Designer Handbag or a Down Payment?
A Mondrian-Inspired Look at American Spending
This examination began when a celadon Hermes bag went into auction at 10M USD. I wondered, what can 10M buy for me? For others? How would others spend 10M if they have it readily available?
Biggest question that came to mind:
“What’s the real value of these luxury items when compared to what the average American family needs to live comfortably?”
So I collected data from 2023 - 2024 and built a chart. But I needed another visual representation. I was inspired by Mondrian’s blocks of color, clean lines, and use of sizes. From $10,000 to $600,000, I mapped out what money covers for average Americans nationwide, starting with the essentials like: rent, childcare, healthcare, student debt, a down payment for a home. Then contrast that to the cost of a designer bag, a luxury car, and a private jet.
The contrast was sharp. Especially when the average American median net worth is ~192K and 11K in credit card debt.
Depending on the brand, a single designer handbag could cover four years of college and a down payment on a home. A first-class vacation could match a year of living expenses for a family of four.
I wanted to reflect on these values some more and not necessarily judge those who can or will spend on luxury items.
As I continued this analysis, I realized that what we spend says something about what we value. Some people buy symbols because they can. Others buy safety, necessities to survive or possibly start their own business.
Poster entered in Information is Beautiful contest. Made it to the Longlist
Data Visualization Process
When data feels distant or overwhelming, design can bridge that gap. A beautiful visualization can hold complexity without clutter, and emotion without bias. In this case, it helps us see the scale of what money can buy, and where we place our priorities.
Choosing a Mondrian approach to visualize this data wasn’t meant to make inequality look better. I wanted to design something that made it clear and the viewers would look at longer to reflect.
Beauty pulls the eye in, especially strong colors. Order helps the mind think. The Mondrian style gave me a way to show scale without noise, just blocks of color, their sizes, and numbers.
Zoomed in for Readability
Close examples to read the descriptions
The sizes immediately shows the contrast of the price of something and what individuals would spend.
Interesting Numbers I Uncovered (2023 - 2024 Pricing)
Tesla Model S Plaid – $90,000
For the price of a new Tesla, a family could cover a year of living expenses, plus a year of childcare.
Bentley Flying Spur – $240,000
The cost of this Bentley equals three years of total household expenses or a down payment, four years of college, and two years of healthcare.
Hermès Himalaya Birkin – $350,000
One handbag could fund a four-year college degree, childcare, or a down payment on a home, with room to spare.
Private Jet Round Trip – $50,000
Enough to cover childcare and healthcare for two kids for nearly a year.
What I Learned:
After looking at the various data, having the celadon Hermes bag as a baseline at 10M. Then, seeing how much the average American families need to spend to provide for their families and fund higher learning. These are some insights that came up for me:
What we spend reveals what we value, even when we’re not aware we’re saying it.
Money moves fast. What we can trade it for stays with us.
Some choices buy comfort. Others buy applause, no shame in that. The cost is the same, but the outcome isn't.
Do we need a better understanding of what’s worth aspiring to?
What are your thoughts?
For those who happened to have read this and had a chance to reflect.
Leave your comments below.