‘Sent that cease and desist’: Shopper tries to look up Hermes dupes on Walmart site. Then something unexpected happens
A woman shopping online at Walmart claims that the Birkin bag she found and ordered is no longer available. She surmises that the Hermès dupe raised the ire of the luxury company.
The video, from creator Britt McHenry (@realbrittmchenry) went up on Dec. 30. As of Friday morning, she had garnered more than 167,000 views.
"Y'all, Hermès and the rich are in their feels with that Walmart Birkin," McHenry begins, referring to the dupe she found online. She's filming the video with a Walmart "We couldn't find this page" in the background, which she claims is what someone now gets when searching for the Hermès lookalike handbag she was able to order from the site.
"I was raised middle class," she said regarding her handbag purchase choices. "Like, I'm never gonna spend more than $7,000 in person." She then reconsiders, pausing on $6,000 before declaring, "I tap out between 4 to 5k. That is a lot on a bag."
"I have designer bags before y'all come for me," she clarified. "I have Valentino, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Jimmy Choo." She then asserts "That should be another video," relaying that a $1200 Jimmy Choo bag she owned broke twice, with a difficult repair process in which the bag needs to be sent directly to the company.
While the Birkin bags are unavailable, several actual Hermès bags are available on the Walmart site, setting you back $15,148, $23,431, or even $39,203.
Unsure but hopeful that her Walmart bag would arrive, she declared, "I think Hermès is salty. Power to the people."
More on the story
People covered the controversy in a New Year's Eve article. That author noted, "The retail giant's budget-friendly duplicate of the Hermès' Birkin — humorously nicknamed the Walmès Wirkin — had influencers and consumers desperately trying to get their hands on the $79 piece. The sold-out handbag, which Walmart describes on its website as a leather shoulder bag, was offered in 12 colors including orange, dark blue, pink, light blue, dark khaki and dark sky gray."
The original Birkin, according to the article, "was inspired by the late Jane Birkin and created by then-Hermès chairman Jean-Louis Dumas in 1984."
It goes on to say, "In an interview with Vogue in 2012, Birkin (who died in 2023) recalled the chance encounter with Dumas in 1981 that resulted in the bag's creation. During an Air France flight to London, Birkin was seated next to the French businessman. After the contents of her bag fell out, Dumas commented that she should 'have one with pockets.'"
Birkin asserted she would buy such a bag, got to talking with Dumas about her vision, eventually "sketching it out on a barf bag" and thereby launching the iconic product.
@realbrittmchenry they said no ma’am ???? #walmart #walmartbirkin #fashion #fashiontiktok #purse #purses #designer #designerbags #birkin #birkinbag #hermes #FYP #foryoupage #foryourpage #makeitcinematic #handbag #designerbrand #grwm #style #shopping #dupes #budget ♬ original sound - Britt McHenry
Viewers weigh in
Certainly, visitors to the video had opinions about handbag prices.
"Not me thinking more than $200 is too much," said one. "In the thousands???"
Another reflected, "My limit is $10,000 to $12,000, That’s it!"
A number of people shared their own stories in trying to secure the bag, and one claimed the Canada version of the Walmart site was still showing the dupes for sale.
Several claimed they would go the DIY route.
One said, "I'm going to make my own."
And another chimed in, "I'm sewing mine together myself."
The Daily Dot has reached out to the creator via TikTok and Instagram direct message and to Hermès and Walmart via email.
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