Deitsch Brothers was a family business, operated and run by two German brothers, Charles and Edward. In 1903, the brothers hired Henri Weil to "ornament their leather goods with silver and gold decorations, called “trimmings” in the trade." In 1906, fashion changed and Deitsch stopped embellishing their goods with cast silver and Henri Weil was let go. In 1908, Edward spoke in front of Congress in opposition of reducing a tariff on fancy leather goods (pp.2549-2554). He claimed that prior to 1898, they saw a net profit of 7.5%; between 1898 and 1908 they saw a net profit between 4.5% and 5%.
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| Ads shared by Cheryl (dragonflywink) on 925-1000.com. From left to right, advertisements were printed in 1891, 1893, and 1899. |
From the mid-1800s to the late 1960s, Deitsch offered exotic leather bags, including lizard and snakeskin (Anaconda and Cobra). "By the mid-1960s, the hype for the crocodile and alligator accessories reached its peak and caused a sharp decrease in the availability of the skins. By 1964, they cost twice as much as in 1961. Finally, in 1969, the ban on alligator and some crocodile skins had been announced in the U.S. (Source: Lucille de Paris: Collectible Designer Vintage Bags on eBay)."
In the 1930s, bags retailed for between $7.50 and $9.98, $122.67 and $163.24, in today's dollars - not accounting for the ban on skins. Today bags in good to excellent condition without gold or silver work, depending on where you find them, range from $60 to $500.
There are a lot of bags available at the moment from vintage handbag shops, as well as on eBay and Etsy. Vintage Skins had over a handful of Deitsch bags, starting at $220, from the 1940s to 1960s.
Would you sport a bag made from an exotic leather?
Ciao Bella!
Eden
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