Most Overpriced Designer?

[Caffeine]

That’s was it used to be until last year
Even at current exchange rates, I did a bit of research for an American friend and it’s far from standardized around the world.
The same Hermes shoes are at 900€=1,050 $ in France and currently at 1,300 $ in the US.
On the other hand , the very same reference of Cartier watch was $ 8,900 in the US and 9,100€ in Europe, but 8,900$ = 7,475 €, so it’s 1,625 € more expensive in the US.
Make it make sense.,

I only compared VCA px on a model I looked at it was the same. But it depends on brands. Hermes has always had this differential.
Also the fair comp for your friend should be
px in euro - VAT + US tariff at the border vs. px in USD + sales tax.
(I always report my purchases.)
so I went to Europe three times last year and didn't see anything worth buying over there. (I wasn't focused on hermes)

 

[hamburgers]

That’s was it used to be until last year
Even at current exchange rates, I did a bit of research for an American friend and it’s far from standardized around the world.
The same Hermes shoes are at 900€=1,050 $ in France and currently at 1,300 $ in the US.
On the other hand , the very same reference of Cartier watch was $ 8,900 in the US and 9,100€ in Europe, but 8,900$ = 7,475 €, so it’s 1,625 € more expensive in the US.
Make it make sense.,

Hard luxury and Chanel bags (maybe Hermes bags too but I don't buy them) have a global price harmonization strategy to address regionality and VAT refund shenanigans and maximums and minimums are more pegged to currency conversion now. Otherwise, it's still pretty much the same formula of European countries having the base price, ~10% more expensive in asia, and ~20% more expensive in USA excluding sales tax, VAT refunds, and customs declarations.

Chanel to Harmonize Global Prices​

March 17, 2015, 12:01am​

PARIS — Positioning its brand for the future in an increasingly flat and digital world — and one racked by currency fluctuations — Chanel said Monday it plans to begin aligning the brand’s global pricing.

Effective April 8, the French fashion house is to harmonize sticker prices for three of its most iconic handbags, resulting in a sharp increase in Europe and a big drop in Asia.

For example, an 11.12 model, now priced at 3,550 euros in Europe, is to cost 4,260 euros come April 8, while the same bag in China, now 38,200 yuan, is to drop to about 30,000 yuan.

Meanwhile, the price of a Boy bag is to rise to 3,720 euros from 3,100 euros in Europe, while falling from 32,700 yuan to about 26,000 yuan. The 2.55 bag is the third classic model affected.

Ultimately, worldwide prices at the company are to never fluctuate more than 10 percent above or 10 percent below the global euro benchmark, said Bruno Pavlovsky, Chanel’s president of fashion, noting other products would be harmonized starting with the cruise 2015-16 fashion season.

If your friend is American, maybe advise them to ask around what the price is in Hawaii. It's an American state, but most luxury and fashion brands categorize it as part of the Asia-Pacific/Japanese market due to tourism so you're looking at about a ~10% cheaper list price (since 100 yen is like .54 euro right now) with half of the sales tax of most American cities, but you don't have to play the guessing game of will I have to pay the import tariff at customs upon reentry since it's a domestic flight/purchase.

 

[andrew]

https://www.therow.com/collections/men-new-arrivals

not much to say other than it's an impressive trick to make $1500 eel loafers seem like a reasonable proposition.

 

[hamburgers]

A parting gift from MGC



For those without Insta, the top is $64k USD and even Anita Bitton is laughing at it in the comments

 

[Frederic01]

I think that’s by Kim Jones though? The tag is a Dior Men tag not womenswear…

 

[hamburgers]

^I'll take your word for it I haven't been in a Dior in over a decade I just saw the MGC star on the hanger and mentally clocked out.

 

[LadyJunon]

^I'll take your word for it I haven't been in a Dior in over a decade I just saw the MGC star on the hanger and mentally clocked out.

Damn, she really traumtised us, huh?

 

[FashionPower]

Sarah and the Givenchy marketing team need to chill the f out...no one is spending 30k for Givenchy in 2026, especially when the dress looks like a scrap from a Giambattista Valli RTW show...

 

[hamburgers]

^


In the American political sphere, Sarah Burton and Thom Browne are popular among Gen X'ers and millenials for center left messaging whereas right wing messaging tends to favor D&G and MGC's Dior.

 

[LadyJunon]

^


In the American political sphere, Sarah Burton and Thom Browne are popular among Gen X'ers and millenials for center left messaging whereas right wing messaging tends to favor D&G and MGC's Dior.

MGC's Dior being the symbol of MAGA Couture seems horribly poetic. Of course in truth, it's because Dior has the reputation of creating the precursor to the 50s housewife aesthetic they idolise, but her pretty, inoffensive designs help a lot.

 

[GoldenTribe]

New season Dolce & Gabbana is really something!

FarFetch prices include "import duties" but NOT "taxes" so the actual price to land this ss26 runway outfit of floral-embroidered pajama top plus bottoms is a staggering CAD$122,897. The fabric is 92% cotton, 8% silk, though obviously you are paying for the embroidery and probably even more so the exclusivity of being more lavishly dressed in your jammies than a Sultan on his wedding day.

 

[FashionPower]

New season Dolce & Gabbana is really something!

FarFetch prices include "import duties" but NOT "taxes" so the actual price to land this ss26 runway outfit of floral-embroidered pajama top plus bottoms is a staggering CAD$122,897. The fabric is 92% cotton, 8% silk, though obviously you are paying for the embroidery and probably even more so the exclusivity of being more lavishly dressed in your jammies than a Sultan on his wedding day.

Yeah, Dolce prices are really getting out of control, it's been like that since they did the reshuffle in 2022 - 2023 by dropping the Philipp Plein influencer POV and getting back to their late 90's aesthetic.
Previous season collection (cool girl) had minidresses going from 50 to 80k...it's a bit ridicolous at this point.
Giving CHANEL and Leena Nair a run for their money, that's for sure. At this point, even Tom Ford is more affordable than Dolce.

 

[jeanclaude]

Suddenly, I love being poor.

 

[tourbillions]

lol not the 40-50k bedazzled pj's right after a 30k gown that probably has some couture techniques.

 

[Creative]

New season Dolce & Gabbana is really something!

FarFetch prices include "import duties" but NOT "taxes" so the actual price to land this ss26 runway outfit of floral-embroidered pajama top plus bottoms is a staggering CAD$122,897. The fabric is 92% cotton, 8% silk, though obviously you are paying for the embroidery and probably even more so the exclusivity of being more lavishly dressed in your jammies than a Sultan on his wedding day.

What the f🫤🫤🫤🫤

 

[Frederic01]

How Dior and Chanel Are Winning Back Aspirational Shoppers | The Debrief​

Retail correspondent Joan Kennedy explains how Dior and Chanel are expanding lower-priced handbags and accessories to win back aspirational shoppers after years of steep price hikes.
By BRIAN BASKIN, SHEENA BUTLER-YOUNG, JOAN KENNEDY 18 February 2026

Background:​

After raising prices aggressively during the post-pandemic boom, luxury brands are now confronting slower growth and a shrinking aspirational customer base. According to Bernstein, average luxury price hikes reached 36 percent between 2020 and 2023, with Dior and Chanel raising prices by 51 percent and 59 percent, respectively. Now, as Bain estimates that more than 50 million aspirational shoppers have left the category, both houses are adjusting their pricing architecture and product mix in an attempt to rebuild volume without sacrificing exclusivity.

BoF reporter Joan Kennedy joins The Debrief to unpack how Dior and Chanel are recalibrating pricing and product strategy to win back aspirational shoppers.

Key Insights:​

• Dior and Chanel are among the brands that leaned hardest into post-pandemic price increases, prioritising margin expansion and high-net-worth clients. That strategy helped fuel growth at the time, but it has also intensified the industry’s current reckoning. “Pricing has really emerged as this key concern,” Kennedy says. “At Dior and Chanel, prices rose 51 per cent and 59 per cent, respectively.” Products that once served as entry points are increasingly out of reach for aspirational shoppers: “The Chanel medium flap has nearly doubled in price since 2019,” she says.
• To pull aspirational shoppers back into stores, Dior and Chanel are rebuilding the lower end of their offer – from small leather goods and accessories to playful add-ons. As Kennedy puts it, “brands have been introducing these fun little whimsical items at the bottom, which have a good psychological effect on all shoppers.” And even when the ticket doesn’t shift, brands are trying to make the value proposition feel stronger through newness and storytelling: “maybe the price isn’t changing, but it’s trying to hammer home that there’s a little bit more value … and really ride the momentum brought by these new creative directors.”
• Even if excitement around creative directors Jonathan Anderson and Matthieu Blazy reignites interest, the economic backdrop may limit how far that enthusiasm translates into sales. “It’s definitely a big open-ended question – how much of this is a problem with desire versus ability to purchase?” Kennedy says. “Maybe a lot of these shoppers do want these products and are really excited by them, but just don’t have the ability.” In that sense, the reset is only partially in luxury’s control. Products can restore aspiration, but macro conditions ultimately determine movement.

BOF

 

[FashionPower]

I refuse to believe the jewelry and watches business divisions from Dolce are profitable with these prices. It's giving Philipp Plein alleged money laundering.
400k for a red gold and rose tourmalines necklace...bare in mind the tourmaline is a low level precious stone, especially compared to emeralds, tanzanites and diamonds.


Browsing Cartier website, the most expensive necklace is a 280k Panthere necklace featuring onyx, 4 emeralds and 1478 diamonds (>10 carats)

 

[Kanzai]

Wtf is happening with Dolce, are they insane? You can get very good condition vintage pieces (or even 100% new) from their fantastic collections era 90s/00s for less than 6k on sites.

 

[FashionPower]

LOL new SS26 collection drop on the YSL website and the prices are obnoxious as always
30k for 100% nylon gown that looks like an opera costume
Good luck trying to recover from -20% sales in the past 3 years.

 

[Lola701]

Let’s be honest once and for all: buying fashion or at least European brands in another currency than Euro is a scam lol

I refuse to believe the jewelry and watches business divisions from Dolce are profitable with these prices. It's giving Philipp Plein alleged money laundering.
400k for a red gold and rose tourmalines necklace...bare in mind the tourmaline is a low level precious stone, especially compared to emeralds, tanzanites and diamonds.
View attachment 1454079

Browsing Cartier website, the most expensive necklace is a 280k Panthere necklace featuring onyx, 4 emeralds and 1478 diamonds (>10 carats)
View attachment 1454080

I would argue that styles are different. The same way that buying a piece from Piaget won’t be at the same price as Cartier.

The stones themselves doesn’t really mean anything.

Victoire de Castellane introduced Tourmaline, critrine and things like that in Haute Joaillerie and it was a success. It’s only logical that brands use them now since clients, when there’s a particular aesthetic and design are willing to pay for it.

Cartier pieces you showed are more statement pieces, hardly wearable on a everyday situation, which the D&G pieces are in a way.