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Telfar shopping bag reportedly sells out in minutes, fans accuse resellers of ‘ripping off Black businesses’

The Telfar restock was taken over by bots again claimed fans as many shared screenshots of having added the bags to their cart, however, in a minute, it was reflected that the bags were sold out

Telfar positions itself as an accessible luxury brand and its sleek mini bag was recently in the news after fans complained that the bags were unavailable due to bots that support resellers. The same seems to have occurred on Tuesday as hundreds of fans complained about not being able to buy the bags that were restocked. Most of them shared screenshots of having added the bags to their cart, however, in a minute, it was reflected that the bags were sold out. Some fans, frustrated that this happened again just weeks after Telfar claimed that their bags "were for people, not bots" on their Instagram, according to reports, expressed worry that the problem has not been resolved while others said that they are withdrawing support for Telfar. 

When the last restock of the signature sleek mini bag had gone awry, in an email statement to Vogue Business, designer Telfar Clemens and creative director Babak Radboy said that the majority of the sale had been from real people and that the bots influence was exaggerated. They had also said that it was high demand that had led to the crash of the website. "Some of it is technological, and most of it is addressing this specific restock because the activity was so intense, it broke the backend with thousands of orders being submitted at the exact same time," said Clemens and Radboy. 

It is because of this that the fans have also begun to feel as if they would not be able to get their hands on the bag and have shared frustration that they are not going to think about owning one anymore. Many shared that they are frustrated for the brand as it is getting hit because of the bots. There is also outrage from followers of Telfar about why Black men are supporting resellers.

One fan wrote on Twitter, "'We’re helping Telfar grow in value by buying out their stock and reselling it for 500% it’s value' no you’re depriving Telfar’s target market (non-wealthy black femmes) of the chance to literally ever own one and corrupting the brand’s entire mission." This fan also added, "The owner himself is doing everything to try and put an end to reselling his bags but you’re still trying to defend it?? Gross."

The resellers are arguing that they are helping Telfar by creating hype and buzz around their product but a few Telfar fans tried to educate resellers about Telfar's target audience, and their brand messaging -- Affordable and accessible. Fans have also accused resellers of ripping off Black businesses. One reseller who shared that people could now buy Telfar for $500, was told, "Just admit you don’t have any creativity of your own so you want to rip off Black-owned businesses."

In response, this user said, "Who’s ripping off Black-owned businesses? Resellers have been throwing money at Teflar for these bags and have been ultimately created hype and buzz around the brand." This turned into a full-blown debate. 

Then, there were a few who argued that Telfar was not losing out on profit because their bags were being bought. They also claimed that once the bag was bought, it was theirs to do as they wished and this includes selling them for exponentially high prices. The fact that a vegan bag sold at $200 was aimed at empowering Black women who belonged to the economic middle class was then pointed out by many as well, taking this Telfar debate to a different lane altogether. One user wrote, "You miss the point completely, Telfar are getting the same amount of money whether it goes to resellers or you. So what are we stealing?" 

Another user also tried to clarify on what the argument about affordability really means and said, "Generalized statements inherently imply 'not all'. I shouldn't need to mention every exception in order for you to understand the point. Rich people aren't the target demographic for $200 vegan purses. I say this as someone who buys $1,000 purses and drives a Prius." This user responded to questions about how Telfar is not only a product that the middle class buys. 

What started off as frustration over bots taking over the restock sale mutated into an argument about how resellers are ruining Telfar by subverting the brand's identity and messaging with fans of Telfar also accusing people of "ripping off Black-owned businesses."