Chanel Bag selling disappointment

[Kittyberry]

Just feeling a bit fed up as I need to downsize and clear the decks..
I have a pristine (used on 2 occasion) medium/large classic flap Chanel - black Caviar with silver hardware - bag. Gift from DH a few years ago and it is stunning but I really don’t use it. It is still in the box, ribbons, dust bag, and all ID though not the receipt.

I have tried all the ‘agencies’ who sell it for you, and the best price from each is literally half of what I could sell it directly for ! Half !
I just can’t bring myself to let it go for that knowing that it will then be double that for them to sell.

I have looked at Vinted and EBay who could be used but, and this is my worry, if someone bid and purchased it then it needs to be sent to a 3rd party for verification and authentication - and there lies the problem…. How do I know they won’t regard it as a fake and send me back a copy and pocket my
original! Equally, if an individual did buy it direct, they could also do the same : essentially once it leaves my possession anything could happen ! I honestly don’t know how to get round this as I appreciate there is so much doubt and worry about copy’s and I am unlikely to find anyone to buy it directly.

So do I suck it up and accept half the ‘value’ from a consignment agency?

FWIW it would be a 10k bag now from Chanel and I have been offered 3.5k from nearly every agency and I would be happy with 6.5k.

Maybe the bird in the hand is better than the two in the bush but it is so sticking in the throat to let it go and it’s a perfect, as new bag!!!

Equally I absolutely need some funds and alot depends on a boost of this sort. I most certainly won’t be spending it on myself ….

What to do?
Any thoughts welcome ….

Have you actually purchased any designer goods in Asia? What a ridiculous thing to say.

But commission is how most agencies and online resllers make their money. I don't think you understand the amount of effort it can take to sell a designer bag. And you don't have proof of purchase. That will automatically drive the price down. What about a pawnbroker? Many buy designer bags and will pay a good price. However, and again, not what you is cost to buy new. Just because the bag cost £10.5k to buy now does not mean you will get that or even a fraction. I imagine when new, it would have been anywhere between £5k-£7.5k. If you've been offered, £3.5k, that's pretty good tbh. The real issue is that the bags have declined in quality over the past decade. Just because the bag costs x amount does not mean it will recoup that on the resell market. Also, there's a surplus of them which will also drive down the price. To be frank, most Chanel bags don't hold their value unless they are special edition or vintage ones where the quality is much better.

I think you're being ridiculous to think anyone will swap the bag for a fake. Total non-issue.

Maybe a better solution is to use it, after all, your DH bought it for you. Use it in his memory. (I do similar with my dead DM's Chanel bags).

Condolences for your loss, and best wishes for the future.

Also, and to echo a few other posters, £3.5K for a bag sitting unused is a great deal. I know I'd be only too happy with it, more so as I would put it towards something I really wanted.

I am not an expert on designer hand bags but I think people in general have an unrealistic view of how much they can sell clothes or accessories for, no matter how expensive they were originally.

It is selling 10k new. If a consignment business paid you the 6.5k you want, then what would be in it for them? They’d have to get a margin of at least 30% to make their business worthwhile. It would end up nearly at the price of new. NO ONE is going to pay 8-9k for a second hand bag with no receipt and rage the risk that they are buying a fake. Literally no one. If I was buying a second hand fully provenanced I would expect to pay 30% LESS than full retail. That’s around what you are asking.
Without even full provenance like receipt or verification of authenticity I wouldn’t buy it. If I did I would look to pay maybe 50% from the store.

you are being unreasonable

you need to cost it backwards. What would the end user pay?
what % does the consignment store need?
what’s left is what you would get. And that’s about what they are offering you

Pretty sure the poster means a mirror replica from Asia. They are phenomenal. I’ve held some side by side with real. classic flap, birkin and a couple of LV.

Without tearing them apart to check inside construction I could not tell. And I’m very good (not being weird here but my job has involved having an exception attention to detail and critical eye)
they are so good now that most of the big houses encode microchips in the lining. Different position in each design that changes each year.
the counterfeiters have even started putting chips in theirs. They are not good enough to pass authentication by the houses themselves but with a standard chip reader they pass. That’s how good they are.

Vestiaire gave an authentication team. They have been caught out many times. I wouldn’t trust anyone but the design house themselves to authenticate

People have no idea. It’s got even more sophisticated in recent years. Read my post above with regards microchips

people think they can tell. Hell even the stores can’t tell so they have started microchipping everything. And even those are being replicated 😂

Yes, Zeko does good work highlighting these high level fakes. Eye opening stuff.

www.instagram.com/zeko_authentication?igsh=cmUwYjYyaXB6MHk4

Vestiaire verification service is shite. They have verified au baby fakes in the past. There are so many reviews about it online. Truth is the best copies are too good now. Without ripping the things apart it’s impossible to tell.

they can easily tell a fake if it’s an average fake. But the superfakes? No way.

superfakes are not cheap. But they are way cheaper than the genuine article

Vestiare Collective. Don’t bother with the mainstream sites such as Vinted, they’re not really set up properly to handle sales of high value items safely.

You could also rent it out? Or speak to someone like Cocoon about them acquiring it if it’s a rare bag, although I imagine they only buy direct.

I’m not sure about Chanel but Prada bags have an in-built RFID (?) tag that allows for identification, my phone picks mine up.

They do indeed have chips imbedded in the inner linings. But the counterfeiters are copying these now.

the counterfeit chips won’t pass proper authentication but they will pass a standard chip detector. Like your phone!

Most authenticators won’t have any chip detectors. If they do they will be basic ones that detect a chip is present only or that can read very basic details of the chip. Very few have the technology to read the chip fully for a true authentication

@AngieBlack — like another poster I’ve held and examined an amazingly convincing fake classic flap alongside my own bags, with very very little to spot between them. Yet Chanel sell plenty of authentic bags in Asia (as total sales are well into billions now). And it takes a certain kind of person to assert with zero evidence or barest hint of a suggestion that someone else’s designer bag is likely a fake, particularly when the gift giver is no longer around to vouch for its authenticity.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions and help. It is much appreciated.

Just to be clear, I am aware of sounding grabby and a bit greedy. I possibly am, but I do have to get some accessible funds together and hoped that by selling the bag, it would bring me in a good sum.

I am aware of profit margins etc, but, it still seems exceptionally lucrative for a re-seller - of what is a perfect bag.

The bag was given to me by late DH in 2011/2012 so it is almost 'vintage' really.

Its been to one wedding, and sadly one funeral and put straight back in the box, in the dust bag and stored indoors. It even still has the foam inserts that protect the hardware, flap and fastenings. It really is pristine, lined with maroon leather and is as new.

I have obviously already had it 'authenticated' by 2 agencies who have had sight of the certificate and paperwork I do have, and they have checked the serial number on the verification card and document, and confirmed it is an original authentic piece. My bag is PRE-ID CHIP and has a credit card type of ID.

I have had 2 offers of 3500k and 3750k on that basis.

Every similar bag they advertise is at least 7k...and when I asked them to give me 5k, there was a sharp intake of breath, so that was that.

The only thing I do not have is the original receipt, and as I have said, I don't actually know which branch of Chanel it was purchased from, and the paperwork doesn't reveal that.

It is likely that he purchased it with his Amex card at the time so I might be able to ask them for records but I am unsure now - as probate is all done - that they will give me access to DH's statements going back as far as 2011/12, if at all because of GDPR.

So, I thank you for your replies and suggestions, and will probably now just accept the closest offer to 4k now and reduce my expectations.

Thank you all.

It would be more popular if it was 2008 or earlier as they still used real gold then.
I sold a Chanel caviar a couple of years ago and got 4900 so I think you can get a bit more

You said it is a £10k bag now but what was it when your husband bought it? How does what you were offered compare with that as that's how I'd measure if I'd got a fair price. Or how I'd feel about it. I know it's the kind of thing that's meant to increase in price but it's really only worth what someone is willing to pay you.

In all honesty, I would join the Chanel addicted Facebook group and/or the woc lounge and have a go at selling it yourself first. Don’t settle for silly offers with resellers!

Hi I’ve read this thread with interest.
I’ve often bought second hand Chanel / designer and having a receipt would mean nothing to me - the receipts are faked too so often.
Don’t rush to sell for less than you want, you have something beautiful and valuable.
Once it’s gone it’s gone.
I’ve bought off eBay before but taken time to build rapport with the seller etc.
Not everyone is a scammer and the market for buying/selling is strong - I say that as someone who is extremely sceptical!
Why not list it with a strong reserve price - see what response you get but be wary of the potential buyer, scope them out as much as they scope you out!
I just bought a new Prada bag and the store never mentioned the scan tag - I will read up about that!
Please let us know how you get on - if the bag is in such good condition don’t settle!
And I am sorry for your loss, what a special gift to receive, you’re husband must’ve thought the world of you.