tPF Connection and Your Hermes Store

mrssparkles

mrssparkles

Happy
Mar 25, 2006
18,056
192
#1
I think this topic was somewhat touched on before but I can no longer find that thread, so here I am with a question which is the cause of my irritation for awhile now ....

We all enjoy hanging out in this cyberspace, probably more than anywhere else on the internet. If anyone is like me, I always have a tPF window opened, whilst I do my work on MS Office or other internet window researching for other sorts of information, news etc... And I just keep toggling back and forth > tPF, others, tPF, others ... you get the drift. This begs the question, so what is it so shameful about other people knowing that you are a member of tPF? Am I missing something here?

More specifically, is it such a terrible thing that your SA or store manager might know you participate in a similar interests forum? They must know that all the Hermes knowledge that we have is attained from somewhere or taught to us by friends from somewhere. So, what is wrong with revealing your tPF connection?

Many a times at 2 of the H stores here, when I request for something that I have seen here but has not arrived at our stores, the SA would always smile and say alot of customers know more things than they do, and know them earlier than they do. And it's like they say it a wink even!

One of our stores have done fantastic sales, and I believe it's record high. The sales figures justified for our very own craftsman to be remain here. I bet the Hermes management knows about tPF. They are in the business, they can't possibly not know. So once again, why would H customers feel the need to hide their tPF connection?

Am I being too naive here? :shrugs:
 
#2
You make a lot of great points! In one way, it would be great "to have it out in the open".

I guess my only fear is that my SA/store will think I'm trying to buy for resale...I dunno. :s
 
#3
Great question! Looking forward to reading replies!

No shame here! Most of my friends (including my LV SAs as I've yet to find a Hermes one) know that I am a member of tPF. I LOVE this place. I've made some great friends on here (cyber and RL) and learned so much.:wlae:
 
#4
frenchiefan, can you explain your point a little bit more? Isn't it very myopic for anyone to equate internet ~ resale? There is afterall Hermes.com!

From what I have gathered on this site and the post by Pete (Luxury Zurich), Hermes is in the know that even their customers (VVIPs included!) do not hold on to their Birkins and/or Kellys because there are always new leathers and new colours! Has this changed the way Hermes does business?
 
#5
I mentioned to the Manager of the Berlin H store that I belong to an international collectors' forum and that all day long we do nothing else but talk about H bags, leathers, colours, etc. This was after she asked me 2 times if I had ever worked for H because I knew so much about the products. I felt that there was no problem at all and that such great interest in H products was appreciated.

I also think they have no problems with ladies buying bags, carrying them for a while and then selling them in order to get a new one. They DO have a problem with resellers (I don't) as we know.
 
#6
Oh yes. If you have a view or insight into this, but feel the need to maintain secrecy, please PM me and shed light on this matter. But frankly, an open discussion would be best to help everyone out here. :yes:
 
#7
my SA know i'm a member of tpf. tpf has educated me a lot about hermes. my sa feels there's nothing wrong to discuss about hermes here, a label that we all adore for its craftmanship.

she thinks that this kind of forum is excellent because we not only love hermes for its bag styles but the history + different types of leathers.

she also said it makes us buyers more focused and know what leather, color n bag style we want instead of buying but regretting later.

with the arm of knowledge we have, we can educate sas who r sometimes clueless about the latest happenings.

this forum make many people more aware that hermes not only produce birkin/kelly but also other styles that r increasingly popular among us. now, we r not looking 4 birkin/kelly only. we want to have a complete varied hermes collection.
 
#8
I made known to my store manager that I come here, at the peak of my Hermes addiction, when I was at the store once if not twice a week. I zoomed right to the leather book, to touch and feel the various leather swatches and engage the forever puzzled SAs in discussion over leathers and colours. At each visit, there would be something, regardless of it being big or small, that I woud bring home.

She never queried me further about tPF, because it's like she already knew about it. I am also very sure that customers who visit her with alot more indepth questions about what they want or would like to see, are her suspects of tPF members.
 
#9
mrssparkles said:
frenchiefan, can you explain your point a little bit more? Isn't it very myopic for anyone to equate internet ~ resale? There is afterall Hermes.com!
Click to expand...

Yep - totally myopic. :shame: I have actually have no problem mentioning to my SA what I learn on the internet, but I guess I'm just shy mentioning that I post, etc. I think I just grew into this hesitation of mentioning the forums b/c when I first started learning about Hermes, there was just such a mystique that it still concerns me that I'll be blacklisted somehow (I haven't resold an Hermes bag, but I have other bags), or become a "less serious customer".

Strangely, I immediately mentioned tPF to my long-time Chanel SA and now...she's even a member.

I totally "hear" your question and I think about it alot, but I don't really know my own answer yet. :P
 
#10
frenchiefan said:
I think I just grew into this hesitation of mentioning the forums b/c when I first started learning about Hermes, there was just such a mystique that it still concerns me that I'll be blacklisted somehow (I haven't resold an Hermes bag, but I have other bags), or become a "less serious customer".
Click to expand...

I always suspected something remote with blacklisting but blacklisting for what? There is a treasure trove of information here that helps H converts part with their thousands of dollars? How bad can this be?

frenchiefan said:
I totally "hear" your question and I think about it alot, but I don't really know my own answer yet. :P
Click to expand...

I hope to come out the wiser a few days after this discussion picks up speed .... I suspect there will always be people who would rather not comment on this. Which I too wonder why? (is curiosity going to kill the cat?)
 
#11
Another thought...maybe I just like the anonymity of the forum because I'm kinda a shy person.

For example, one of my distant friends PMd me through eBay because she figured out my username and what I was selling and asked my 100 questions and I felt violated somehow (of course, other friends know me on eBay and we share selling/buying stories all the time - but this was a distant friend).

I think I'd rather just be oblivious to whether or not my SA knows me on the forum, rather than me know that they know who I am and then I have to watch what I post - KWIM?

Great question!!
 
#12
I have wondered about this myself because I do not live near a boutique and only have others' experiences to go by... I would want to tell my SA (if I had one) that this collection is important enough for me to belong to TPF so that I can meet others who feel the same way. Now, having said that, I don't share my nickname with anyone outside TPF nor would I with an SA. That would be a bit too much information, I think...
 
#13
Ms Twilly, letting it be known that you belong to a Hermes forum is one thing. Revealing your nickname is a completely different thing altogether.

That said, if a SA or store manager is meticulous in combing through the threads, and chanced upon the pictures thread, they will be able to guess who's who. I have never been shy about where I shop and have mentioned my store many times. So, I won't be surprised if I have been found out in this sense.

Is this going to be a disadvantage for me? I really don't think so.
 
#14
mrssparkles said:
Ms Twilly, letting it be known that you belong to a Hermes forum is one thing. Revealing your nickname is a completely different thing altogether.

That said, if a SA or store manager is meticulous in combing through the threads, and chanced upon the pictures thread, they will be able to guess who's who. I have never been shy about where I shop and have mentioned my store many times. So, I won't be surprised if I have been found out in this sense.

Is this going to be a disadvantage for me? I really don't think so.
Click to expand...

That is why some members don't like posting their collections.
 
#15
Mrs S,
there's more to it than that. Lots of people read this forum and I'm sure anyone would hate to have their names used as references when indeed no such permission was given.

My DH is on his Sport forums, and someone used a name of a member as a reference and the store called him to inform him about it. Which is why it is important to remain anonymous. That said, I'm happy to meet up with you when I am in Singapore next and have no problems meeting anyone else for that matter.
 
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