Why Jewellery Feels Like a Better Deal Than a Handbag

If you bought a handbag from one of the big luxury houses in 2019, and then returned to purchase the same bag today, you could pay nearly double what it cost last time — or even more, depending on the bag.

The experience might cause you to question whether the bag is worth its new price tag. But play out the same thought experiment with fine jewellery, and the price increase would be far more measured. Jewellery just might feel like the better deal.

This scenario isn’t just hypothetical. It’s the result of more than a decade of differing pricing strategies undertaken by top fashion and jewellery houses.

Since at least 2010, luxury fashion houses have raised prices on their top products far faster than jewellery labels have, according to UBS data. As a result, jewellery has preserved a stronger price-to-value perception in consumers’ minds, and today items like the Cartier Love bracelet seem relatively affordable compared to fashion icons like the Chanel Classic Flap. The contrast has contributed to jewellery’s outperformance of fashion and leather goods.

“You can buy a Cartier bracelet for around €1,000. There are no handbags available for that price anymore,” said Claudia d’Arpizio, head of global fashion and luxury goods at Bain & Company, stressing the psychological impact the four-figure mark has on younger clients. “This makes jewellery a perfect gift for younger consumers, allowing them to enter the world of Cartier early.”

Jewellery’s Slow and Steady Approach

The most significant price hikes on fashion and leather goods came during and after the pandemic. When the first Covid lockdowns were lifted in 2021, luxury shoppers returned with a vengeance and “revenge spending” surged across categories like bags, clothing, watches and jewellery. Brands faced a choice: capitalise short-term by inflating prices, or opt for slow, steady gains to build long-term value.

Many leather goods and fashion brands chose the first option. Handbag-centric houses like Louis Vuitton implemented steep price hikes, sometimes as high as 10 percent, UBS found.

Jewellery brands, by contrast, opted for a more restrained approach. Cartier raised prices around 3 percent.

Lowering prices in luxury is a no-go, meaning fashion brands can’t easily undo their aggressive hikes. While Cartier has raised prices faster than Louis Vuitton in recent years, the long-term increase has been more gradual, avoiding the sense among shoppers that prices jumped dramatically.

This pricing restraint has made jewellery comparatively more attractive to aspirational customers seeking lasting value and opened the category to a younger, more diverse customer base — especially in Europe and China, the latter being a crucial market struggling with high youth unemployment that has turned young shoppers away from luxury entirely.

Many jewellery brands, from big names to a growing number of successful small brands, also employ a “high-low” strategy crucial for attracting both aspirational and top-tier buyers.

“Some niche brands can get away with only targeting top clients, but big brands need to attract young, aspirational consumers to grow,” said d’Arpizio. While fashion’s steep prices have alienated entry-level customers, jewellery kept some attractive options in more accessible price brackets.

Meanwhile, fashion’s own proposition is under pressure. Complaints about declining quality — particularly in handbags and ready-to-wear — have become rampant online. Chanel, once a symbol of craftsmanship, has been openly criticised for slipping standards, even as prices rise. Nowhere have the cost increases been more apparent than in brands’ top handbags, which have outpaced not only jewellery but also categories such as footwear.

Add to this a creative lull across much of the category, with only a few exceptions like Prada and Miu Miu keeping things fresh, and the situation adds to the pressure on luxury. If current trends persist, Bain expects the personal luxury market will shrink between 2 percent and 5 percent this year. The sector is hoping that new creative directors debuting this fall at many brands, including Chanel, Bottega Veneta, Gucci, and Balenciaga, can revive enthusiasm.

Jewellery, in contrast, is hitting all the right notes. It continues to deliver on luxury’s core promises — craftsmanship, quality, emotional resonance — while staying appealing across generations and demographics. More women now buy jewellery for themselves, and men are increasingly interested in fine jewellery, too.

The category’s resilience was underlined in Richemont’s latest earnings: Its jewellery sales (Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels) soared 11 percent last quarter. “The appeal remains clear and untarnished by the aggressive post-pandemic price increases implemented by other luxury brands,” noted Bernstein analyst Luca Solca after the Swiss conglomerate’s earnings.

Even at Kering, the group’s Milanese jewellery brand Pomellato is doing well, despite the serious struggles of fashion houses such as Gucci and Saint Laurent.

D’Arpizio pointed out that many jewellery brands are employing strategies like mother-daughter gifting to connect with young customers early, and hopefully keep them for life.

“The 2025 outlook for jewellery remains favourable,” said d’Arpizio. “Jewellery is much more resilient.”