Hermes boutiques in London

[Lilikay]

Hi everyone visiting London. Last week I saw a couple of walk-in buys. In Harrods I saw a lady beeing offered a Birkin 30 ( light brown togo) In Selfridges a young girl got offered a «to die for» epsom blue kelly 25 silver HW. I sent hubby in to Selfridges, but the male SA just laughed at him before he finished his sentence....hubby pointed out he just saw the girl beeing offered the kelly25. He then got a little uncomfortable and told him to come back the next day. Hubby went in the second day and talked to a very sweet lady. He asked for a Kelly Pochette and she said she was quite sure she had a couple. She was gone for about 10-15 minutes but came back empty handed and said she was so sorry she could not find one, and asked if he might be interested in another type of kelly? He asked for a Kelly 25 , 28 or a Kelly mini and she smiled and told him to wait a few minutes, she would love to help him get something for his wife(me lol)She was gone for a long time, but then she came back also this time empty handed......She said she only got wallets. What a disappointment! She said she would check all the stores in London and the rest of Europe( didn’t think they could see this on their computer?)...I don’t know. He was in there for like 45 minutes and she said she would do all she could to find him a Kelly. A strange experience. In the end she offered him a black 2002 20 bag with PH. £6000 for a bag I can buy online...don’t think so! Well well, anyhow they def have a lot of stock in London, but how to get them is an even bigger mistery than Paris in the old days!

I’m not sure about Harrods, but Selfridges does have a lot of stock, does have a lot of Chinese regular customers and would never offer a quota bag to a walk in, unless as a reward for some special purchase, in some specific cases.

 

[EmilyM111]

Hi everyone visiting London. Last week I saw a couple of walk-in buys. In Harrods I saw a lady beeing offered a Birkin 30 ( light brown togo) In Selfridges a young girl got offered a «to die for» epsom blue kelly 25 silver HW. I sent hubby in to Selfridges, but the male SA just laughed at him before he finished his sentence....hubby pointed out he just saw the girl beeing offered the kelly25. He then got a little uncomfortable and told him to come back the next day. Hubby went in the second day and talked to a very sweet lady. He asked for a Kelly Pochette and she said she was quite sure she had a couple. She was gone for about 10-15 minutes but came back empty handed and said she was so sorry she could not find one, and asked if he might be interested in another type of kelly? He asked for a Kelly 25 , 28 or a Kelly mini and she smiled and told him to wait a few minutes, she would love to help him get something for his wife(me lol)She was gone for a long time, but then she came back also this time empty handed......She said she only got wallets. What a disappointment! She said she would check all the stores in London and the rest of Europe( didn’t think they could see this on their computer?)...I don’t know. He was in there for like 45 minutes and she said she would do all she could to find him a Kelly. A strange experience. In the end she offered him a black 2002 20 bag with PH. £6000 for a bag I can buy online...don’t think so! Well well, anyhow they def have a lot of stock in London, but how to get them is an even bigger mistery than Paris in the old days!

Despite one TPF recently reporting scoring a walk-in Birkin at Selfridges, I deem this place as a waste of time. Firstly, I spent half of K/B there in a very short period of time giving a hint to the SA I know the game and want to buy various items in the near future (wallet, more bracelets, more bags, scarves, homeware if pushed even gold) but the SA remained unimpressed and was in total shock that NBS already offered me a K as a walk-in. Secondly, when I saw a rouge Herbag on display I was clearly told 'it's display only' (even after giving them details of my Selfridges SA) and the SA never even bothered to contact me back. I moved my business to the original NBS SA and as if by magic, after buying my third item (first CDC, Kelly Dog and a wallet) he put me on wishlist for Etoupe K32 sellier which I received 2 months later (in the meantime the NBS SA also promptly got me the Herbag I saw at S). Possibly this is the SA case but Selfridges won't get my business and maybe I'm not a rich person but think about this as a mistake as my wishlist is very long and doesn't include only B/K/C (I mean if they aim for loyalty and buying non B/K/C items). NBS played the game superbly with me.

 

[Bagtilious]

Yes, she could def have spent a lot of £ for all I know ‍♀️But she def was not a citizen or she would not have gotten a tax-refund. ( same with the lady in Harrods, also had her passport) I’m also a customer with a purchase history, but I don’t think that matters much. I’ve bought a Birkin in Paris before, and I have been offered a Constance, they never asked about my history, and I didn’t buy anything else. I think it mostly depends on who you speak to. I’ve also been offered a Birkin35, and a Birkin 30 in Norway. At that time I had no purchase history.

The purchase history I referred to is the one with the said local UK stores not at other random branches across Europe. It doesn’t matter if one is a local citizen or a ‘walk-in’ tourist, the UK store requires a purchasing history regardless of the nationalities of the customers. A tourist could have been a regular customer throughout the years. London is certainly one of the most difficult city to purchase quota bags

 

[Tingeling]

The purchase history I referred to is the one with the said local UK stores not at other random branches across Europe. It doesn’t matter if one is a local citizen or a ‘walk-in’ tourist, the UK store requires a purchasing history regardless of the nationalities of the customers. A tourist could have been a regular customer throughout the years. London is certainly one of the most difficult city to purchase quota bags

Yes, I understand what you mean, I just don’t think it’s totally impossible. If you are going to visit London anyways I would try. There was also no que at all. You know the first five times I visited the Hermes store in Norway they told me that the stores in Scandinavia didn’t get Birkins, Kellys or Constance at all lol. One month later they offered me both a Birkin 35 and a Birkin 30. And, when I said «walk-in» I did not take purchase history in to consideration. Maybe my optimism got the best of me! The lady at Harrods def bought a lot of stuff, she had scarves, ties, and shoes all over the counter, but I kind of thought this was a given...usually you don’t get offered a bag no matter what you buy.

 

[louise_elouise]

Despite one TPF recently reporting scoring a walk-in Birkin at Selfridges, I deem this place as a waste of time. Firstly, I spent half of K/B there in a very short period of time giving a hint to the SA I know the game and want to buy various items in the near future (wallet, more bracelets, more bags, scarves, homeware if pushed even gold) but the SA remained unimpressed and was in total shock that NBS already offered me a K as a walk-in. Secondly, when I saw a rouge Herbag on display I was clearly told 'it's display only' (even after giving them details of my Selfridges SA) and the SA never even bothered to contact me back. I moved my business to the original NBS SA and as if by magic, after buying my third item (first CDC, Kelly Dog and a wallet) he put me on wishlist for Etoupe K32 sellier which I received 2 months later (in the meantime the NBS SA also promptly got me the Herbag I saw at S). Possibly this is the SA case but Selfridges won't get my business and maybe I'm not a rich person but think about this as a mistake as my wishlist is very long and doesn't include only B/K/C (I mean if they aim for loyalty and buying non B/K/C items). NBS played the game superbly with me.

I second this!! Selfridges H service is pretty poor and the SAs don't make much of an effort to build loyalty. NBS (And Cadogan Sq and the City) are much better

 

[louise_elouise]

Hi All,

I've scoured this thread and the maintaining an H relationship one, but see contradictory messages. Was wondering if anyone knows how the commission structure works in London? From what I saw it's that:
- Non-quota bags, leathers and silks: Group Commission
- Home, RTW, Shoes, Fine: Individual commission

Is that right? I've been fortunate enough to have been offered quote bags while my spending is firmly rooted in the Group Commission category and I am kind of wondering why now...

 

[Lostinlondon]

Hi All,

I've scoured this thread and the maintaining an H relationship one, but see contradictory messages. Was wondering if anyone knows how the commission structure works in London? From what I saw it's that:
- Non-quota bags, leathers and silks: Group Commission
- Home, RTW, Shoes, Fine: Individual commission

Is that right? I've been fortunate enough to have been offered quote bags while my spending is firmly rooted in the Group Commission category and I am kind of wondering why now...

I was told by various SAs in both NBS & CP, that they do not work on individual commission at all. I assume they are trustworthy. This being said, my purchase history is mainly from the 1st group (with the exception of a few homeware pieces)

 

[louise_elouise]

I was told by various SAs in both NBS & CP, that they do not work on individual commission at all. I assume they are trustworthy. This being said, my purchase history is mainly from the 1st group (with the exception of a few homeware pieces)

Ah ok! Good to know...so i guess that would suggest that all purchases would count towards a quota bag? And perhaps I don't need to 'game' my purchases to certain categories

 

[EmilyM111]

I was told by various SAs in both NBS & CP, that they do not work on individual commission at all. I assume they are trustworthy. This being said, my purchase history is mainly from the 1st group (with the exception of a few homeware pieces)

This is very helpful, thanks.
I know this is more anecdotal evidence but my NBS SA got going with the quota bag when I purchased a wallet (group 1). He wasn't very interested in me buying jewellery or homeware (never suggested that, when asked what to choose: another wallet for my husband or a silver bracelet was strongly in favour of cheaper wallet, gold was never even discussed). He suggested things from his world: a watch, apple watch strap etc.

 

[Lilikay]

Hi everyone visiting London. Last week I saw a couple of walk-in buys. In Harrods I saw a lady beeing offered a Birkin 30 ( light brown togo) In Selfridges a young girl got offered a «to die for» epsom blue kelly 25 silver HW. I sent hubby in to Selfridges, but the male SA just laughed at him before he finished his sentence....hubby pointed out he just saw the girl beeing offered the kelly25. He then got a little uncomfortable and told him to come back the next day. Hubby went in the second day and talked to a very sweet lady. He asked for a Kelly Pochette and she said she was quite sure she had a couple. She was gone for about 10-15 minutes but came back empty handed and said she was so sorry she could not find one, and asked if he might be interested in another type of kelly? He asked for a Kelly 25 , 28 or a Kelly mini and she smiled and told him to wait a few minutes, she would love to help him get something for his wife(me lol)She was gone for a long time, but then she came back also this time empty handed......She said she only got wallets. What a disappointment! She said she would check all the stores in London and the rest of Europe( didn’t think they could see this on their computer?)...I don’t know. He was in there for like 45 minutes and she said she would do all she could to find him a Kelly. A strange experience. In the end she offered him a black 2002 20 bag with PH. £6000 for a bag I can buy online...don’t think so! Well well, anyhow they def have a lot of stock in London, but how to get them is an even bigger mistery than Paris in the old days!

Despite one TPF recently reporting scoring a walk-in Birkin at Selfridges, I deem this place as a waste of time. Firstly, I spent half of K/B there in a very short period of time giving a hint to the SA I know the game and want to buy various items in the near future (wallet, more bracelets, more bags, scarves, homeware if pushed even gold) but the SA remained unimpressed and was in total shock that NBS already offered me a K as a walk-in. Secondly, when I saw a rouge Herbag on display I was clearly told 'it's display only' (even after giving them details of my Selfridges SA) and the SA never even bothered to contact me back. I moved my business to the original NBS SA and as if by magic, after buying my third item (first CDC, Kelly Dog and a wallet) he put me on wishlist for Etoupe K32 sellier which I received 2 months later (in the meantime the NBS SA also promptly got me the Herbag I saw at S). Possibly this is the SA case but Selfridges won't get my business and maybe I'm not a rich person but think about this as a mistake as my wishlist is very long and doesn't include only B/K/C (I mean if they aim for loyalty and buying non B/K/C items). NBS played the game superbly with me.

I second this!! Selfridges H service is pretty poor and the SAs don't make much of an effort to build loyalty. NBS (And Cadogan Sq and the City) are much better

Hi All,

I've scoured this thread and the maintaining an H relationship one, but see contradictory messages. Was wondering if anyone knows how the commission structure works in London? From what I saw it's that:
- Non-quota bags, leathers and silks: Group Commission
- Home, RTW, Shoes, Fine: Individual commission

Is that right? I've been fortunate enough to have been offered quote bags while my spending is firmly rooted in the Group Commission category and I am kind of wondering why now...

I was told by various SAs in both NBS & CP, that they do not work on individual commission at all. I assume they are trustworthy. This being said, my purchase history is mainly from the 1st group (with the exception of a few homeware pieces)

Ah ok! Good to know...so i guess that would suggest that all purchases would count towards a quota bag? And perhaps I don't need to 'game' my purchases to certain categories

This is very helpful, thanks.
I know this is more anecdotal evidence but my NBS SA got going with the quota bag when I purchased a wallet (group 1). He wasn't very interested in me buying jewellery or homeware (never suggested that, when asked what to choose: another wallet for my husband or a silver bracelet was strongly in favour of cheaper wallet, gold was never even discussed). He suggested things from his world: a watch, apple watch strap etc.

Hi everyone,
Here we go: First of all, as a regular customer both at Selfridges and NBS, I was also told they don’t work on individual commission at all. That said, it’s important to understand that they work a bit differently regarding quota bags offers and maybe that’s why sometimes it can look like at Selfridges they don’t care so much, but in fact they are pretty good.
At NBS they take note of your preferences (if they feel like you deserve it for all the crazy reasons) and they will source the bag and let you know by email and phone - when it happened to me for the first time all my purchase history was at Selfridges.
At Selfridges they don’t write down your preferences and they are not allowed to send emails referring to bags in any case. Usually, if they know you are looking for something they will only tell you when you show up and you have to do it regularly. A good way to guarantee you will have a surprise waiting for you is announcing your visit in advance I’ve got some super precious bags there, but I agree the methodology can get the customer very anxious.
Finally, I suspect there is something about wallets, like a secret code to assess the type of customer or so. In most of the stores I’ve visited with serious intentions, they have offered me wallets, and I succeeded after the wallet or with the wallet purchase...

 

[EmilyM111]

Hi everyone,
Here we go: First of all, as a regular customer both at Selfridges and NBS, I was also told they don’t work on individual commission at all. That said, it’s important to understand that they work a bit differently regarding quota bags offers and maybe that’s why sometimes it can look like at Selfridges they don’t care so much, but in fact they are pretty good.
At NBS they take note of your preferences (if they feel like you deserve it for all the crazy reasons) and they will source the bag and let you know by email and phone - when it happened to me for the first time all my purchase history was at Selfridges.
At Selfridges they don’t write down your preferences and they are not allowed to send emails referring to bags in any case. Usually, if they know you are looking for something they will only tell you when you show up and you have to do it regularly. A good way to guarantee you will have a surprise waiting for you is announcing your visit in advance I’ve got some super precious bags there, but I agree the methodology can get the customer very anxious.
Finally, I suspect there is something about wallets, like a secret code to assess the type of customer or so. In most of the stores I’ve visited with serious intentions, they have offered me wallets, and I succeeded after the wallet or with the wallet purchase...

Super helpful, thanks for sharing. Strangely I really like their wallets and wanted one regardless the bag, even plan more in future.

 

[louise_elouise]

Hi everyone,
Here we go: First of all, as a regular customer both at Selfridges and NBS, I was also told they don’t work on individual commission at all. That said, it’s important to understand that they work a bit differently regarding quota bags offers and maybe that’s why sometimes it can look like at Selfridges they don’t care so much, but in fact they are pretty good.
At NBS they take note of your preferences (if they feel like you deserve it for all the crazy reasons) and they will source the bag and let you know by email and phone - when it happened to me for the first time all my purchase history was at Selfridges.
At Selfridges they don’t write down your preferences and they are not allowed to send emails referring to bags in any case. Usually, if they know you are looking for something they will only tell you when you show up and you have to do it regularly. A good way to guarantee you will have a surprise waiting for you is announcing your visit in advance I’ve got some super precious bags there, but I agree the methodology can get the customer very anxious.
Finally, I suspect there is something about wallets, like a secret code to assess the type of customer or so. In most of the stores I’ve visited with serious intentions, they have offered me wallets, and I succeeded after the wallet or with the wallet purchase...

Thank you!! I'm a regular of CP and this reflects my experience.

I guess that means the primary benefit of concentrating your sales w a single SA is that 1) they know your style and can suggest and 2) they can vocalise your preferences for a quote bag. But BC of group commissions, everyone benefits from your shopping so you could work w multiple SAs...

 

[Tingeling]

Hi everyone,
Here we go: First of all, as a regular customer both at Selfridges and NBS, I was also told they don’t work on individual commission at all. That said, it’s important to understand that they work a bit differently regarding quota bags offers and maybe that’s why sometimes it can look like at Selfridges they don’t care so much, but in fact they are pretty good.
At NBS they take note of your preferences (if they feel like you deserve it for all the crazy reasons) and they will source the bag and let you know by email and phone - when it happened to me for the first time all my purchase history was at Selfridges.
At Selfridges they don’t write down your preferences and they are not allowed to send emails referring to bags in any case. Usually, if they know you are looking for something they will only tell you when you show up and you have to do it regularly. A good way to guarantee you will have a surprise waiting for you is announcing your visit in advance I’ve got some super precious bags there, but I agree the methodology can get the customer very anxious.
Finally, I suspect there is something about wallets, like a secret code to assess the type of customer or so. In most of the stores I’ve visited with serious intentions, they have offered me wallets, and I succeeded after the wallet or with the wallet purchase...

Thank you so much for this info.
OMG, maybe hubby missed the wallet-code...he was so determent to get the right bag for me....and I told him ..."pay attention, not the Kelly cut, I wan't the Kelly pochette" LOL. He almost got me the Kelly Wallet just so he wouldn't leave empty handed...but then he remembered my words.....

 

[Lilikay]

Super helpful, thanks for sharing. Strangely I really like their wallets and wanted one regardless the bag, even plan more in future.

Happy to help! Honestly, I love Selfridges and have a great relationship with many SAs there, but if I am to concentrate my business in one store I would do the same as you and go for NBS, because I think it’s less complicated and easier to get exactly what you want

 

[EmilyM111]

Happy to help! Honestly, I love Selfridges and have a great relationship with many SAs there, but if I am to concentrate my business in one store I would do the same as you and go for NBS, because I think it’s less complicated and easier to get exactly what you want

Actually I met at S really nice SA and we had long chat about stuff but I didn't get what they were playing at and got advice here to move back to NBS. I reckon whilst I love their products, I still was very focussed on obtaining K/B of my specs before anything else (says me who bought already a few other bags lol). If I was aiming for good time & chat I'd deffo come back to the Selfridges SA (not sure though why Herbag was never mentioned to me back, maybe the other SA didn't mention me etc.)