French handbag maker Hermès created the iconic Birkin and Kelly bags, which sell for $20,000 each on average. How did they come to be and why are they so expensive?

In the early 1980s, Jane Birkin, the famous actress and model was fortunate enough to be upgraded on a flight from Paris to London. As she sat down in her seat, her bag tipped over, and the contents spilled across the floor of the cabin.

The man in the seat beside her commented on her bag by saying, “You should have one with pockets.”

While scrabbling about on the floor, picking up her belongings, she told him, “The day Hermès makes one with pockets, I’ll have that.”

At the time, she had no idea that the man she was talking to was JeanLouis Dumas, the chief executive of Hermès. And this coincidence led to a fashion phenomenon.

After introducing themselves to each other, they spent the rest of the flight sketching ideas on the back of an airsick bag. They looked at the shape, the pockets, the handles, and everything that would make a bag perfect for Jane. And in the process, they struck on something that would result in the ideal bag for many people.

The result of their efforts is now one of the most indemand and elusive fashion items in the world the Birkin bag.

These days a Birkin Bag sells for upward of $12,000, with the most exclusive ones hitting the $200,000 mark.

But it’s not just the price that keeps these bags exclusive. You could walk into a store with a fistful of cash and still not be able to buy one.

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