WWD’s annual luxury survey is out, and the results are slightly stunning:
When a group of handbag shoppers were shown brand names and asked which ones they recognized, Coach was more noted than Louis Vuitton. The American accessory brand got 76% of shoppers’ attention, even despite reports this year that Coach’s stocks and profits were falling.
Though soccer moms are the ultimate Coach consumer, designer Reed Krakoff revealed that he’s developed more mid-price bags (and he thinks mid-price is $400) to lure in younger shoppers (and those would be you).
But if you’re going to spend $400 plus on a bag, here’s our advice:
Go to Woodbury Common Outlets in upstate New York, where you can get a Coach bag for about $100, instead. Or wait a few more months and then spend $600 or $800 on a better bag; one that’s cooler and that you’ll carry longer.
And if you really do care about the label and not just the design, WWD reports the other top-ranking handbags, in terms of recognizability, come from Vuitton, Gucci, Dooney & Bourke (what?), Prada, Kate Spade, Burberry, Fendi, Chanel, Ralph Lauren, Dolce + Gabbana, and finally, Hermes.
Which is weird, because we thought after all the Hills madness, Marc Jacobs would make the list.