Todd K.

I purchase two items from Yoogi's Closet in two separate transactions - the first was an Hermes Kelly wallet. The Kelly wallet came in even better condition than stated.

I also purchased an Hermes Birkin HAC. It arrived with one of the worst odors I have ever smelled in a bag although the listing stated nothing about odor. After making all of my co-workers smell it, we came to the conclusion that it was some sort of health supplement. The only way to explain the odor is that it smelled like someone had stuffed it full of Vitamin B12, closed the bag and stored it in a plastic container for a year or so... It was that strong. I did not want to return the bag if the odor could be fixed because it was the precise leather and color combination I wanted. After removing the packing plastic from the bag and storing the plastic in a separate box so the Birkin could air out, it became clear to me that the problem was not the Birkin, it was the plastic stuffing... the stuffing has transferred odor to the bag.

I hoped customer service would have something helpful to offer, but they referred me to the purse forum and suggested rubbing some dryer sheets on the bag, which I was never going to do. They also offered to accept it as a return. While I was on the phone with customer service, I explained that the odor on the plastic was even stronger than the odor on the leather, suggesting that the plastic had transferred the smell, at which point the rep indicated that the plastic used to stuff the Birkin was very likely recycled and that they may have used plastic that had an odor (without realizing it at the time).

I tried airing it out, baking soda, rolled towels stuffed with dryer sheets, just about everything I could think of. I finally came across a post where someone used an air ionizer that generated ozone to get rid of a smoke smell and I figured it was worth a shot. I spent $100 on an ionizer and sealed the bag up inside a large plastic container with the ionizer. After several sessions with the ionizer, the smell began to fade. As of today it's probably about 90% gone. Every once in a while I get a whiff of it and think "you need one more session," but I have not done it yet because inhaling ozone is not great for your health and I have not had the time to safely do another session.

I thought it was odd that Yoogi's Closet never offered to pay for an ionizer or reimburse any of the costs I incurred trying to rid my Birkin of this foul odor. I also found it odd that a site which specializes in consigning "luxury" items would stuff a bag with a $13,000 retail cost with plastic that smelled like hot garbage. I did not feel like they really cared when I dealt with them. I'm not sure I would buy from them again after this experience. I can say I would not consign one of my Birkins with them - I can't imagine my horror if someone purchased and returned a bag of mine due to an odor the consigner caused. I mean, where would it go from there? Would I need to prove they caused the odor and it was not sent to them like that? Fortunately for whoever consigned the Birkin I bought, I wanted to keep it really really badly and was patient enough to correct the problem. I think many buyers would not go through that to hang onto a bag. I can say I used to browse YC's site daily, but I have not been back on there since this experience about a month ago.