Tycoon Offloads Handbags in Auction

Highlight of sale is this Birkin bag, worth up to HK$2M

People collect wine, sneakers, T-shirts, jeans, books, vinyl records, and Christmas ornaments.

Tycoon Joseph Lau Luen-hung collects Hermes bags and is going to offload 77 of them in a Sotheby's online auction next week. It's billed as the biggest sale from a single collector.

How you amass such a collection -- and not be a woman -- is intriguing to start. Hermes bags must be ordered in advance -- they are each made by hand -- and can cost from HK$70,000 to HK$4 million with long waiting lists.

Lau with his wife Kimbie Chan Hoi-wan

He has Birkin and Kelly bags as well as other Hermes designs collected over a 20-year period, and the most expensive one up for grabs is an emerald green Birkin bag made of crocodile with a diamond-encrusted clasp set in white gold. It is estimated to go for between HK$1 million to HK$2 million.

A quick glance through the online catalogue reveals bags in every colour, design and material that must have been stored carefully for years. 

Sotheby's says part of the sale proceeds from the auction will go to charity, but it's believed the 71-year-old Lau needs the money after making some bad stock investments. 

Last year he sold off part of his extensive wine collection too, making a cool five-fold profit of HK$64 million in a Christie's auction. He also sold some Chinese imperial porcelain valued at HK$151 million.

The billionaire who made his money in property development is also an avid art collector and has made headlines buying several massive diamonds at auction for his two daughters, Zoe and Josephine. The gem stones are named after them too.

The 12.03-carat blue diamond for Josephine

Will Lau put up his art collection for auction too? Maybe this is his way of settling his accounts, as in 2017 he cited having health issues...

But really you have to wonder -- a man buying numerous expensive handbags with the goal of selling them later for a profit. Definitely a quirky investment that's going to pay off.