The Only Problem With Walmart’s “Birkin” Bags… Is You

There’s been a huge surge in dupe culture in the past few years. Thanks to TikTok and Instagram, people are more excited than ever to share with their everyday audiences how they can look and feel luxurious at a price that won’t make them go bankrupt. And up until pretty recently, everyone’s been pretty positive about the whole thing (of course, except the companies whose products are being duped). But apparently, the recent discovery of Hermés Birkin bag dupes at none other than everyone’s favorite superstore, Walmart, has left the internet pretty divided.

Someone discovered that Walmart sells a real leather bag that looks shockingly similar to the coveted Birkin bags that typically run people anywhere from $10K to literally $2 million. *Cries* These “Walmés” bags, as they’re being called, cost only $80 and appear to actually be high-quality bags. They look just like the bags that celebrities all over the world wear for a fraction of the price… so what’s the issue?

Image Credit: HBO

Some people on social media have shared that they’re not big fans of this whole dupe ordeal because they think it’s “tacky.” Seriously, they’re getting pretty heated about other people buying these bags, and I just have to ask… why?

n a world that kind of feels post-Kardashian (in the sense that they seem to evoke more negative emotions than positive), I thought we were all on the same page when it came to eating the rich. But suddenly, people buying affordable bags that make them feel luxurious is making other people angry because it makes them realize that the status symbols they’ve assigned to arbitrary items are all made up. And the craziest thing is I see a lot of regular people (who I know for a fact can’t afford real Birkins) getting the most upset. If you are fighting a class war on behalf of a class that you’re not even part of… I’m sorry to say that you have severely lost the plot. Also, you’re missing out because those bags are cute.

What’s most interesting is that Jane Birkin, the woman who inspired the design of the OG Birkin, didn’t even treat it like this pristine, untouchable thing. She basically threw all her shit in there and wore TF out of the bags. Seriously, she used them til she literally wore them in. And now, we see people handling the bags super delicately, sometimes even using gloves.

Listen, I get the idea of coveting a designer bag — I am just a girl after all. I’ve had my eye on a specific Louis Vuitton Neverfull for quite some time now. I too, have lost against capitalism. But do I care about other people buying dupes or fakes of that bag? Hell no. Why? Because I’m not Louis Vuitton (RIP), so it doesn’t affect me in any way.

I’d like us all to take a very deep breath and remember that times are really tough. The economy is shit, the world is in flames, and the job industry is in shambles. Obnoxious displays of wealth just don’t hit the way they used to, because people aren’t just jealous of the rich anymore — they’re angry about them. And if you are taking time out of your day to shame someone who is spending their money on a bag that makes them happy just because you think it “disgraces the status of the bag,” then you might need to give yourself a little reality check. In the meantime, I’ll be at Walmart.