THE KELLY Hermès began life in the 19th century making high-end saddles and the first version of the Kelly was designed as a leather bag for carrying lady riders’ saddles.The design was refined through the first decades of the 20th century to the structured, top-handle bag we have today.The Kelly had its defining moment in 1956 when Princess Grace Kelly of Monaco used her beloved bag to hide her pregnancy bump from the paparazzi. Hermès officially renamed the bag the ‘Kelly’ in 1977 in honour of their royal patron.

THE BIRKIN The Birkin was also named after someone – the actress Jane Birkin.The story goes that Hermès’ creative director Jean-Louis Dumas was on the same flight as Birkin in 1981, when the actress’s straw bag tipped its contents all over the gangway, leading her to complain that she couldn’t find a decent leather bag with pockets. Dumas offered to design a bag for her and scribbled his initial design on the back of a sick-bag (or so the story goes), giving Jane the very first model of the bag. Since then, the bag has retained popularity with celebrities such as Victoria Beckham being snapped carrying theirs.

All Hermès leather goods are made by highly-skilled leather artisans, and come with a price tag to match. It takes around

48 hours for a standard Birkin to be produced and part of the mysticism surrounding these bags is that one cannot simply walk into an Hermès shop and buy one.To own a brand new Birkin or Kelly, not only does the potential buyer have to part with upwards of £7,000, they also have to add their name to a waiting list and wait on average six months until their bag is ready for collection.This is one of the reasons Hermès bags perform so well at auction; instead of waiting patiently (or impatiently!) on a list for months, a lucky buyer can spot a Birkin at auction that day, bid for it and walk away with it that very evening.

THE CHANEL 2.55 The third bag that has maintained its popularity since its conception in February 1955 is the Chanel 2.55, taking its name from that date. Designed by Coco Chanel as a practical and stylish alternative to clutch bags and reissued by Karl Lagerfeld in 2005, these simple flap bags with chain straps have become a timeless symbol of elegance, taste and luxury. Chanel designs are the living embodiment of the adage that good style never goes out of fashion.

The seemingly eternal interest in these bags means that buying one of them can be a fairly safe investment. In fact the retail (and also resale)

values for these bags has risen faster than inflation. A pristine 1980s Chanel flap bag will often cost you

SPOTTING A FAKE

High-end fashion brands use only high-quality materials and are created by highly-skilled craftspeople. Brands such as Chanel and Hermès can justify high prices (the current retail price for a Chanel 2.55 is more than £3,000) because they truly are exceptional pieces of craftwork. Unfortunately the popular ity of these bags means that they are also often copied and passed off as the genuine article. Luxury brands simply do not release substandard work, and fight hard to protect their image, and so any signs of inferior work reveal the bag to be a fake and avoided at all costs. When buying at a reputable auction house, the buyer should be assured that any bags up for sale have been studiously looked over and checked for any signs of counter feiting. It is, however, worth the buyer reading up on the bags and doing their own checks for their peace of mind.

Like all things, there are various degrees of quality in the counterfeit market.The cheaper fakes will be easy to spot; using fake or low-quality leather, or wonky stitching for example.There are, however, some horribly good copies that are being churned out that only a keen eye will spot. Often it is the smallest details; one too few stitches in a Chanel quilted section, the incorrect metallic stamp, the wrong accent on the ‘e’ of Hermès are all small examples that need to be completely perfect for the bags to be genuine. One of the benefits of buying at auction, rather than online (or an online auction house), is that you have the opportunity to come in and inspect the bag yourself.The best bags are often made from a soft, buttery leather that is impossible to imitate and can only be felt to be understood.

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An iconic Birkin by Hermès