don’t like most so it’s not a problem.
Do you ever rent designer bags? If so, from where? No.
How do you feel about the concept of “quiet luxury” vs. “loud luxury”? I love that trend. That’s me 100 percent. My grandmother said – “what you wear is how you respect your body, and that’s between you and your garment alone.”
On Budgeting & Perceptions
Who pays for your bags? Myself – I brought all my bags into the marriage. However my husband has been trying to figure out how to actually buy Hermès in store without playing the game. Love him for that.
Do you set aside a budget for your bag purchases? No
Have you ever purchased a counterfeit because you couldn’t afford a designer item? No
Do you use financing or payment plans (like Afterpay or Klarna) for bag purchases? No
Do you think owning luxury bags helps you in professional or social situations? How so? lol in the gym no one cares. And people who do, you won’t care about. Has nothing to do with what you can do.
Do you ever hide purchases from your significant other? Have you ever lied about the cost of a bag to avoid judgment? No
Do you ever resell bags on platforms like The RealReal, Fashionphile, or Vestiaire Collective? No
Have your friends or family ever criticized your bag-buying habits? If so, how did you respond? No
Do you think your shopping is ever a problem? Have you ever felt like you were struggling with a shopping addiction? No
Let’s get personal…
What is your greatest extravagance? Adopting two dogs with health issues – Pug and a Frenchie. Would easily sell bags to pay for their care if needed to.
My husband likes nice cars, we both work really hard every day to have a good life – it’s worth it.
What is your greatest fear? Being older cures you from fears. After you go through some stuff everything can be endured.
What is the trait you most admire in others? Generosity
Which living person do you most admire? Jane Fonda – want to be like her when I grow up. Popped collar and all!
What or who is the greatest love of your life? My husband and dogs. He questions the other.
What is your favorite journey you have taken so far? My life.
What is your idea of perfect happiness? Health and having people I love around.
Any parting words you would like to share with our readers? Getting older is super cool. Youth is overrated
Reading this I developed an image of her until she said she “want(s) to be like Jane Fonda…”. I personally met Jane, at Rutger’s University years ago and we spoke, but I wasn’t unduly impressed with this controversial figure. I wonder what the OP’s infatuation is with her.
You “met” her once and you feel you now know her well enough to cast doubt on someone else being impressed with her? Helena was not impressed after one interaction so no one else better be. Such an unnecessary catty comment.
Not catty at all; just curious about her infatuation. If you do your due diligence research you might better understand why I state she is a controversial figure…which she is.
She definitely is. I do not care for her at all.
Interesting read, she lost me on the Jane Fonda comment too, but have to admit Jane looks great at her age.
Love this, she is 100% herself which I totally respect and I don’t believe you have to agree with everything some one agrees with to respect them. Not sure why everyone is so bent on her Jane Fonda comment, I believe she means that she respects her activism and strength, we don’t need to read into it to much, as my teenage sons would say, its not that deep. You be you girl, love your collection! We are talking bags here ladies!