Last Friday on my way home from work, I stopped by a new luxury re-seller and stumbled upon a Louis Vuitton Monogram Speedy 40. Although it was pre-loved and had seen better days, it's an item that I have been looking for, for a long time. Why do I want a pre-loved one, let alone one in less than stellar condition? Let me fill you in - since realizing that I baby the bags that I spend a lot of money on, I've been looking for certain bags that have been pre-loved so I can fully use them. 'Fully' as in, wear them in poor weather, put them on the ground, stuff them full, and bring them on trips.
I have been wanting a Speedy 30 for the longest time and have been debating this for years - why have I put it off? Because my mom has one and it seems redundant to have 2 in the family even though we never share bags. Also, I have a number of Gucci Bostons that are of similar size and don't use them enough to justify a brand new Speedy (not to mention, the price increases have helped to deter me).
The solution? A pre-loved Speedy in a larger size. This avoids having the same bag in the family, lets me use it as a 'beater' bag (and lets me use it as a carry-on, or smaller weekend bag) so I don't have to be the one to feel bad about breaking it in, and is much less expensive.
Now that you're up to speed, let's resume. It was actually in a condition that I would love to have it in - no interior stains (this is very important to me), no cracks, pretty even darkening on the piping and handles, and the sales associate was even willing to throw in the lock and key from another bag, for free. It was everything I wanted, and the price was very reasonable. My hesitation? I wasn't prepared to be buying anything this month (remember, I'm trying to have 3 no-purchase months this year, and December is the only month left for me to keep my resolution), and since I wasn't expected to find it (I sort of gave up recently since I have other financial obligations) I hadn't planned to make this significant purchase. The bag was also on hold for another person but the SA told me that it didn't seem like they were interested since they had been unreachable over the 24-hour hold policy. I told the SA that I would go home and think about it and if it was still there on Saturday, I would likely pick it up.
I spent 2 hours thinking about it and decided to phone the SA the same night to put it on hold for me until Sunday if the original customer had not taken it. When I called, the SA told me that 'Monique' had come and picked it up. It wasn't meant to be =(
Part of me was super relieved that it was gone because I think I would have purchased it and I would have broken my record year of 'no bag and wallet' purchases, and also spent a significant amount of money on an unplanned purchase. If I had bought it, I don't think I would have as much fun and satisfaction of using it, knowing that I was so doing so well. At the same time, it has shown me that even though I haven't been thinking about the bag for a while, it is something that I really do want so I'm taking steps to save up for it outside of my wardrobe budget. Since it's very much a 'want it' item, I plan to fund it by selling items I currently have so that I have the money to purchase it if another 'perfect' one comes along - it'll be even sweeter to buy it then.
