Jane Birkin died in Paris on Sunday at age 76. Because, for me, the Birkin bag — which retails for anywhere from $10,000 to $250,000 for the more high-end designs — primarily represents a store of value. The value of gold rose by about 2% on average over the 35 years. And I, for one, can't stop from marveling that all this was spurred from a chance conversation between Jane Birkin and an Hermès executive back in 1980. The singer and actor who inspired Hermès' signature bag died on Sunday at age 76.

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Persons: Jane Birkin, Birkin, scoffed, Jane Birkin's, Hermès, Baghunter Organizations: Service, Credit Suisse, Deloitte, Dow Locations: Paris, Wall, Silicon, Mumbai