FLOAT 100 · Handbags · No. 13

Hermes Mini Kelly II 20

Hermès shrank its most formal bag to the width of a hand, dropped it, then brought it back slimmer in 2016, and a palm-sized Kelly with no lock and no key became the bag collectors fight hardest to get.

Year: current
Maker: Hermes
By price in handbags: 16 of 100

Market asking price, not a sale · Oct 4, 2026$39,500This is not a sale. It is an asking price, and no transaction is recorded at this figure.

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Maker: Hermès, Paris
Model: Mini Kelly II 20 (also called Mini Kelly 20 II), Sellier construction
Introduced: 2016, as a redesign of the earlier Mini Kelly 20 with a smaller handle and slimmer depth
Dimensions: About 20 cm wide, 12 to 14 cm high and 6 cm deep, depending on how it is measured
Leather: Epsom, an embossed, pressed calfskin Hermès introduced in 2004
Color: Guimauve, French for 'marshmallow,' a pastel pink-lilac described as new to the Hermès palette in 2026
Hardware: Palladium; no padlock, keys or clochette, which Mini Kellys have never come with
Carry: Small top handle plus a removable leather shoulder strap
Retail, U.S.: About $11,400 in Epsom as of 2026, up from about $8,700 in 2023

From saddle bag to princess

The Kelly descends from the Haut à Courroies, a large leather bag Hermès sold from 1892 for riders to carry their boots and saddle. In the 1930s Robert Dumas, son-in-law of Émile-Maurice Hermès, created a smaller, structured version for women, known in early catalogs as a travel handbag; in 1935 an even smaller version that could take a shoulder strap was launched.

Fame came through Grace Kelly. After the American actress became Princess of Monaco in 1956, she was photographed shielding her first pregnancy from photographers with the bag, and the picture ran in Life magazine. Customers began asking Hermès for the princess's bag. Sources disagree on the details: one places her first use of it on the set of To Catch a Thief in 1955, and accounts of when Hermès formally renamed it 'the Kelly' range from the late 1950s to 1977.

The bag itself was carried for years. The princess's own Kelly, lent from the palace archives of Monaco, was shown at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in April 2010, still bearing the scuffs and marks of long use.

The first miniatures

Small Kellys are older than most collectors assume. The earliest known Mini Kelly dates from 1957 and hung from a mid-length shoulder strap. The round top handle that collectors call a bracelet handle arrived in 1980, and ten years later Hermès introduced the Mini Kelly 20 in Retourne construction, a model that is now very rare.

The earlier Mini Kelly came in two versions. The first measured 20 cm wide, 18 cm high and 14 cm deep, with a rounded handle that some Asian collectors nicknamed 'Big Ears'; the second traded the handle for a shoulder strap. Mini Kellys were never sold with a lock, keys or clochette, though shoulder straps appear on them from the start.

In its day the Mini Kelly was not much of a hit. Elizabeth Taylor owned three, but most women found it too small at a time when big bags ruled, and it was treated as a novelty that could be bought for under $10,000 in leather. Hermès discontinued it in 2009, and examples made after 2004 are extremely rare.

2016: the Mini Kelly II

As mini bags came back into fashion, Hermès reintroduced the form in 2016 as the Mini Kelly II. The redesign reduced the top handle and the depth, giving a slimmer bag that is generally made in Sellier construction, with exterior stitching and sharp edges. The small handle is meant for the hand, not the wrist, and a removable strap allows it to be worn on the shoulder or across the body.

Like every Kelly, it is made almost entirely by hand by a single craftsman in one of Hermès's French workshops. A full-size Kelly is cut from 36 pieces of leather and takes 18 to 24 hours by one estimate, around 18 to 20 by another, and Hermès leather workers train for about 18 months with the Kelly as their main study. At 20 cm, the tolerances are tighter and any flaw in edge finishing or alignment is easier to see.

Published dimensions vary by listing: 20 by 12 by 6 cm on one, about 20 by 14 by 6 cm on another, and up to 9 cm deep on a third. The tracked example's listing gives a base of 7.5 inches, a height of 5 inches and a width (depth) of 2.25 inches, with a 2-inch handle drop and a 19-inch strap drop.

Hermès has since issued limited editions on the same frame, including the wicker Mini Kelly Picnic, the plush Teddy and the studded version, along with custom horseshoe-stamp orders in exotic skins.

Epsom and Guimauve

Epsom is a pressed calfskin with a fine, cross-hatched grain created by embossing. Hermès brought it in to succeed Courchevel leather in 2004. It is light, resists scratches and holds its shape, which is why it suits structured bags like the Kelly Sellier; its even grain also takes color well. Epsom is the most sought-after leather for the Mini Kelly II.

Guimauve is French for 'marshmallow.' It is described as a pastel pink that, on Epsom, takes on a richer, more saturated tone close to the house's Mauve Sylvestre; another description calls it a soft pastel lilac with subtle pink undertones. One reference says it entered the Hermès palette in 2026 as part of a seasonal collection called Venture Beyond.

The example tracked on this page is an Epsom Mini Kelly Sellier 20 in Guimauve with palladium hardware, offered in unused 'giftable' condition with protective film still on the hardware, plus box, dust bag and strap. Its listing gives the date as 2025 and describes a chèvre goatskin lining with one flat pocket. Another dealer's Guimauve Epsom Mini Kelly II, bought from a boutique in 2026, is described with a Swift calfskin lining, so check the lining and date stamp of any individual bag rather than assuming.

Three times retail

Since the Mini Kelly II first reached auction in 2018, it has become one of the steadiest performers in the handbag market. One guide puts the leather Mini Kelly II at about three times retail on the secondary market, around $30,000 for a store-fresh bag, and $25,000 to $30,000 at auction depending on color, condition and date stamp, with new pastels and classic neutrals bringing the most and bright reds, greens and pinks less.

Auction results bear that out. A black Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II from 2020 sold for $32,500 on December 9, 2021, against an estimate of $9,000 to $12,000. In the spring 2022 auction season the model averaged $32,760, up 6.5 percent from the year before, and a limited-edition tri-color Epsom example in bleu brume, vert jade and gold sold online for $35,280 on June 9, 2022. On June 12, 2023, an Orange H Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II from 2022 sold at an online auction in New York for $27,720.

Exotic and precious versions sit in another tier. A matte alligator Mini Kelly 20 II sold in Hong Kong in 2022 for HK$604,800 (about $77,046), and a matte vert peppermint alligator example realized $88,900 in New York in December 2025, when a sterling silver Mini Kelly from the 1990s brought $127,000 at the same sale. The most expensive leather Mini Kelly at auction in 2024, by one count, was a Craie Epsom bag with Permabrass hardware that sold for 45,600 Swiss francs.

Retail has climbed too. One guide lists the Epsom Sellier Mini Kelly II at about $8,700 in 2023, $9,400 in 2024, $10,500 in 2025 and $11,400 in 2026 in the United States, and about €8,000 in Europe. The same guide reports Mini Kelly unit sales up 16 percent in 2025 over 2024.

The numbers

Dimensions: About 20 cm wide x 12-14 cm high x 6 cm deep (listings vary; one gives 9 cm deep)
Tracked example, as listed: Base 7.5 in, height 5 in, width (depth) 2.25 in; handle drop 2 in, strap drop 19 in
Earlier Mini Kelly 20, for comparison: 20 cm wide x 18 cm high x 14 cm deep
Material: Epsom embossed calfskin; tracked example lined in chèvre goatskin with one flat pocket
Hardware: Palladium turn-lock and strap fittings; no padlock, keys or clochette
Color: Guimauve, pastel pink-lilac
Retail (Epsom Sellier, U.S.): About $8,700 (2023), $9,400 (2024), $10,500 (2025), $11,400 (2026)
Production: Hermès does not publish production figures for the Mini Kelly II

Timeline

1892
Hermès markets the Haut à Courroies, the riders' bag from which the Kelly descends.
1935
Hermès launches a smaller women's handbag that can take a shoulder strap, the Kelly's direct ancestor.
1956
Grace Kelly, now Princess of Monaco, is photographed shielding her pregnancy with the bag; the image runs in Life.
1957
The earliest known Mini Kelly is made, with a shoulder strap.
1977
The bag is formally renamed the Kelly, by some accounts; others date the renaming to the late 1950s.
1980
The round 'bracelet' top handle appears on the Mini Kelly.
1990
Hermès introduces the Mini Kelly 20 in Retourne construction.
2004
Epsom leather replaces Courchevel in the Hermès lineup.
2009
Hermès discontinues the original Mini Kelly.
2016
The redesigned Mini Kelly II 20 is introduced.
2018
The Mini Kelly II first comes to auction.
Dec 9, 2021
A black Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II sells at auction for $32,500.
Jun 9, 2022
A limited-edition tri-color Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II sells online for $35,280.
Jun 12, 2023
An Orange H Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II sells at an online auction in New York for $27,720.
Dec 2025
A matte alligator Mini Kelly 20 II realizes $88,900 at auction in New York.
2026
Guimauve appears in the Hermès palette; Epsom Mini Kelly II retail reaches about $11,400 in the United States.

The world in 2016

Jan 28, 2016
The World Health Organization announces an outbreak of the Zika virus.
Apr 3, 2016
The Panama Papers are published, exposing more than 214,000 offshore companies.
Apr 23, 2016
Beyoncé releases Lemonade.
May 2, 2016
Leicester City are confirmed Premier League champions after starting the season at 5000-1.
Jun 23, 2016
The United Kingdom votes in a referendum to leave the European Union.
Aug 5, 2016
The Summer Olympics open in Rio de Janeiro.
Nov 2, 2016
The Chicago Cubs win the World Series for the first time since 1908.
Nov 8, 2016
Donald Trump is elected president of the United States.

Price record

$10,000$100,000

Date	Price	Kind
Dec 9, 2021	$32,500	Sold at auctionBlack Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II, palladium hardware, 2020. Estimate was $9,000 to $12,000. Online auction.
Apr 27, 2022	$66,459	Sold at auctionAt auction in Paris: EUR 63,000 (including buyer's premium), shown in USD at the Federal Reserve rate on the sale date (1 EUR = 1.0549 USD).
May 23, 2022	$77,047	Sold at auctionAt auction in Hong Kong: HKD 604,800 (including buyer's premium), shown in USD at the Federal Reserve rate on the sale date (1 HKD = 0.1274 USD).
Jun 9, 2022	$35,280	Sold at auctionLimited-edition bleu brume, vert jade and gold Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II, palladium hardware, 2021. Online auction.
Jun 12, 2023	$27,720	Sold at auctionOrange H Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II, palladium hardware, 2022. Online auction in New York; estimate was $12,000 to $18,000.
Nov 22, 2024	$50,973	Sold at auctionAt auction in Switzerland: CHF 45,600 (including buyer's premium), shown in USD at the Federal Reserve rate on the sale date (1 CHF = 1.1178 USD).
Sep 3, 2025	$20,998	Sold at auctionAt an online auction in Hong Kong: HKD 163,800 (including buyer's premium), shown in USD at the Federal Reserve rate on the sale date (1 HKD = 0.1282 USD).

This is an asking price, not a sale. It is what a seller wanted on the date shown. Asking prices often sit above what buyers pay, but an ask is not a ceiling: a sale can land on either side of it. It is not a value.

By reference price, Hermes Mini Kelly II 20 is number 16 of 100 in the handbags entries of the FLOAT 100. 19 of those 100 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (13 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.

Did you know

Mini Kellys have never come with the padlock, keys and clochette that hang from larger Kellys.
Elizabeth Taylor owned three Mini Kellys at a time when most women found the bag too small to bother with.
Some Asian collectors nicknamed the first Mini Kelly 'Big Ears' for its rounded handle.
Guimauve, the color of the tracked bag, is French for 'marshmallow.'
A black Epsom Mini Kelly 20 II sold for $32,500 in 2021 against a top estimate of $12,000.
A sterling silver Mini Kelly from the 1990s sold for $127,000 at auction in New York in December 2025.
Princess Grace's own Kelly went on display in London in 2010, still showing years of scuffs from daily use.

How this page is made

The figure: One reference price, shown with its own kind. FLOAT does not average it with anything or adjust it for time.
Realized or not: A realized price is a completed sale. An asking price, an estimate and a price-guide value are not sales, and are labeled as such wherever they appear.
The story: Researched from published records and checked fact by fact. Updated Oct 1, 2026.
Archive: Oct 5, 2026