Wednesday

Golf Bags and The Most Powerful Luxury Brands

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When the average golfer sets out to purchase a new golf bag,  he's generally concentrating on practical concerns: size and weight... portability, durability and configuration of pockets.  These are are the factors that tend to drive purchasing decisions.

However there's a select group of golfers who place a premium on more ethereal qualities... qualities like exclusivity, refinement and je ne sais quoi... and those discerning individuals, if they have the means, often to turn towards traditional luxury brands.

Luxury Daily reported today on a survey undertaken by Milward Brown, a global brand strategy firm. It ranked the world's most powerful luxury brands, as they now stand, in the wake the economic slump of the past two years.

It just so happens, each of the top three produce... or have at one time produced... golf bags:  

1. Louis Vuitton is the brand that emerged as the most valuable luxury brand over the last five years.  It somehow manages to resonate with trending-at-the-moment celebrities, while maintaining the authenticity and timelessness it's been known for for over a century. A number of years ago I wrote about a vintage Louis golf bag that was up for auction on Ebay and the post remains one of my most popular to date.  A contemporary version of the iconic monogrammed bag can be found on the Louis Vuitton website and I found the Damier model on the luxury shopping site Malleries.

2. Hermés - has chosen to focus on its heritage, which isn't surprising since the company is still essentially family-owned and its history is so distinctive and unique.  I found a Hermes golf bag in white on the French luxury consumer site First Luxe, and one in black on Lecrin,  the website of a Japanese store that specializes in Hermes products.

3. Gucci - is the world's best-selling Italian brand  Despite a tumultuous management history and family infighting during the 70's and 80's. It's reputation and prestige was threatened for a period, but the brand was able to return to its roots as an elite Italian fashion house, and recently teamed up with Christie’s to appraise vintage Gucci luggage and handbags, and I found a 1970's vintage Gucci golf bag on auction site, Live Auctioneers.

Though each of the above bags costs more than most golfers would consider paying, these top three luxury brands have core customers who cherish the feel of the finest materials and craftsmanship... as well as the cachet of iconic luxury brands with rich histories... and they don't hesitate to pay a premium for them.

Unlike other luxury brands that have attempted to target a wider market with more popularly priced lines, each of the above companies... according to the study... has dealt with the global recession by focusing on their core consumers.  This trend is expected to continue, which means that Louis Vuitton bag I've wanted for all these years will continue to remain just way beyond my reach.

9 comments:

  1. Every time I go to Paris I make a point to pass by Hermes their windows are always beautiful. Amazing use of color. The scarfs and the Birkin bag. I'm sure the golf bags are sublime too. Someday. :]

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  2. I'm the proud owner of 14 Hermes ties ... and counting. No designer golf bags yet though. :\

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  3. I don't know about putting on a shiny wood floor.

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  4. When you spend $5,000 or more on a golf bag how what kind of clubs do you put in it?

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  5. LV is so very ugly. I use it as a litmus test... good taste vs label whore. Hermes on the other hand... I have their site bookmarked at christmas. I don't equate golf with beautiful things. My golf bag has to be light and functional. I prefer sporty when it comes to sports.

    Stephanie

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  6. Funny, I like the Hermes bags because they are understated. I wonder if there are even more elegant Italian or French leather-crafted bags from individual artisans? And how to find one? Custom made is the ultimate luxury n'est pas?

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  7. .

    if you are even CONSIDERING paying that for a golf bag, may i suggest, you INCREASE your charitable contributions to a worthy cause

    not that i myself don't piss money away on egotistical things and yes i did "acquire" bernie madoff's golf stuff from PBCC sources, once i'm done parading it around (and the statute of limitations expires), i will donate it to a silent auction charity to sell

    remember the neediest

    anyway be well

    frankD
    ftliquordale soFLA

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  8. Both Jennifers: I love the Hermes windows too!!! The Faubourg Saint-Honoré has tons of gorgeous shops but that's my favorite. Check out this video. All of the different Hermes Kelly bags in it were created in collaboration with aritsts by Laila, who's designed their windows for decades. Hermes tie and scarfs are so multi-chromatically beautiful.

    Stephanie: Where LV is really timeless and absolutely extraordinary is with with the steamer trunks. Another MUST SEE video. So Awesome!

    Frank: What's the Bernie Madoff Golf stuff like? I'm guessing it's quite over-the-top. :0)

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  9. .

    MONOGRAMED

    that's what makes it "auctionable" because the monogram puts ordinary, albeit expensive, equipment into an elevated bracket - kinda like the john lennon flower car

    i attended the ellis golf club collection auction at sotheby's, which FWIW was covered by schrock at golf digest back then, and noticed the clubs with "maker's marks" had the most interest

    what i really want is the PGA championship "replacement" trophy that stood in for the missing "real" trophy for a few years

    with two young daughters, however, i am somewhat of an "expert" on dooney and bourke lady's handbags - the one's mentioned in the above posts were declared "too passe" by my two stooges, but what do kids know - right ?

    cheers !

    frankD
    ftliquordale soFLA

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