Chanel handbags just got even more expensive
Exchange rate movements mean Chanel's iconic handbags just got more expensive for European fashionistas.
Chanel has said its bags will be sold at the same prices worldwide in order to eliminate growing price gaps. Prices will rise about 20 per cent in Europe, and fall about 20 per cent in Asia from April 8.
"The measure is intended to reduce price differentials across countries, which have widened considerably further to the recent depreciation of the euro," Chanel told the Wall Street Journal.
The weak euro forced the fashion house to take action as the bags were becoming more expensive in Asia. People were flying to Europe, stocking up on the luxury purses, and then selling them on for a profit in Asia.
The Wall Street Journal says the price of a classic 11.12 bag will increase in Europe to €4,260 (£3063) from its current price of €3,550. However in China, it will fall to 30,000 yuan (£3264), down from 38,200 yuan.
The European Central Bank's €1.1 trillion (£834bn) bond-buying programme has pushed down the euro vis-a-vis the dollar and other currencies.
But the weak euro has meant the price of luxury goods varies markedly between different cities worldwide. This has led to a kind of luxury brand tourism whereby shoppers only buy high-end goods in certain countries.