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#46
LuxBoy_AJ said:
Hi!
I would suggest to start a relationship with your SA. I started to purchase small items like perfume, a bow tie, Calvi, Bastia or Ulysse to begin with. After that it didn't take a long before I was offered a SO and quota bag ☺

Now I have a really good relationship with several SAs in my local boutique and I have been offered quota bags on several occasions.

So to summarize I made around 5 purchases before I got offered my first Birkin and after that I have just established a good relationship with the SAs by being nice and when I go to my local boutique I ask for the specific SAs and when I meet them I ask how they are, what's new and just being nice in general. I feel like they appreciate someone being generally nice to them helps. At least it has helped me in several of the brand boutiques like Prada, Céline, LV, Chanel and Gucci because now when I come back they always ask me about my family, marriage etc (with some the SAs I have even start to hang out with outside of the boutique) :heart:

I think the most important thing is to be genuine and take time to give them as much attention as they give you. Just be yourself and nice and it will get you far :flowers:
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For the small amount of time I’ve been on TPF, this is probably the best and sweetest comment I’ve seen! Genuinely light-hearted and reminding us all no matter how much we want that coveted bag, to not forget to enjoy the process. Love it:heart:
 
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#51
Question: I am looking to curate a relationship with an SA and will be taking all the advice mentioned here! However, I wanted to touch on pre-spend. I am looking to purchase a Kelly and only a Kelly in terms of the quota bags. (Hopefully more than one over the years) Happy to wait and have a genuine love of the beautiful structured bag. Yet my love for all of Hermes is limited. While I like a good sandal or loafer, a blanket or tea pot, I don’t love their clothes or other high ticket items. Love their new beauty line but obviously that is low low spend even with my buying it as gifts. I worry an SA won’t understand I am not likely to be a big spend on Hermes stuff but a true bag appreciator and loyalist. How would you all approach this?

Cheers!
 
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#52
krittershops said:
Question: I am looking to curate a relationship with an SA and will be taking all the advice mentioned here! However, I wanted to touch on pre-spend. I am looking to purchase a Kelly and only a Kelly in terms of the quota bags. (Hopefully more than one over the years) Happy to wait and have a genuine love of the beautiful structured bag. Yet my love for all of Hermes is limited. While I like a good sandal or loafer, a blanket or tea pot, I don’t love their clothes or other high ticket items. Love their new beauty line but obviously that is low low spend even with my buying it as gifts. I worry an SA won’t understand I am not likely to be a big spend on Hermes stuff but a true bag appreciator and loyalist. How would you all approach this?

Cheers!
Click to expand...
LuxBoy_AJ said:
Hi!
I would suggest to start a relationship with your SA. I started to purchase small items like perfume, a bow tie, Calvi, Bastia or Ulysse to begin with. After that it didn't take a long before I was offered a SO and quota bag ☺

Now I have a really good relationship with several SAs in my local boutique and I have been offered quota bags on several occasions.

So to summarize I made around 5 purchases before I got offered my first Birkin and after that I have just established a good relationship with the SAs by being nice and when I go to my local boutique I ask for the specific SAs and when I meet them I ask how they are, what's new and just being nice in general. I feel like they appreciate someone being generally nice to them helps. At least it has helped me in several of the brand boutiques like Prada, Céline, LV, Chanel and Gucci because now when I come back they always ask me about my family, marriage etc (with some the SAs I have even start to hang out with outside of the boutique) :heart:

I think the most important thing is to be genuine and take time to give them as much attention as they give you. Just be yourself and nice and it will get you far :flowers:
Click to expand...

this seems to be really good advice.
 
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#53
krittershops said:
Question: I am looking to curate a relationship with an SA and will be taking all the advice mentioned here! However, I wanted to touch on pre-spend. I am looking to purchase a Kelly and only a Kelly in terms of the quota bags. (Hopefully more than one over the years) Happy to wait and have a genuine love of the beautiful structured bag. Yet my love for all of Hermes is limited. While I like a good sandal or loafer, a blanket or tea pot, I don’t love their clothes or other high ticket items. Love their new beauty line but obviously that is low low spend even with my buying it as gifts. I worry an SA won’t understand I am not likely to be a big spend on Hermes stuff but a true bag appreciator and loyalist. How would you all approach this?

Cheers!
Click to expand...
I predict you’ll surprise yourself with how your tastes change as you continue to shop the brand. Just start shopping and see where it takes you (but we all truly love and appreciate the bags so unfortunately that alone won’t take you far). Check out the Hermes Shopping forum for more advice.
 
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#54
krittershops said:
Question: I am looking to curate a relationship with an SA and will be taking all the advice mentioned here! However, I wanted to touch on pre-spend. I am looking to purchase a Kelly and only a Kelly in terms of the quota bags. (Hopefully more than one over the years) Happy to wait and have a genuine love of the beautiful structured bag. Yet my love for all of Hermes is limited. While I like a good sandal or loafer, a blanket or tea pot, I don’t love their clothes or other high ticket items. Love their new beauty line but obviously that is low low spend even with my buying it as gifts. I worry an SA won’t understand I am not likely to be a big spend on Hermes stuff but a true bag appreciator and loyalist. How would you all approach this?
Cheers!
Click to expand...

Please don't approach it in any delberate or considered way; shop and buy what you like; be honest with SAs. If you are in Asia, you will be told what is expected of you; in USA you will be led to believe this or that; in Europe it will a more honest experience.
 
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#55
WhiteBus said:
Please don't approach it in any delberate or considered way; shop and buy what you like; be honest with SAs. If you are in Asia, you will be told what is expected of you; in USA you will be led to believe this or that; in Europe it will a more honest experience.
Click to expand...


Thanks so much. I don’t mind there being a process, just upfront about my wants from Hermes and their expectations of me. I split time between Europe and the US, so I will feel out some stores and just be part of the process.

The various experiences make it hard for newbies to understand what is expected, though everyone’s experience is slightly different.

Fingers crossed!
 
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#56
krittershops said:
Question: I am looking to curate a relationship with an SA and will be taking all the advice mentioned here! However, I wanted to touch on pre-spend. I am looking to purchase a Kelly and only a Kelly in terms of the quota bags. (Hopefully more than one over the years) Happy to wait and have a genuine love of the beautiful structured bag. Yet my love for all of Hermes is limited. While I like a good sandal or loafer, a blanket or tea pot, I don’t love their clothes or other high ticket items. Love their new beauty line but obviously that is low low spend even with my buying it as gifts. I worry an SA won’t understand I am not likely to be a big spend on Hermes stuff but a true bag appreciator and loyalist. How would you all approach this?

Cheers!
Click to expand...
Take it slow, be patient, don't worry too much, and only buy what you love. Are there items SAs are incentivized to sell more? Yes, but don't feel obligated to buy it. Enthusiasm is more memorable than buying a sweater. Buying things you don't want at H only diminishes that enthusiasm.

I really wouldn't focus on pre-spend necessarily either. Just be prepared to wait (things can take years to arrive), especially as someone new to the brand. It's hard; seeing items revealed on tPF that you'd asked about as soon as you saw and wondering if you'll ever get it or if it's just not in the cards for you, but understand the people doing those reveals may be spending millions per trip or been shopping with them for decades.

krittershops said:
Thanks so much. I don’t mind there being a process, just upfront about my wants from Hermes and their expectations of me. I split time between Europe and the US, so I will feel out some stores and just be part of the process.

The various experiences make it hard for newbies to understand what is expected, though everyone’s experience is slightly different.

Fingers crossed!
Click to expand...
It's challenging to know what clicking with your SA is, especially when in conjunction with everyone is different and be yourself. When I start playing the "do they like me?" game of overanalysis or making assumptions, I try to stop myself and think about if I were an SA, what would I want from a customer and what would I find reasonable as an SA? For example, I'd be curious to know why something was declined, not because I was defensive or trying to pressure someone into buying it, but because I was seeking feedback to understand what offers were going to be accepted. I would appreciate if the customer declined with a brief reason off the bat (I appreciate the offer, but I really want a true red instead of an orange-red), so I didn't have to take the extra time to ask.

It also gives me guidance on where to draw the line with SAs. I cringe reading stories of SAs getting upset because they bought a Clic on vacation. I'd want them to primarily buy from me, but I wouldn't take offense. I mean, if the person was setting up weekly appointments solely to ask about that Clic and buying nothing else, maybe, but then they aren't really shopping with me to begin with.

These are all my things, though; it's important for you to understand where your boundaries are. That said, if you just focus on buying what you love and taking the time to really understand what that is over the interpersonal, H is wonderful. Welcome to the H side!
 
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#57
krittershops said:
Thanks so much. I don’t mind there being a process, just upfront about my wants from Hermes and their expectations of me. I split time between Europe and the US, so I will feel out some stores and just be part of the process.

The various experiences make it hard for newbies to understand what is expected, though everyone’s experience is slightly different.

Fingers crossed!
Click to expand...

go to Paris
 
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#59
krittershops said:
Thanks so much. I don’t mind there being a process, just upfront about my wants from Hermes and their expectations of me. I split time between Europe and the US, so I will feel out some stores and just be part of the process.

The various experiences make it hard for newbies to understand what is expected, though everyone’s experience is slightly different.

Fingers crossed!
Click to expand...

just remember that a very small proportion of Hermes clients are going to want to waste time on social media. So what you read on here or see on YouTube will not be a true reflection of shopping at Hermes.
What you will tend to see standing out on social media will be unusual or bad experiences from people with nothing better to do.
 
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#60
What I do think is that this forum is quite US- centric, and in Europe (or at least in my case) a lot of the “rules” vary. Being “new” to Hermes (about 3 years shopping) what I can say is: it is key focusing on what you like and forget about all the “I have read that” or “I think if I do this my chances will increase”. Enjoy the brand and the experience, and if you happen to score a bag you like, great, if not, also great because you have bought only things you like.
I do have to work on the “not feeling bad after rejecting an offer”, though
 
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