Customers sue Hermes after ban on buying coveted Birkin bags

They are the ultimate symbol of style and wealth, regularly seen hanging from the arms of Kate Moss, Heidi Klum and Jennifer Lopez.

But now the Birkin handbag is at the centre of a class action lawsuit launched by a pair of disgruntled shoppers who claim the company behind the designer accessory has made it too exclusive.

Californians Tina Cavalleri and Mark Glinoga accuse French fashion brand Hermes of only allowing the bags to be sold to “worthy” customers.

The leather bags, named after and inspired by the late English-French actress Jane Birkin, cost from £7,000 (AUD$13,480) to £395,000 AUD$760,000).

Now, the lawsuit claims shoppers must spend thousands to even have a chance of buying one.

The complaint accuses the Parisian design house of unfair business practices after taking advantage of the “unique desirability, incredible demand and low supply” of the designer bags, which are handmade in France.

According to the lawsuit, customers who are not famous do not have ready access to Birkins, and they cannot purchase the bags online from Hermes.

“Typically, only those consumers who are deemed worthy of purchasing a Birkin handbag will be shown a Birkin handbag (in a private room),” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit alleges that sales associates only offer the bags to people with the correct purchase history of other products, including shoes, belts, scarves and more.

While Hermes sales associates do not earn commissions on sales of the bags, they are instructed to use them “as a way to coerce consumers to purchase ancillary products”, according to the complaint.

Ms Cavalleri claims she ended up spending tens of thousands of dollars before being offered the chance to purchase her first Birkin.

When she asked about buying another Birkin in September 2022, the sales associate said the bags go to “clients who have been consistent in supporting our business”.

Mr Glinoga claims he tried to buy a Birkin “but was told on each occasion he needed to purchase other items and accessories”, according to the lawsuit.

The plaintiffs seek monetary damages and injunctive relief – a court order requiring a person, or in this case, a brand, to cease a specific action.

In 2022, social media influencer Audrey Peters accused the brand of taking “absurd” steps to be “offered” the chance to buy the bags.

She claimed shoppers must do everything from “visiting” their chosen sales associate to buying multiple other items from the brand.

Only then, she claimed, will a customer be given the chance to procure one of Hermes’ more popular and hard-to-find products.

Birkins are each individually made by hand, usually from calf leather but sometimes from more exotic materials.

Jennifer Lopez’s Birkin, the Himalayan Crocodile, is hand-made from albino Nile crocodile hide and retails for as much as $500,000.