In August 2019, Albert’s Pawn partnered with Entrupy, a luxury handbag authentication service, and began buying, selling and making pawn collateral loans on pre-loved luxury handbags. In the months following we will feature in our blogs the luxury handbag designers we buy, sell and pawn at all four Albert’s locations.
The designers we can authenticate using Entrupy are Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Gucci, Coach, Chloe, Dior, Fendi, Goyard, Hermès, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Burberry, Celine, and Prada. In this blog we will take a look at the French house of Chloè.
A Little History
Like the American Coach brand, Chloè got started post World War II by Gaby Aghion in 1952. Aghion was born and raised in Alexandria, Egypt and moved to Paris in 1945. With her partner Jacques Lenoir, the two were fashion forward thinkers as they gauged the young fashion conscious ladies of the era were ready for something different. She named her company Chloè after a carefree friend who embodied the style Aghion wished to create.
Aghion is said to have created “luxury prêt-à-porter” which means ready to wear luxury clothes off the rack. The concept was revolutionary.
In 1965 Chloè brought in an unknown German designer named Karl Lagerfeld and by the 1970s, the brand was off and running. (Lagerfeld would eventually create for Chanel and Fendi and become a celebrity in his own right). In the 1997 Stella McCartney, fresh out of school, was hired to give the House a new lift in style, creating quite a stir in the fashion world. It wasn’t until the early 2000s when McCartney’s assistant Phoebe Philo took creative control that Chloè introduced luxury handbags, shoes and accessories.
Today, the Chloè creative director is Natacha Ramsay-Levi, a Paris native who worked at Balenciaga for years and later was the creative director at Louis Vuitton for its ready-to-wear line.
Chloè “It Bags”
Some have created Chloè for creating the first “It Bag” with its Paddington Bag in 2005. When it sold all of its 8,000 Paddington Bags before they even hit the stores, it launched a frenzy among stylish women who just had to get their hands on one. A slouchy casual looking leather bag with a large lock on it, it spoke to a generation of women at the time.
The Paddington was soon followed by the Silverado Bag, a western style look with wide stitching and large side pockets. These two bags were so popular for years, Chloè continued to update and release versions of the bags in shoulder, hobo and satchel styles.
Next they released a series of bags named after women designed to give the customer a personal feel to their “new best friend.” The first was the Gladys, a large tote bag with lots of zippers. It was followed by the Betty, the Edith, the Heloise and the Marcie. Movie stars like Katie Holmes and Jessica Alba are fans of the girlie handbag series.
Chloè, which is now owned by the conglomerate LVMH, is also known for unusual evening handbags like one you wear as a bracelet or the shoulder bag with large chains. Chloè styles today vary widely and range in price from a few hundred dollars to a couple of thousand.
Pre-loved Designer bags at Albert’s Pawn
While there are a lot of online retailers selling pre-loved designer luxury handbags, the difference is at Albert’s Pawn you can inspect the handbag before you buy and you can start enjoying it now. Buying from Albert’s Pawn means no waiting for your purchase to arrive, no concerns about it being authentic and no shipping for you to deal with on returns. As the program grows, so will our inventory.
Because we can authenticate these pre-loved luxury handbags, we can pay the highest prices for buys or pawns. Customers can be assured when they purchase a pre-loved luxury designer handbag from Albert’s Pawn that it is authentic and purchased at a great price with an Authentication Money Back Guarantee.
If you can’t find the bag you are looking for in our stores, our wholesale handbag supplier may have what you’re looking for. We can special order for you so stop by one of Albert’s four locations to check our inventory or to get a pawn loan on your pre-loved designer handbag! Here are nine things to know about Albert’s Pawn in Tennessee.
Albert’s has been family owned and operated since 1927. No matter where you are in the Tri-Cities, we have a convenient location to serve you. With four Albert’s Pawn locations (Downtown Johnson City, North Johnson City, Bristol, and Kingsport), getting top dollar for your items for pawn loans and shopping for that item you’ve been looking for at an unbeatable price has never been easier. Stop by and see why Albert’s Pawn is the premier pawnshop in the area!