Sometimes it helps to have a few Louis Vuitton items socked away for certain occasions. It may surprise some of your friends and family – which is always a unique form of power: being unexpected.
And that goes along with the feel of the brand – “Louis” – reminds us of King Louis. Royalty. Game of Thrones time. Come at the world from where they don’t expect you.
In this post we’re going to go over the various ways in which you can obtain Louis Vuitton items…inexpensively. And in case you’re wondering if we’re going to suggest buying counterfeit Louis, well, we’re not. The point of this article is not to teach you how to be a fake, but how to be smart.
Pro Tip: Having money and throwing money at things to solve problems is how you go broke. This applies to anyone. A surefire strategy for failure.
1. Start By Searching Second Hand
The second you drive a new car off the lot, the value of the car drops thousands of dollars. Yet, it’s in the exact same condition it was moments ago.
The same thing applies to Louis bags.
There is really no need to buy brand new merchandise if you can get an item of near-perfect condition for a better price. And besides, the only person that knows the true history of the bag is you.
Well, you and the person you bought it from.
Still, no big deal.
There is also another huge savings that people often forget about when buying a second-hand bag from a private party. NO TAX!
So, when you combine the savings of the bag being used and the fact that you’re not going to pay sales tax, you’re talking hundreds of dollars in savings.
What to look out for
If you’re buying a second-hand Louis from sites such as eBay, Craigslist or even from someone on Facebook – be sure to get photos of the underside of the bag as well as all sides. You may even want to ask for close up photos of the corners because that’s where the most wear will be. Additionally, close ups of the handles and hardware would be a good thing to get.
Here’s a good Craigslist post for a Louis: Lots of photos from different angles and a good price!
Finally, if applicable for the bag, verify the bag number. You can look up bag identification number online.
Getting the merch
Once you’ve identified a bag that you want, there are a couple of things you want to keep in mind when it comes to actually obtaining it. If you’re buying the bag locally, meet the seller somewhere in public that’s busy. A coffee shop for instance. You’re doing a fairly large financial transaction, so it’s better to be safe. Avoid having people meet at your home.
We don’t want to scare you from picking up a bag this way. Chances are everything will be fine. Usually, the person selling the merchandise has more to risk than the person buying it.
If you’re buying the bag online (say from an individual with an eBay account), use Paypal to pay for the bag. Paypal was developed specifically for individuals selling products to each other online – so fraud and scam issues are something that they take seriously and will usually come to your defense, if you’ve been scammed.
2. Department Store Discount Hacks
Sometimes, it’s just a matter of timing and being resourceful. Traditionally, most department stores that carry Louis Vuitton, do not apply their sales to Louis merchandise. Some say this is a way for them to keep the brand value up.
However, there are a few ways around this.
Saks Fifth Avenue
At Saks, you can earn “double points” on your Saks credit card, which you can later redeem for a gift card. Not a bad hack, if you plan to do a bit of shopping at Saks anyway.
Bloomingdale’s
Bloomingdale’s also offers a credit card that allows you to rack up points based on the amount you spend over time.
If you apply for their basic credit card, you’ll earn 3 points for every dollar you spend. If you apply for their “Top of the List” credit card, you’ll earn four points for every dollar you spend. After 5,000 points you’ll get a $25 rewards card. This does mean you’ll have to spend over $1,000 to get $25 off.
Again this may not seem like the greatest deal ever, but if you do a majority of your shopping at Bloomies over the year, it might be a nice little reward for you when it’s the time of the year to get yourself that gift you so deserve. Could end up being a couple hundred dollars off a Louie bag. Throw this in with the next hack and you might even get a bigger savings..
3. Sales Tax Hack
If you live in the United States, not all states charge sales tax. And this is a pretty big deal when it comes to large purchases. For example:
You’re looking at a $4,000 handbag…
And say you’re buying it in Santa Monica, California with a sales tax of 9.5%…
The sales tax you pay would be $380.00! The price of another bag or wallet!
Now, this isn’t always a surefire bet – but it’s a good idea to check to see if you’re going to be in a good place to buy an expensive handbag anytime soon. Here’s a list of states that don’t charge sales tax (and the top three lowest sales tax):
| State | Sales Tax | LV Store | Saks Store | Bloomie’s Store |
| Alaska | None | None | None | None |
| Delaware | None | None | None | None |
| Hawaii | Low | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Montana | None | None | None | None |
| New Hampshire | None | None | None | Yes |
| Oregon | None | Yes | None | None |
| Virginia | Low | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Wyoming | Low | None | None | None |
If for some reason you’re going to be passing through any of these states, you may want to pick up your bag there. You can check our Louis Vuitton store locator to see if there’s a store near the city you’re traveling to.
And for good measure, here are the links to the Saks Fifth Avenues store locator and the Bloomingdale’s store locator.
4. Rent One 🙂
Now, I know what you might be thinking.
But once you learn about handbag rental services, it’s actually a great way to “obtain” a lot of high-end designer bags without having to buy them outright.
If you think about it, you’re not going to use the same bag every day. And if you threw down a lot of cash for a really expensive Louis bag, how much do you really want to take it out and about in the first place?
When you are using a rental service, the bag isn’t yours – so like renting a car, “oopsies” aren’t necessarily the biggest deal in the world to you. You know, the coffee in the car ride that splashes onto your bag, oily junk food that falls on it – typical life events.
Plus, you get a different bag every few weeks, so your collection is going to really look royal!
If you’re interested in joining a handbag rental service, be sure to check out our post: 7 Places Where You Can Rent Designer Handbags BagBirdy.
5. Finally, If You Happen To Travel To Europe
Note: A few things have changed since this map was first published.
Being in Europe (or more specifically, the European Union) is a great time to pick up a few Louis Vuitton goods.
There are two reasons for this:
1) As the dollar is strong (at the time that this article was written), Louis products are cheaper to purchase in Europe than buying them in the U.S.
2) People traveling to Europe do not have to pay TAV tax on European goods over a certain amount.
You’ll instantly see a substantial savings (sometimes a few hundred dollars less).
If you go to an actual Louis Vuitton store in Europe, the staff will fill out the necessary tax forms so that you can get your money refunded to you at the airport. It does become a few hoops you have to jump through – but what you’ll be at the airport waiting for your plane, so it’s really not a big deal. Unless you’re late of course.
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