“Pampering”, “treatment”, “massage”… Reading these words on the card, the temptation to indulge in an hour of self-surrender is strong.
Except those tantalizing terms don't lead to a terrycloth bathrobe and zen music.
Here, we sell a bath of youth to pieces of leather goods.
A concept encouraged by the rise of the second hand and the mercantile reflex it triggers.
Because in the world of clothing, mentalities are changing: now, we capitalize on our wardrobe.
And nothing is more chic than wearing a piece sublimated by time, or reselling a bag more expensive than its displayed price.
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It is therefore on the ground floor of the Bon Marché, in Paris, that the affair takes place.
For several weeks, the Collector Square vintage accessories resale platform has been offering a 40m2 “spa” there, of a new kind.
Her star clients are called Kelly, Birkin or Constance.
In other words, luxury bags branded Hermès that sell for exorbitant prices on the second-hand market.
“Very often, these pieces are inherited, bought second-hand or found at the bottom of a closet after years of abandonment,” explains Joris Merle, shoe shine colorist in charge of “pampering” these models.
We are surprised by this verb which sounds a little sweet in his artisan language.
He refutes all coquetry.
“This word is related to the work of the hand.
Hermes the
Dehydrated skin
In seven years in the business, this shoemaking specialist has seen the tide change.
“Shoes, we have always had them.
On the other hand, bags are more recent.
People started emptying their closets and seeing it as an opportunity to monetize their accessories.”
Since the opening of the spa, he has seen them parade in profusion.
Everyday models, whose owners cherish the sentimental and also functional value.
And others, more luxurious, real products with speculative value.
Like this Kelly bought in 1962, in ostrich leather, still in good condition, but never bricked.
His exotic leather creaked slightly.
Expert's diagnosis: dehydrated skin in need of nourishment and protection.
For a renovating treatment between 80 and 100 euros,
Read alsoThe 8 most profitable luxury bags to invest in
Simple and elementary?
Not so sure, this game of return on small investment valid for a handful of bags from the very closed circle of profitable brands, namely the trio Hermès, Chanel, Louis Vuitton (and even there, only certain very specific models are subject to this separate market law).
"If the intervention is a simple pampering (understand: cleaning, nourishing and protecting the leather) we do not observe a big difference in price between the before/after, except for the cost of the intervention of the 'workshop', tempers Osanna Orlowski, co-founder of Collector Square.
Understand that the benefit of the care is then mainly part of the idea of the embellishment of the model, its protection and lifespan.
However, the expert specializing in the resale of vintage luxury items recognizes that in the event of structural work, the case can prove fruitful.
"For more advanced interventions, such as partial or total recolouring or changing a worn handle, there is around 5 to 20% added value on the part after passing through the workshop" , she explains.
Enough to arouse excitement and, with it, the return to the market of more real-life counterfeits, pet peeves of the second-hand platform which calls on the services of Jérôme Lalande, expert in fine leather goods and all Hermès production to detect fake.
And sometimes that leads to sad surprises.
"It happened to us that a client fell from the clouds, thinking he had owned a
a beautiful Kelly bag which was in fact nothing more than a copy, certainly well made, but a copy.
We obviously did not pamper him, ”says Joris Merle.
A cure for hoarding
With this service of excellence, it is also a question of getting out of the disposable era.
And to question the consumption of clothing, and the relationship to the wardrobe more generally.
“At home, it overflows, it's absurd.
I have several bags that I like, but I don't wear them anymore because I never thought to take care of them.
I am the person who puts them on the ground, wears them when it rains or lets them live their lives until they 'tire out'", explains Eva, mother of two young girls who wants to curb her purchases by giving back a second wind to his closet.
In this approach to sustainability, this client notably brought out the gift of her 30th birthday: a Timeless model from Chanel whose fragile leather has lost its shine.
The clasp also shows some signs of wear.
In addition to
Among them, that of moisturizing regularly using a renovating lotion and a soft cloth (no synthetic towel which can scratch the leather) before storing in a dustbag
,
even for a short time.
Do not forget to give a little brush stroke (in horsehair hair) to remove the excess product.
As for her Chanel bag, if the idea of reselling it had crossed her mind - in relation to the fact that it increases in value each year with the inflationary policy established by the luxury brand -, she refuses to do so. .
Eva says she is rather in a logic of transmission.
“I like to tell myself that one day my daughters will wear it, and that it will live with the traces of their time!”.
A feeling that is priceless.
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