Just one week after the release of Beyoncé’s latest album, Renaissance, Queen Bey is poised to become the first female artist to have a number one album on the Billboard 200 albums chart in 2022. And while Bey should definitely be patting herself on the back, the folks at Telfar have a good reason to celebrate her success as well. Just one line, “This Telfar bag imported / Birkins, them s—t’s in storage / I’m in my bag,” gave the company a major boost and has a lot more people checking for the colorful designer bags.
On July 29, when the long-awaited album was released, fans everywhere played Bey’s 16 new tracks on repeat. But while they were dancing, they were also scouring the Internet for Telfar bags. According to Page Six Style, the company saw an 85 percent increase in views on the luxury consignment site TheRealReal and a 131 percent jump in views during “Renaissance’s” debut weekend compared to the same time last year.
Although Telfar is benefiting from the Beyoncé effect, the bags, designed by Liberian-American fashion designer Telfar Clemens, were already a hot commodity. After earning a spot on Oprah’s highly-coveted “Favorite Things” list in 2020, Telfar bags have been seen on the arms of A-listers including Zoe Kravitz, Gabrielle Union and Megan Thee Stallion. Nicknamed the “Bushwick Birkin,” Telfar totes have enjoyed popularity that rivals the Birkin bag, a status symbol for “it girls” everywhere since the 1990s. But unlike the pricey Hermès totes, which can run you anywhere between $10,000 and $200,000, Telfars are way more accessible to cost-conscious fashionistas at $150 to $300. But good luck getting your hands on one. A quick check for the totes on the Telfar site today showed just about every size and color sold out.
In a 2019 interview with The Wall Street Journal, Telfar Clemens said he wants to make sure his bags are available to as many people as possible. “Our whole thing is being mass,” he said. But I’ve got a feeling that these bags are about to get a whole lot harder to find.