Born from an in-flight mishap, the Hermès Birkin became more than a handbag—it redefined luxury, exclusivity, and desire. Author Marisa Meltzer explains the birth of the Birkin in her new book “It Girl.”
The Hermès Birkin may now stand as the ultimate symbol of status and exclusivity, but it began by chance — the result of a spilled purse and a serendipitous meeting on a short flight.
“The birth of the Birkin is a meet-cute in a romantic comedy. It’s an adorable story,” began Marisa Meltzer, author of the new book “It Girl: The Life and Legacy of Jane Birkin.”
Meltzer’s book, released Oct. 7, delves into the creation of the Birkin and the life of its namesake, Jane Birkin, the English-born actress and singer who became a French icon.
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Actress Jane Birkin is the muse that inspired the world’s most desired handbag. (Jean-Louis Atlan/Sygma/Getty Images / Getty Images)
“She was on a flight from London to Paris, and she’d been known for carrying these literal baskets as bags for years,” Meltzer told Fox News Digital.
“So, everything is falling out as she is trying to stuff it in the overhead compartment.”
“Her seatmate on the flight says something like, ‘you know, you should think about getting a bag with at least pockets or a zipper or something,’” Meltzer explained.
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Jane Birkin carried wicker baskets as purses for years before Hermès made the Birkin handbag for her. (Bertrand Laforet/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Birkin reportedly quipped, “When Hermès makes a bag with pockets and a zipper, I’ll use it.” The man replied, “But I am Hermès.”
Meltzer explained that the man seated next to Birkin was Jean-Louis Dumas of the Hermès family, then the head of the brand.
“So they took out the only paper they could find, which was an air sickness bag, and she started drawing what her ideal bag would look like. At the time, it was the mid-’80s, and she had a baby, so her design was kind of like a glorified diaper bag,” Meltzer said.
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Jane Birkin had three daughters. (James Andanson/Sygma/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Et voilà, the Birkin was born.
The bag, made in 1984 and marked with Birkin’s initials, would go on to become far more than a fashion accessory. Since then, the Birkin has joined the ranks of gold, art, and real estate as a place to park wealth.
“There’s this mystique to Hermès,” said Meltzer, noting that the process of buying one of the brand’s most coveted handbags is “deliberately confusing and mysterious.”
“There are no easy shortcuts,” she added. “People can try to buy a bag online that looks like a Birkin, or choose another designer’s version that seems suspiciously similar, but there’s no real substitute for the real thing.”
The original Hermès Birkin bag made for actress Jane Birkin. (Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Earlier this year, the original Birkin fetched more than $10 million at auction — a record-breaking sale that made it the most valuable fashion piece ever sold in Europe, according to Sotheby’s.
“She had a wild and wonderful career and is definitely worth knowing about,” Meltzer said of Jane Birkin, the muse who inspired the world’s most desired handbag.
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