GUCCI Did This....Why? My Problem With "Luxury" Leather

[@thelastone9416]

I’d love to see you review Furla products. Always wondered what quality of leather they use especially in their price ranges

[@svenpr9183]

Thank you for making amazing videos. Your passion comes through your work!

[@soapzuds4542]

I love your assessment of these high end products. It's so very sad that these companies operate this way. I have stopped buying many of these HE brands.

[@gaiustacitus4242]

People who buy brands like Gucci do so for the exclusivity. They aren't paying for the product; they're paying for the privilege of not being seen carrying an item that everyone else has.

[@ashdupre]

The boar skin texture is a nod to Gucci’s heritage. During WWII leather was scarce due to the embargo on Italy. Boar skin/pig skin was readily accessible during that time.

[@kagitsune]

Thank you for this bit of context!

[@pyotrrossetti]

See I get that and I think that's quite sweet. But I wish they just made them out of boar skin and sold them at a lower price as a brand heritage item. Not everything from a "luxury" brand needs to come at a luxury price.

[@shaheenhumayun7399]

Wow, and somehow it’s still trash lol

[@hannahstraining7476]

Not a great reason to make good leather bad.

[@leonardotansil1643]

The sad reality is that not everybody liked patina or scratches. That is why these brands keep using heavy finish to keep their product look new for longer.
And since they are luxury brand, by default they need to use nicer material even if that is useless after the finishes.

[@11JadeStone11]

You are 💯. I kinda feel privileged to have become aware of the actual bs that comes with “luxury” accessories vs. other… Even though Ive always known that we are paying for the name brand, I did also assume that in a sense there is still the “quality/durability” that you’re paying for too… but your comment is 💯 and this channel has made realize this truth as well. I bought two bags from Pegai recently and have already become a million times more appreciative of the actual piece of leather as opposed to the “plastic” feel that I never knew was actually a plastic finish until discovering this channel. ❤

[@nogoodname8133]

There are several aspects of selling this bag and you and most people completely miss this factor, of course LV makes profit, they are a business after all and the whole purpose of a business is to bring value to their shareholders. But by completely skipping over the rest of the production, logistic, marketing(you touch a very small bit on it) and sales of the product you can’t definitely say it’s worth it or not.
For one LV and most designer bags(not saying all) are in fact made in Europe, where the wages are a lot higher than in other parts of the world, while LV pays 30 euros an hour for their craftsmen and a fair wage for their employees, other brands that charge what you would call a fair price, either don’t have the overhead costs of a brand as LV or they (the most likely of the options) exploit their workers, especially the ones manufacturing the bags in the first place. So to say it’s all status, is a much more nuanced and honestly wrong assumption.
By the time the bag reaches the store it has cost the brand around 3.5x what the production cost of the bag was (if they are a vertically integrated company) ie. Materials, labor, equipment, real estate, design and costs of prototyping, which is a lot more than the material cost alone, also businesses need to make a profit, which on average is 20% of profit margin for a luxury product. These costs are all before they start marketing and selling these items, you also have to account for storage of the items, points of sales, development costs for their site and online store/app, marketing, customer support and so much more.
Making their bags in the way you suggest would make them prohibitively expensive. Of course at the end of the day the brand has a value, but it’s not the only value, in fact it’s not the biggest cost for their pricing… Sure, buying from small artisans is great, but you can’t compare the scale and upfront investment a brand that has to sell so many products worldwide… You’re not only buying status, you’re buying a whole experience, you’re buying customer service, you’re buying the design. This is just a small overview of what goes into getting a product to you
Ps. Also bear in mind a lot of the big designer houses produce items, like this wallet with a higher profit margin, cutting material costs, to offset the cost of other less profitable, items, which for the most part these items are built with quality materials and full of craftsmanship, but they are less profitable, due to the higher cost and thus higher price they have to charge for it, making them sell these items for a lower profit margin so it’s attainable to some… Usually the highest profit items are the small leather goods, like wallets, keychains, etc…

[@leonardotansil1643]

@@nogoodname8133 I understand about the margins and all the extra costs. If you look at Hermes financial statement you can see that in 2022 Hermes has 11.6B revenue, with 70% gross profit (profit after deducting materials and labor) and 29% net profit. In his other videos you can watch that Hermes only paid around 1700€ a month for their craftsmen. But actually my point was only to explain the reason why LV and other luxury brands chose to put heavy finish on their leather goods, which is because most people want their stuffs to look new and last longer. He argued that it is a waste to use premium leather when you will put heavy finish on top of it since low quality leather can do the job fine

[@nogoodname8133]

Let’s take this Gucci wallet as an example, you have design costs, a simple wallet like this can be designed for around 2k euros( cost of prototypes, salaries of designers in Europe, equipment and office space) in a day or two, the design cost needs to be offset in the sale, but since this is a simple item it will be negligible.
15 euros in materials
40 euros (Gucci artisans are actually paid around 40-70k a year with a median salary of 58k/year, which comes down to around 30eur/hour, bear in mind it costs the business in Europe on average 100% of the employee’s salary in taxes and other benefit costs, that would mean an artisan at Gucci costs them 60 euros an hour, we haven’t factored in the training costs and costs for acquiring said artisan… so a figure of 50-60 eur in labour would be more realistic, but we’ll go with the one he provided)
Now we have to factor in logistics costs, ie. Getting the wallet from the factory to the store and all storage in between that, packaging, duties, inventory, inventory management and all salaries of the people involved in the logistics on a business this scale, those costs are on average you can add another 15-20 euros for these costs.
After getting it to the store, you have to sell the product, around 12-15% of the item’s price in marketing, you also have sales representatives, stores, customer service… those are all major costs for any retailer, especially one that operates in a global scale in the luxury segment. So you have to account for all those expenses as well…
After the sales is done you also have, HR costs, taxes and other bureaucracy.
Furthermore, as a business, they are expected to make profit, that’s why they are a business after all =P, so your price has to account for on average a 10-15% profit on items like a wallet or other small leather goods…
With all the costs accounted, they would add up to around 4.4x of the original manufacturing costs (labor and material) which comes to 242 euros, then you add the 15% (36eur) of profit plus tax of 21% in most European countries (59 eur +/-) you come with 336,74 euros, which fun fact is only 3,26 euros less than what they charge for that wallet in Europe… The 550usd they charge in the US is due to tariffs, logistics and currency exchange rates =P…
The actual cost of getting that wallet to you is much closer to the final price than you think for luxury brands. And if they were to make their goods like this guy suggests it would make their items prohibitively expensive as they would never be able to keep up with the demand…
I actually work doing the finances for a vertically integrated company(other segment), cost structure is going to be about the same… The real problem is that people got used to having cheap items manufactured by exploited workers with very low prices, that they forgot that paying a fair wage to the complete chain is actually expensive…

[@leonardotansil1643]

@@nogoodname8133 I think you really misunderstood my comment. I was actually defending the company... i said they did the heavy finish on their leather because it will make it more durable! That is my point!
But regarding the finances (which you brought up), for public companies you can see their financial report online and decide if they overcharge you or not. But I can tell you for sure the artisans are not paid 60€ (brutto) an hour.... I live in Germany and those kind of salary is only for managers in huge multinational companies... That will put you in top 5% of the population. Bear in mind that the salary in france, italy and spain are lower than in Germany.

[@jaks_bag_attack]

Leather comes from cows, not luxury cows all the same cows, I don't like a heavy coated leather

[@glossator-of-beauty]

Deep.

[@jaks_bag_attack]

@Tanner Leatherstein may as well get plastic

[@sciagurrato1831]

@@jaks_bag_attack Naugahyde is still tops if you an afford it

[@BobbyHo2022]

U can raise different cows by what u feed them. Ever heard of wagyu or washu meat?

[@angelaegan7511]

I love watching and listening to a craftsman.

[@willied3152]

i just found your channel and i’m really enjoying it! i got this wallet as a christmas gift a couple of years ago, but i mostly keep it in the box/packaging that it came in. originally, the wallet came with a paper card-insert that rests between the two flaps in order to prevent the two sides from sticking together and showing wear. i love the premium steak and hot dog analogy haha

[@glossator-of-beauty]

Looks like the cheap ones from the flea market, for single-digit prices in euro, I had to replace every year because they disintegrate. As Tanner says, 40 USD is the price range you should aim at, or up to double that if you support the brand.

[@tiffshorse13]

Please review Downey and Boorke’s Florentine satchel. I’ve had this for 20 years, wears like a good saddle, amazing patina.

[@bagloverlux]

Not my Gucci.😢 Sidenote: I don't own any Gucci product, but I just expected that their leather goods would be of better quality than most.

[@rm6700]

Luxury company stocks took a plunge recently. I kinda want to think that people are waking up to the reality that these brands are peddling extremely cheaply made products at such ridiculously inflated prices. As for me, I stopped buying these things - there are more better things to spend money on.

[@sciagurrato1831]

It’s not “people”…it’s only half of the population

[@theprousteffect9717]

Many people don't buy them for the quality, they buy for the status.

[@jjj6444]

It's luxury, not essential. If the price isn't ridiculous, it is not luxury i think lol. Luxury is to provide extra unnecessary pleasantness to consumers, whatever that value means. "Bang for your buck" value probably don't cross the minds of manufacturers and consumers. It's exactly same in luxury watch industry.

[@nea6784]

Great video as always! What are your thoughts on A.P.C. the Josh Wallet most specifically?

[@kc2606]

Thank you for your video, I have learnt so much from you and I apply my learning when I buy a new handbag, only last week, at Tory Burch I chose a calf skin bag over a over processed croc embossed bag. 😊

[@soapzuds4542]

I work at a higend end department store and i sell Tory, that brand is so over priced.

[@kc2606]

@@soapzuds4542 I do agree, I purchased a all calf skin handbag that was 50% at the airport store. So that's probably a realistic price for me.

[@AMAM-yf2om]

Thank you for reviewing and educating viewers. Hope youll review some senreve bags and dooney florentine bag.

[@robertmz22]

Great video, as usual! I'm curious, have you ever reviewed leather from a Mexican tannery? (Perhaps from León, the country's leather capital?), if so, what'd you think of it? Cheers!

[@OhJodi69]

@@tanner.leatherstein I look forward to that! I'm a fan of Portland Leather Goods, and I believe they are in Leon.

[@robertmz22]

@@tanner.leatherstein Awesome! Really interested to hear your take if you ever make a video on it! I'm thinking of starting to craft small leather goods myself in my free time, so if you don't mind me asking, where would you point a newbie to start? Thanks!

[@rituno505]

Please review Leatherology wallet! Their price is reasonable but would love to see how the quality justify the price! Thank you!

[@mommashawna707]

My mother passed away last month and going through all of her stuff I found my grandmothers box of sewing shears. She sewed for a living many many years ago and now I’m not sure what to do with all of these old shears. They are so heavy lol

[@tara_nguyen]

It’s a dream to use those shears.

[@bethanyanderson1745]

What do your mother's shears have to do with Tanner's leather channel?
Did you accidentally post here? Or, hope to sell your shears here?

[@mommashawna707]

@@bethanyanderson1745 oh no I don’t need the money for the shears. I would happily give those away to someone that sews. I’ve actually given away a ton of her sewing things to people that actually sew because I cannot hardly sew a button. Having a grandmother and a mother that both sewed made me not learn whatsoever. I have to say when I wrote this I had just lost my mother and that was something I was going through was her shears and he was showing the shears that are big bulky and heavy like that and unless you held one you wouldn’t understand the weight of one of those. I honestly don’t know what to do with them. Needless to say I was talking about the shears I didn’t have any thought process behind it because I was hardly thinking at that moment, I had just lost my best friend.

[@ArnoutCW]

@@mommashawna707Hi, there’s really no need to defend yourself from a rather rude commenter. I hope you’re doing a bit better by now.

[@xahra4846]

Thank you without end for informing and educating us .

[@jesh4149]

Love your videos! Can you do a review of the new Gucci Blondie collection? I’m looking to get the new Gucci Blondie camera bag! I saw a display in store that already looked ruined potentially from someone trying to do a spot treatment on it with a chemical. But if it was just water that would not be good! I like the look though and it feels decent. Hopefully you can help!

[@pinayinsklee]

Been watching your videos last night , curious of how you review those branded items ,Love how you emphasize materials and cost , In Korea these luxury bags are just common. Dress to impress kinda thing .

[@gaiustacitus4242]

My wife bought a knockoff Louis Vitton during a trip to New York City for $350. The seller claimed the bag was authentic and it was so well made that my wife believed the woman. I compared it with an actual LV bag I'd purchased for her directly from LV. Surprisingly, the knockoff was of higher quality. Unless I knew for certain which bag was the original, I'd have guessed the knockoff was the original and the real LV bag was the knockoff. The most noticeable differences between the bags were limited to stitching details and dye color on the edging of the strap, and no casual inspection would catch these.

[@robsonbritofsa]

the fact that i receive gucci ads on this video hahahaha

[@robsonbritofsa]

@@tanner.leatherstein hahaha no! I would die lol

[@mommashawna707]

My mother had her name imprinted on some expensive bags, is there a way of getting that off without ruining the bag?

[@hangngo2240]

Great video! Will you consider making a video on what you do with the deconstructed products? :D

[@ft_alex5934]

How do i know if there is the authentication chip? Whithout brake my wallet

[@Mewefreakydeeky]

I love your content, could you do a tom ford bifold card holder next?

[@encryptoken]

What is the best luxury brand wallet in your opinion ?

[@UenoHanya]

This man is like Consumer Reports for luxury goods

[@freeuyghurspalestinekashmir]

Steve from Bedo's Leatherwork brought me here. Subscribed! I like your contents

[@rohitkukreja4112]

Can you please make a video about the Gucci authentication chip
Cause I recently purchased a Gucci wallet and it’s embedded with the same RFID tag but whenever I try to scan it in the Gucci app it does not seem to work

[@valentinakriscak]

Please, next one try The bridge bag, italian brand from Florence cause I ‘m so curious to see if it’s a good quality or not.

[@melaniekeeling7462]

Always interesting

[@melaniekeeling7462]

@@tanner.leatherstein Your content is fascinating.

[@worowiri6705]

I avoid gucci because some of its leathers look like pig skin and the web doesn’t inform which leather used in their product, and turns out it is calf skin on the inside?! 🤯. Why would they do that?

[@ryeofoatmeal]

right it's deceiving. especially for us muslim can't consume anything comes from boar. as an average consumer we couldn't know if they are genuine pig skin or just imitation. gucci & lv are those brands using coated canvas as their main material anyway 😐 shouldn't expect good quality leather

[@METRIKVX]

Gucci is low quality. My brother has a Gucci belt and it stretched out like a $10 Calvin Klein. 😂

[@bethanyanderson1745]

Purchased my Gucci wallet for women abt 5 yrs ago and it looks brand new. Used daily.
However, purchased a bi-fold for my husband and it looks awful. Corners completely worn.
How to determine which wallets will withstand daily use?

[@bookswiper]

Would be interesting to see which company offers the best value for your buck

[@staciarenee2982]

I would be over the moon if you could do a Bvlgari serpenti leather product. They make fold wallets like this specially the serpenti one as that's their line of leather bags. I have two and the smooth leather is beautiful. I only have two bags, wish i could send one but they are expensive!

[@PopSetthawut]

Gucci men's bi-fold wallet tend to crack at the edge when used religiously for a few months and the sticky inside kissing together as well.

[@svavvv]

Hey! I’ve just bought a belt from RM Williams and I’m wondering whether its quality warrants the price tag?

[@wangelite5279]

What do you think of japanese leather like the himeji leather. I bought moonstar shoes with that leather and feels good.

[@08daviep]

So where can we buy good quality leather wallets then 😭

[@andrewyoung328]

What companies can i look to for a wallet that isnt just a money grab? As you siad gucci is trying to make profit with these items but some of their bags and other items are more worth it. Which brands focus on craftsmanship, high quality material, etc. ?

[@joykim3897]

I wonder if you can do a review for Coach’s Coachtopia Leather

[@nullfine4843]

Pig skin is the iconic Gucci leather but (( Gucci can use because with the humidity gets smelly a bit so they do calf printed like saffiano ))

[@heels4heal]

I've been saying it since they've started using PIG leather! It's not calf leather. It's a lie. Gucci leather looks cheap now.

[@Rwissam1987]

The heavy finish is to protect the leather! Many people testify that those heavy coated leather items last a long time and look new even afterany years of use...
Uncoated leather is not going to last very long...

[@odvf]

@@tanner.leatherstein So the wallet will last, and look great for many years to come due to this protective finish? Seems worth it to me. You just simply don't like the look of the finish.

[@sciagurrato1831]

True. But uncoated Naugahyde lasts forever.

[@midsized-sedan8142]

Nah, leather with less coating can last for years if it's full or top grain and you do the bare minimum care for it. That's why it was used for boots, saddles, bags, and other household items that took a beating way before the advent of plastic.

[@andyknott34]

what was the white powder @3:00

[@houseplantgirl1]

I’d love to see Brahmin or Brandon Blackwood

[@nogoodname8133]

There are several aspects of selling this bag and you and most people completely miss this factor, of course LV makes profit, they are a business after all and the whole purpose of a business is to bring value to their shareholders. But by completely skipping over the rest of the production, logistic, marketing(you touch a very small bit on it) and sales of the product you can’t definitely say it’s worth it or not.
For one LV and most designer bags(not saying all) are in fact made in Europe, where the wages are a lot higher than in other parts of the world, while LV pays 30 euros an hour for their craftsmen and a fair wage for their employees, other brands that charge what you would call a fair price, either don’t have the overhead costs of a brand as LV or they (the most likely of the options) exploit their workers, especially the ones manufacturing the bags in the first place. So to say it’s all status, is a much more nuanced and honestly wrong assumption.
By the time the bag reaches the store it has cost the brand around 3.5x what the production cost of the bag was ie. Materials, labor, equipment, real estate, design and costs of prototyping, which is a lot more than the material cost alone, also businesses need to make a profit, which on average is 20% of profit margin for a luxury product. These costs are all before they start marketing and selling these items, you also have to account for storage of the items, points of sales, development costs for their site and online store/app, marketing, customer support and so much more.
Making their bags in the way you suggest would make them prohibitively expensive. Of course at the end of the day the brand has a value, but it’s not the only value, in fact it’s not the biggest cost for their pricing… Sure, buying from small artisans is great, but you can’t compare the scale and upfront investment a brand that has to sell so many products worldwide… You’re not only buying status, you’re buying a whole experience, you’re buying customer service, you’re buying the design.
Ps. Also bear in mind a lot of the big designer houses produce items, like this wallet with a higher profit margin, cutting material costs, to offset the cost of other less profitable, items, which for the most part these items are built with quality materials and full of craftsmanship, but they are less profitable, due to the higher cost and thus higher price they have to charge for it, making them sell these items for a lower profit margin so it’s attainable to some… Usually the highest profit items are the small leather goods, like wallets, keychains, etc…

[@kikinash690]

Can you please do Dooney and Brooks...I think they use good leather....I just feel it.

[@Maple-Sizzurp]

Do Ettinger next

[@UenoHanya]

Love your videos

[@StreetPreacherr]

Have you ever analyzed any of the leather products from SADDLEBACK? They claim to use "thick full-grain leather, the highest grade of hide you can buy, to make all of our leather bags." They're not exactly a 'luxury brand', so just wondering if their bags are 'worth' the sale prices?

[@raydromeda3777]

I think it would be a good idea to search up what 'full-grain leather' is. It might mean something or it might just be a bunch of buzzwords that sound appealing to customers who don't know much about leather. It's also a good Idea to find out whether thick leather is necessarily better than a thinner leather. I imagine thin leather is good for flexibility and thick leather better for weatherproofing. I do not know much about leather, but as an avid online shopping maniac, I like to search up what the words in the description actually mean.

[@Elliegoesluxurytravelling]

Can you please review picard bags and leather goods its a german brand 😊. Greetings from Germany 🇩🇪

[@moniloulou428]

Shocked😮😮

[@uropy]

I don’t have problem with the leather. It looks ok but too simple. Luxury stuffs are priced for their creativity/design, not for their raw material.

[@mooncake8254]

Is it really consider luxury, when it's made for the masses ?!

[@lc4n333]

I just bought a leather wallet from flea market for only 1 dollar. It is old, has patina and honestly I never handle such beutiful leather with nice patina. Surprisingly the stitching is still fine meaning this wallet is high quality, proven by the test of time.

[@danieldumas7361]

Is it considered "Old Fashion" to like a piece of leather gods that will Gracefully age by forming what I believe is called a "Patina". For a man in any case?

[@jonaswunderkind4580]

But yet again he is pointing the logo as if we it doesn't matter. Logo is culture. These brands are creating culture, creating the world we live in and it is not cheap. Product itself is a way to communicate and spread certain ideas, attitudes, moods etc. Small artisanal shops in general are meaningless, they are about utility and craft, influence doesn't go beyond their shop.

[@canerbaykara2639]

Are you Turkish or from Turkey by any chance? Your accent is reminiscent of a Turkish one.

[@susannpatton2893]

Amazing you can rip apart a 700 dollar wallet
I prefer a thicker, higher grade leather. If that means I do not ever buy one of theirs , it will be quality over branding any day

[@szesze-bw8fz]

Gucci bags used to be much more reasonably priced and customers understood they were built as fashion items for the season only.

[@soapzuds4542]

I'm not sure where you got your assumption from, but that's not true. I brought my 1st Gucci bag in the 80s, and not with the thought it would be for only a season. These luxury items are investment items.

[@szesze-bw8fz]

@@soapzuds4542 I bought a few Gucci bags from the '90s throughout to early 2000s - all from the Gucci store, and some were on huge discounts as season-end clearance. The bags "age" pretty quickly though I didn't wear them so often. Sticky lining, leather falling apart, monogram fabric loosing luster. Suppose they were better made in the '80s?

[@Natttttttttt]

In the Gucci movie they show that one of the brothers cheapened the brand by producing much cheaper quality goods maybe that’s what it is

[@missjhey]

Your wife is soooo lucky! You get to design a one of a kind handbag specifically made for her. I’m sick of other women wearing the same handbag as me.

[@tommyleung3514]

Leather wallet is separate line of leather work, and glueing and paste demand serious experience and secret knowhow past from generation to generation. Look easy does not mean you can make exactly the same. Basic caves skin leather finish are for Amature and they are boring. How you define pattern leather in the fashion industry ?

[@looppp]

gucci and LV are one of the most overrated "luxury" brands ever. low quality materials, low quality manufacturing, horrible. all about the brand. why do people even buy this garbage?

[@Шарлот-м88]

Luxury Gucci Cow 😂

[@odvf]

So basically, it's still a well made, good quality wallet, but you just don't like the finish on it.

[@OhJodi69]

It's very good leather, painted over with too much plastic, and $500 is far too high for what you get, even for a designer wallet.

[@odvf]

@@OhJodi69 So, basically what I just said. Lol. We all know we're paying a premium for the designer label.

[@SchlichteToven]

That is the ugliest wallet. The metal logo is lame and would cosntantly be catching on things.

[@saschaschoggo1176]

nice UA-camchannel

[@alvinsquezz]

Gucci is ripping people off like most brands. I never like the company and their products. They use cheap leathers and lie to their customers.

[@toofastforyall8590]

With 'luxury' brands you are paying for the name, not the material.

[@macislets7229]

Can you please make a review of MCM tote bags? I find them cute but I’m very curious if their nappa leathers are really worth it 😉