A $38,000 handbag? For most people, it's unthinkable.
But for the richest sliver of the global population, it's a realistic option — and buyers aren't short of choices.
In the upscale boutiques of Singapore, New York or Zurich — where Oprah Winfrey claims a sales clerk refused to show her a $38,000 bag — purses priced in the four figures are common. In fact, they're so common that a higher level of luxury exists to set the super-rich apart from the merely affluent.
A budget of about $1,000 to $2,000 will buy one of the cheaper bags by luxe labels such as Prada, Hermes, Fendi, Chanel or Louis Vuitton.
But that's just the starter step. Many labels create the same style of bag in a range of fabrics, from leather to more expensive calfskin, snakeskin and crocodile skin. Adding silver or gold clasps or precious stones can increase the price tag, while limited editions and one-off creations can fetch astronomical sums.
The item at the center of the Winfrey dispute was reportedly a Tom Ford Jennifer bag — named for Jennifer Aniston, a fan of the American designer. The version on sale at Zurich's Trois Pommes was one of the higher-end models, priced at 35,000 Swiss francs ($38,000).
Winfrey says she had a racist encounter while shopping in Switzerland and the apologetic national tourist office agrees. The billionaire media mogul told the U.S. program "Entertainment Tonight" that a shop assistant in Zurich refused to show her black handbag because it was "too expensive" for her.
Oprah was in town to attend the July's wedding of her longtime pal Tina Turner, who lives in a Swiss chateau along Lake Zurich. Forbes magazine estimates that Winfrey earned $77 million in the year ending in June.
A $38,000 bag is nothing in some boutiques. Prices for Hermes' Birkin bag — a square, sturdy tote that has become one of the most-coveted luxury handbags since it was introduced in the 1980s — start at about $10,000, but have gone as high as $200,000, for a red crocodile skin Birkin sold at a 2011 Heritage Auctions.
Hermes also produced a platinum version studded with 2,000 diamonds, designed by Japanese jeweler Ginza Tanaka and valued at almost $2 million.
That, however, is not the world's most expensive handbag. According to Guinness World Records, that honor goes to a heart-shaped gold purse from jewelry house Mouawad covered in 4,500 diamonds and valued at $3.8 million.
(ALSO)
Clerk Says Oprah Lied about Racist Incident in Switzerland
Media mogul Oprah Winfrey told the press that a saleswoman at a Swiss handbag shop refused to show her an expensive $38,000 purse because she thought it was “too expensive” for Ms. Winfrey. Now, however, the saleswoman is speaking out, saying she never refused to show Oprah the purse and can’t understand why Oprah is lying on her. She went on to say that she’s being made to feel “powerless”, according to The Daily Mail.
During a conversation with a local newspaper, the Italian worker at the luxury boutique says her life has been turned upside down since the Queen of All Media accused her of racism.
Although Winfrey claims the saleswoman refused to show her the black crocodile bag, the saleslady says that’s not true and she’d have no reason for refusing to show Winfrey the handbag.
‘I wasn’t sure what I should present to her when she came in on the afternoon of Saturday July 20 so I showed her some bags from the Jennifer Aniston collection,’ said the saleslady.
‘I explained to her the bags came in different sizes and materials, like I always do,” she continued.
Then she goes on to discuss the confusion over the more expensive handbag.
‘She looked at a frame behind me. Far above there was the 35,000 Swiss franc crocodile leather bag,” the saleslady explained.
“I simply told her that it was like the one I held in my hand, only much more expensive, and that I could show her similar bags.
‘It is absolutely not true that I declined to show her the bag on racist grounds. I even asked her if she wanted to look at the bag.”
The saleslady said after that, Winfrey continued looked around for a short while then left.
“She looked around the store again but didn’t say anything else. Then she went with her companion to the lower floor. My colleague saw them to the door. They were not even in the store for five minutes,” explained the clerk.
The saleslady says she never told Winfrey,’You don’t want to see this bag. It is too expensive. You cannot afford it.’ She said she doesn’t understand why Winfrey is saying that but it’s just not true, and her life’s been made very difficult by having someone as rich and as powerful as Oprah accuse her of racism.
The clerk went on to ask why, if Oprah was displeased with her service, she didn’t bring it up with her boss, who was also at Tina Turner’s wedding with Oprah.
Scriptures:
Jer 4:30
And [when] thou [art] spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; [thy] lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.
Eze 16:33
They give gifts to all whores: but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom.
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