I put my name on a wishlist in London twice and wasn’t offered anything (but just bought something small). A friend finally introduced an associate to me so I hope to purchase with him next time I am there. I think it is hard to get a bag in London if not local or a big spender. I always think Paris is the best, but I heard things changed this year and it became harder. Italy used to be 2 bags a year if you had a good spend profile, now just one on wishlist unless high yearly spender or a few big transactions. I know it is hard to get a Kelly 50 bc most stores get just one a year if so. I’ve never heard of Kelly 42, but as a man it is easier overall to get any bag than as a woman. I have a friend who goes around the world buying bags, she gets them in Oslo, Italy, France, Holland, China, UK and U.S., but she built relationships mainly during COVID and now gets 2 bags a year in all these places and multiple pochettes and Kelly cut. To get 3 bags as you want this I think it is best to get one here and others in Europe. Except for England and Milano which have very high spenders, I think you can get the other bags in Europe spending much less than the U.S. and getting better treatment based on my personal experience. The associate is key.
Hermès New York City Stores
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Do you think a b35 is hard to get these days? B25 I would think so but not bigger
Hard to say. Less people ask for a b35 but the stores also order very few b35s. It doesn’t hurt to ask.
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B35 is the original Birkin size. It is easier than smaller sizes because people demand it less. It is definitely easier than B40.
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I have a question on this. What's the relevance of "consumer protection laws" here? (I am trying to learn things that I am not clearly understood.)
In the US, you can find a case so easily that one client only pre-spent $8,000 and got a B30 vs. the other client pre-spent $21,000 and is still waiting for a B30 (assuming that these clients looked for the same specs of B30).
Isn't it much fairer and transparent that clients are clearly informed about how much they should be spent to get the bags offered, which is the case of China?
To me, both settings play "quid pro quo" business anyway, but the latter case is more transparent and fair (to everyone) whereas the former case is more implicit (i.e., "anything can happen") and is more advantageous for sellers? Also, the former case can always and do practice "cherry-picking"/favoring high spenders.
PS. That picture is just to protect their business, and I don't buy it because it is happening anyway. (It's like racism is prohibited, but is happening almost everywhere.)
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Look at tying in antitrust laws. It wouldn’t be an easy case to prove but it would be that in essence. A typical tying arrangement is when a seller with market power for a product (the “tying” item) requires any customer buying that item to also purchase a second item (the “tied” item). The market for the tied item is usually competitive and the seller is using its market power for the first item (the "tying" item) to increase sales in the competitive market for the second item.
Really? Where? Hearsay is not factual information.
ETA older posts are not quite relevant because experienced members here have said that Hermes demand has gone up exponentially in the last couple of years.
Getting information from forums is not the same as facts. Besides, how does one know that in the example that was given, other variables were equal (ie store location, whether it was someone’s first birkin/kelly, first one of the year?).
Luxury shopping and probably especially Hermes is not build on a fair business model and it’s not like healthcare that they need to focus on equal access. These are givens and if one is focused on exact algorithms and concrete equations, frustration would ruin the entire experience.
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If you track older posts, you can find such info easily. Someone got 2 QBs in Connecticut with the pre-spend amount of less than 7K in a given year. (So, its really the associate and luck, and not the pre-spend)
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I still dont understand how the consumer protection laws apply here. 😅 Oh, well...
Prespend is a fluid concept in the US bc there is no linked selling. Hermes keeps its reasons for its offers pretty opaque, but the recent dearth of bags for longstanding clients (in favor of newer clients) at larger maisons will eventually cause an exodus to other locations. It’s my understanding that SAs are somewhat frustrated by this change too, so I don’t personally blame mine for delays. YMMV.
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1) I would not always trust what "experienced members here" say either because they can actually be biased at times. If you are a relatively new client, it would be better sometimes to hear about other newer clients' experiences, not the decade-long VIIIP's experiences.
2) I found that older posts are generally still useful if they are posted after Covid-19 breakout.
3) Your second paragraph - It's up to you to take it as facts or not. But, I hope to believe that people genuinely post their honest experiences here. Why would they lie? You would need to gather information from the posts and make an informed decision.
4) You are right. It doesn't follow a fair business model.
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My point is there is officially no quid pro quo in NA. Because linked selling is prohibited in NA ( including NYC stores), you will never get the TRANSPARENCY that you are craving for. No SA is going to outright tell you what a prespend is because there is officially none. Anectodal stories vary because it is an organic shopping process for a lot of people and a lot of variables in play. Changing stores to meatpacking or SA is not going to make them divulge their selling strategies. There can also never be a digital trail (ie they will not text you details of a Birkin) nor will there be consistent patterns of selling that can be considered ‘precedent’. (‘Look everyone who hit $12000 spend got a bag!)
And yes racism is prohibited. Discrimination in housing, workplace, hate crimes are all actionable offences.
(credit to @hyyliu cross-posting but applicable NA nevertheless)
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Gotcha! I just found it funny, however, because "a strong client-SA relationship" actually involves "pre-spend" anyway...