Brooklyn-based Telfar is responsible for one of the year’s hottest bag styles, the stylish Shopping Bag, a distinct vegan silhouette offered in three sizes and an array of colors and finishes. Known for evaporating upon arrival at retail, the bag is currently sold out on telfar.net.
This year the medium-sized Shopping Bag was selected by Oprah Winfrey for her annual Favorite Things holiday gift list for 2020, one that’s themed on highlighting Black-owned businesses.
One thing that isn’t mentioned as a theme is the use of Amazon as a selling platform for all the gifts. And while Telfar’s listing includes the label’s own site, there is also a link to an Amazon shop, where the brand is being sold for the first time.
Priced at $202, the bag is available in four colors: cream, dark olive, navy and tan. For those who can’t pay the full price up front, Amazon offers an installment option.
Just as the brand’s growing popularity has caused disgruntlement among it original fans, some have expressed dismay the brand is being sold on Amazon. While Telfar sells its bags through its own stores as well as boutique retailers like SSENSE, Brown’s Fashion and Slam Jam among others, the view is that Amazon is simply too déclassé for a brand as dope as Telfar.
Still, the move to make the brand available on Amazon is actually in line with the label’s aspirational pricing and also lines up with its famed tagline: “It’s not for you — it’s for everyone.”
As well, the powerful reach of Amazon enables Telfar to reach a new customer base and also frees up the label from the heavy lifting involved in managing fulfillment thus enabling the company to focus on more crucial efforts like designing new offerings and expanding into new categories.
While it’s understandable people want the brand to remain their little secret, If managed properly, more customers are not just good they’re great for an indie brand like Telfar as it works to grow and lay down a foundation for longevity.
