[Friday Story] The Value of Luxury Goods

Paying Full Price for Pre-Orders, Waiting Months
Charged More if Price Rises, Forced to Repurchase if It Drops

The photo is not directly related to the article content. (Photo by Chanel Korea website)

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] "We cannot refund the price reduction, and if you cancel your purchase, you will be excluded from the reservation queue."

Last month, office worker Kim Suyeon (33, pseudonym), who spent millions of won to purchase a luxury bag, lost sleep over her frustration. Determined, Kim visited a luxury store and proceeded with a ‘full payment waiting’ reservation by paying the full price because the desired bag was out of stock. However, within a few days, the bag’s price was reduced, and when Kim visited the store to request a refund of the price difference, her request was denied.

Kim explained, "If I cancel, I don’t know when the stock will be available again, so I just bought it at a loss of several hundred thousand won. I paid with my own money, but there are no clear rules or explanations, and it’s absurd that the customer ends up struggling."

The ‘bold business’ practices of the luxury industry are going too far. If the price rises before receiving the product, customers must pay the difference, but if the price drops, instead of refunding the difference, customers are required to cancel and repurchase. Since canceling after waiting for months pushes them back in the reservation queue, most end up buying reluctantly.

Luxury brands such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Prada, and Dior frequently raise and lower prices, confusing consumers. Louis Vuitton raised prices in May last year and again last month increased prices of mini handbags and pouches by up to 25%. Fendi raised the price of the ‘Baguette leather bag’ by about 20% in October last year and quietly reduced it last month. Dior recently lowered the price of the ‘Toile de Jouy Book Tote Large’ by 100,000 won.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.