Gucci is a brand known for bringing the best when it comes to fashion. Loved by millions across the globe, Gucci is the number fashion brand in the world. Whether it’s beautiful apparel, handbags, or watches, all of its products have been a symbol for the rich for almost a century.

The famous GG logo on the iconic Gucci belt screams “luxury.” All of its products are lavish and cost thousands of dollars. Leading people to wonder why Gucci is so expensive? Are those sky-high price tags justifiable?

History of GUCCI

Why is Gucci so expensive?

To understand the pricing logic of Gucci’s products, we must look at this luxury brand’s origin and its products’ production, marketing, and psychology.

Guccio Gucci, the founding father of Gucci, was the son of a french leather worker. He learned his father’s craft but was not happy to live the same life as his father. He was tired of being destitute. He decided to move all across Europe in search of jobs that would pay for the lifestyle he desired.

He took day and night classes in London and Paris. Worked hard to integrate himself into the industry of high-end fashion. He struggled for a couple of decades before succeeding in capitalizing on his family-taught craft.

He founded Gucci, a brand that caters to the rich and wealthier audience. Gucci started as a horse riding leather goods brand but evolved over time into Italy’s most valuable brand. As of today, Gucci’s net worth is estimated at least 18.1 billion USD.

GUCCI Products

Gucci products are costly and are not sold at a bargain price because they are created for rich and high-status people. Gucci commonly sold fashion items, including designer bags, clothing items, watches, and wallets. Here is a brief list of the most loved Gucci products, along with their prices.

Gucci Bags

Gucci’s bags and purses are widely loved by celebrities, models, and upper-class people throughout the sale. These bags are sold at a very high price. For example, a Soft Stirrup Black Crocodile Shoulder will cost you no more than 30000$.

The Gucci Crocodile Tote bag that comes with a bamboo handle will set you back for an amazing 32000$.

Other famous purses include the elegant-looking Dionysus shoulder bag, which costs 2,490$. Elite-class people and celebrities love these bags. These bags offer diverse designs, top quality, and creative designs.

The leather and material used to create these bags are sourced worldwide. The top-notch quality and immaculate craftsmanship is what differentiates Gucci from other street brands. That’s why fashionistas all across the globe love to carry around an exquisitely designed Gucci bag.

These bags are like the family heirloom worthy of passing from generation to generation.

GUCCI belts

Gucci’s double G logo signature belt is one of the most common Gucci products. Gucci belts are as significant as other products. As a matter of fact, the most expensive Gucci item ever sold was non-other than a Gucci belt.

A Stuart Hughes belt, priced at an astonishing 250000$. Gucci leather belts have a cult-like fanbase when it comes to designer fashion accessories. The most refined leather and double g hardware logo make them appealing to the eyes of consumers.

Apparels, Shoes, and other accessories

Gucci holds mastery in designing and creating apparel of all sorts for consumers. This mastery is not only limited to clothing but also shoes and day-to-day accessories like watches, wallets, and much more.

Enlisted below is a list of top-selling Gucci products.

• Embroidered Leather Jacket – 7980$
• Leather Platform Pump – 980$
• Embroidered Wool Cashmere Top – 4800$
• Python Trench Coat – 17000
• Cord Necklace With Metal Flowers – 1700$
• Postcard Print Silk Skirt- 1890$

Why So Expensive?

To understand the pricing, we must understand how much the company invests in each product. How are these products actually manufactured, and what sectors of production and business costs the company so much? Gucci prices its products based on the costs of creating and selling them.

Designers

Manufacturing begins with the designers. The company hires the best designers who design and craft the best products for the company. These designers are paid accordingly for the time, effort, and creativity they put into the design process.

Luxury designers like Albar Elbaz spend months perfecting just one dress’s design. The thing about these clothes is that they aren’t just clothes. They are art in the shape of clothes.

That’s why elite designers like these command top dollars.

The price might seem unjustifiable for a designer shirt, but you must consider what process it went through from beginning to end. You are paying for all that time and effort the brand has put into it.

Materials & Manufacturing

The other areas where the company spends money are raw materials, manufacturing tools, labor, and shipping products to warehouses. The cost raised in any step is compensated by increasing the cost of products.

These brands only use top-quality materials for their products. This causes the company a lot, and as a result, the products come up with a much higher price tag.

The company uses the finest raw material and never compromises on the quality of its products. Products never wear out after a short period of use and last quite a while. Gucci is a brand status symbol and likes to keep up its reputation. Hence products are made the best possible.

Secondly, the company used innovative methods to create the products during Moussellini’s reign. High-quality raw materials were tough to acquire. This pushed the company to use innovative techniques and materials to produce its products like Gucci Vintage Bags. Materials like Jute, Hemp, and Canvas.

The company uses those materials to this date to produce handbags and purses. The company is known for creating a variety of fabrics. Most worth discussing are the Original GG canvas, Diamante & Flora.

Destinations Of Production

Many brands exploit the cheap labor facilities of third-world countries. Specifically, Southeast Asian countries are known for the production of garments.

High-end fashion brands like Gucci choose contrary strategies to this. In the high fashion industry, most production is facilitated near the home. This keeps products exclusive and more in demand since products are not abundant.

Taxes in France are very high as compared to many other countries. France is home to many luxury brands. So it costs the company so much to mass produce these products in big countries where taxes are higher and workers’ wages are exceptionally higher compared to Asian countries where ordinary clothing brands set up their production facilities.

Advertising & Marketing

Every brand chooses numerous ways to promote itself and reach out to potential customers.

Brands like Gucci invest a ton of money from their budget in promotion and marketing. Gucci promotes itself in a variety of ways.

• To promote its high-end bags, clothes, and other products, Gucci hires many celebrities to model and promote the brand’s products.

• Gucci spends a substantial sum on promoting the brand through fashion shows to showcase and unveil their latest apparel collection and designer’s art throughout the year. Gucci is known to organize three fashion shows per annum. A lot of money goes into these fashion shows. These shows are organized at different locations. Gucci’s first runway show was held in 1981 at the company’s birthplace, Florence, Italy. The cost of these shows also includes hiring the best creative minds in the industry.

• Another aspect of marketing and branding includes historical anecdotes of the brand. The customer absolutely loves to associate themselves with the heritage and historical significance of the brand. Gucci acknowledges this fact quite well. Hence, as a brand, Gucci associates itself with historical events and ceremonies that cater only to the top 1% of the population. Such heritage events include Wine tasting events, Vintage luxury car rallies, and other events appreciating arts.

Desired By Customers

The desire of consumers to own luxurious fashion stuff is also a significant price-determining factor for Gucci products. A number of wealthy and elite class people love to spend thousands of dollars on their desired Gucci items. Be it apparel, perfumes, watches, bags, and wallets. The sole purpose of Gucci’s creation is to sell to rich people.

Spending hefty amounts of money on Gucci products is a way for the rich to be recognized as powerful and elite members of society.

Scarcity

Besides all systems mentioned earlier and strategies, the best quality raw materials for brand endorsements. Gucci has another mind-boggling strategy to keep its products scarce and extremely valuable.

They destroy any unsold products at the end of the year. It was reported that Gucci burned almost 20 million $ worth of their merchandise at the end of 2019. Destroying all unsold items create an illusion of scarcity for the consumers.

Timo Rissanen, a fashion expert, states, “When you buy something from brands like Chanel or Gucci, the money is actually paid for their marketing campaigns.”

When brands destroy a product worth 1000$, they do not actually lose 1000$ because the product’s manufacturing cost is much less than it is sold for.

Criticism

Upon learning these so-called dirty secrets of the company, critics often question whether Gucci products are worth it or not. Non-profit tailor wages discovered that only 25% of Gucci garment workers make a living wage. Brands like these are often accused of exploiting their workers by overworking and underpaying them. They also use illegal labor in their production units. This is a common practice in the fashion industry.

Final Thoughts on why is Gucci so expensive

Despite all that, Gucci still manages to be loved and desired by millions. Since its birth, Gucci has managed to be on top of fashion brands across the globe.

The main reason why Gucci is so expensive is because they use the highest quality raw materials, hire highly skilled and qualified workers, do outsourcing from different countries, and spend a hefty amount on promotions.

Gucci sales doubled in the year 2018 as compared to the previous year. The majority of the buyers were from age 18-35. These stats show the love of Millenials for Gucci. Another reason is that we all grew up watching Gucci items on our idols, celebrities, and in magazines. This creates respect and desire for the brand among the masses. A lot of social media icons and celebrities love Gucci. Kylie Jenner made headlines when she carried her baby in a 625$ Gucci carrier.

Gucci has always brought a game to the market, whether it’s product quality or fashion shows. The prices of the products and endorsements through celebrities become the audience’s word of mouth.

Also, all the products crafted by Gucci are so well-designed and innovative that they never seem outdated. This is one of the hardest things for a brand to pull off.

FAQs