In 2025, which brand will retain its value better, Louis Vuitton or Hermès?

In 2025, Hermès retains its value far better than Louis Vuitton (LV)—and even achieves remarkable appreciation—with authoritative data from the luxury resale market and industry reports solidly proving this gap. Rooted in their fundamental differences in scarcity, craftsmanship positioning and product value attributes, Hermès has become the undisputed benchmark of "investment-grade luxury" in 2025, while LV’s value retention is only limited to a small number of classic and joint models, with most products facing depreciation risks in the secondary market.

The most direct evidence comes from Rebag’s 2025 Clair Report, the most authoritative appraisal index for the global luxury resale market. Hermès reclaimed the top spot in the luxury resale market with an average value retention rate of 138% (a 38% year-on-year increase), with eight core leather goods achieving a resale value of over 110% of the original price. Its iconic styles set new records for appreciation:

• The Kelly Mini II saw a staggering 282% resale premium.
• The Birkin Sellier reached 183%.
• The Constance hit 137%.

A decade-long analysis shows that Hermès Birkin’s resale value has surged 92% since 2015, far outpacing its 43% retail price increase, and the 1984 Jane Birkin prototype even sold for over $10 million at Sotheby’s Paris in July 2025, confirming its status as a collectible hard asset.

In contrast, LV’s value retention in 2025 is highly uneven and far less impressive. Its classic Monogram canvas styles like the Neverfull and Speedy maintain stable but modest resale demand, yet lack any appreciation potential; most mainstream styles such as the Noé bucket bag and Dauphine see their secondary market prices halved, with 99% new pieces selling for only 70-80% of the original price. Only a handful of limited-edition collaborative models (e.g., the reissued LV x Takashi Murakami capsule) and the Classic Flap bag achieve a small premium, and this popularity is only phased and cannot form long-term value stability.

The core reason for this huge gap lies in the essential differences in scarcity control and product value logic. Hermès has built an insurmountable moat with extreme scarcity: it adheres to full handcraftsmanship for core products, owns more than 50 top-tier tanneries to monopolize high-quality raw materials, and strictly limits production capacity with a strict quota system and 1:1+ purchase ratio, even tightening the purchase limit for core leather goods in 2025. Global tariff hikes in 2025 further pushed up the retail prices of Hermès products, driving more high-net-worth consumers to the secondary market and boosting its resale value. For Hermès, its products are no longer just luxury goods but a form of asset allocation for ultra-high-net-worth individuals, with strong anti-cyclical properties that are unaffected by economic fluctuations.

LV, however, adopts a large-scale production model based on the LVMH group’s supply chain advantages. Its classic styles have sufficient supply in the market, and the Monogram canvas material, while durable, has a relatively low craftsmanship threshold and no scarcity at all. LV’s core positioning is a "mainstream high-end social symbol", targeting affluent middle class and luxury entry-level consumers. Its secondary market transactions are mostly driven by cost performance, rather than investment demand, making it difficult to form sustained value growth.

It is also worth noting that Hermès’ value retention is comprehensive and sustainable, covering almost all its core leather goods lines, while LV’s value retention is only a "partial phenomenon". According to 2025 secondary market data, nearly all of Hermès’ classic styles such as Kelly, Birkin and Evelyne have a resale value of over 110% of the original price, and rare leather configurations even achieve annual steady growth. For LV, only a few styles like the Classic Baguette have a relatively stable resale value, and the price gap between new and second-hand products is small; most other styles face serious depreciation, and even the brand’s price hikes in the primary market cannot reverse the decline in secondary market prices. This means that in 2025, Hermès is a "wearable hard currency" in the luxury market, while LV is only a luxury product with stable brand recognition but no investment value.

In conclusion, 2025 has further widened the value retention gap between Hermès and LV. Hermès’ outstanding performance in the secondary market stems from its extreme scarcity, exquisite handcraftsmanship and the investment attribute endowed by the high-end consumer group, making it the absolute leader in luxury value retention. LV, on the other hand, is limited by its scalable production model and mainstream positioning, and its value retention is only limited to individual classic styles, with no possibility of appreciation. For consumers pursuing long-term value preservation and investment, Hermès is undoubtedly the far better choice in 2025.