First Time Shopping at Hermes
Do you ever feel like you don't belong when you walk in a store? First-time shopping in a luxury store could be intimidating. Also, if you are not a regular customer of brands like Hermes, Chanel, Dior, and Louis Vuitton, shopping on location could be nerve-wracking because we have heard quite a few horrid shopping stories. If you ever felt like that, you are not alone. I am still not at ease when I walk around in a luxury store, even though I can afford to buy most stuff if I want. As someone who isn't born with wealth, that is simply not my natural environment.
Recently, I visited the Hermes store for the first time in my life. I don't want to get anyone in trouble, so I am not mentioning the store location in this blog post. Due to my previous experience with Louis Vuitton, I was nervous. The host at the Louis Vuitton tends to treat you depending on how you dress. You may have to wait long to get into an LV store if you don't dress the part. It wasn't a long line when I walked up to the Hermes store. Since I didn't make an appointment before my visit, I just stood in line like a couple of customers before me. While I was waiting, I wondered if the host would be sort of standoff-ish like those at the LV stores.
The wait was less than 10 minutes. I was led in once some customers left the store. The host was pleasant and professional. He didn't appear to have an attitude. After walking around the store for a couple of minutes, I was greeted by one of their sales associates. We introduced ourselves and started to make conversation while browsing the items casually. She wasn't pushy or cocky. She reminded me of some of the SAs from the Coach stores, genuinely trying to help and provide a pleasant shopping experience. Compared to my time at the LV stores, the SAs at the LV stores were more eager to make a sale. Knowing their employee benefits, I was not surprised to observe their behavior.
While she showed me around, I saw they had one female handbag on display. Other than that, only a few men's bags were available on the shelves. That explained why it wasn't a long line outside. I tried asking to see other bags, and I was told they had none available. As we continued to chat, I told her more about myself, and I wanted to visit them because of my hobby of collecting bags. I also told her I had just moved to the area and shared stories about my new place. After some friendly conversation, I was ready to leave since they didn't have more bags available. Then, to my surprise, she said she would take a look at the back to see what they had at the moment. So I strolled in the store for a few more minutes, then she brought out an orange Hermes box.
Birkin? Kelly? Not exactly. She brought out a brand new Hermes Kelly Depeches 25! In case you are not familiar with their products. Kelly Depeches 25 is a pouch and not a bag. I had seen many people convert it into a bag, but it is a pouch with Kelly's name. I didn't ask about the price because I knew I wasn't going to Hermes to buy a pouch. But, looking at the resale price online, that pouch could fetch over $5000! If what she brought out was a bag, I would pay for it and go. But, of course, that was not possible considering I was a new customer to them.
In the end, you may have a very different experience when you visit a Hermes store. My story was purely my experience being a regular customer. However, I did think she was conducting a casual "interview" when we talked to make sure I was not a flipper before she was willing to show me anything. Overall, the shopping experience wasn't bad, but I think it was weird that we couldn't buy what we wanted even though we could afford it.
