Hermes Repair/Refurbish policy - Official Spa Thread

[Debbie65]

I had the same issue.
I sent my bag in for make up, cleaning and edges to freshen up.
My bag was already in very good condition and they cleaned it, refreshed the corners and the edges but not the light stains on the front. They said that they can’t do it as they would have to treat the whole bag and they don’t do that.
Later on, I went to speak to an artisan and she took my bag in for a little bit and said they can’t remove the stains because they are deep.
They don’t repaint whole sections. Just small areas.
I suspect that the difficulty with your bag is the unique color as for mine too. Gold of black would be easier to fix…
I am actually thinking of eventually getting a small polish in my bag color and try it on a small area.
I managed to fix a Chanel discoloration like that by finding the exact same color. And you can’t even tell that I did.

Wow! Well I was thinking of trying it myself too now as I am a talented crafty person (imo lol) but to get this Granny Green color will be difficult. I thought Hermès had their colors numbered so they can easily color match, no? I know once we touch our bags doing this type of work, they won't do work on our bag, but at this point I don't think they will ever meet my needs anyway as far as this bag is concerned. A good cobbler my be able to fix my bag. If my bag was needing some TLC ANYWAY I would have gave the ok to Hermès as Im getting the TLC on my bag at the least, but it doesn't need that, it needs the stain covered. Anyway, I just need to take a deep breath and just LET IT GO....LET IT GOOOO. Do you mind sharing what you used on your Chanel?

 

[Debbie65]

Think there is an inhouse artisan at the Beverly Hills location, but not 100% positive,
you may want to call to confirm

Oh thank you! Yes, I will look into that. If I drop my bag there and get the job done there I'll come back and share! Thank you so much!

 

[Love Of My Life]

Oh thank you! Yes, I will look into that. If I drop my bag there and get the job done there I'll come back and share! Thank you so much!

If I remember correctly from years ago the artisan was a WOMAN!!!
There may be other LA gals/guys that can bring you up to date as far as there being an artisan in house
You are welcome & hope you will be more satisfied with the outcome..

 

[Love Of My Life]

Wow! Well I was thinking of trying it myself too now as I am a talented crafty person (imo lol) but to get this Granny Green color will be difficult. I thought Hermès had their colors numbered so they can easily color match, no? I know once we touch our bags doing this type of work, they won't do work on our bag, but at this point I don't think they will ever meet my needs anyway as far as this bag is concerned. A good cobbler my be able to fix my bag. If my bag was needing some TLC ANYWAY I would have gave the ok to Hermès as Im getting the TLC on my bag at the least, but it doesn't need that, it needs the stain covered. Anyway, I just need to take a deep breath and just LET IT GO....LET IT GOOOO. Do you mind sharing what you used on your Chanel?

As a suggestion, there are many here that reach out to Docride, she may be of help & at this
point it likely would be the question how improved can you make this but I'm assuming
that you know if this bag touches any other hands but H, it will be difficult to bring back the bag
for a spa, JMO

 

[r luvs h]

@Debbie65 I doubt Hermès still has dye batches of Grany considering the colour hasn’t been produced for about a decade. Even if they do, there are several dye batches made of each colour, so the likelihood of them not only having an old colour but also the exact dye batch from when your bag was made is pretty slim. However, they should still have a record of the dye formulation ratio, so it shouldn’t be difficult for them to make a very small amount of paint to cover the stain on your bag.

Keep in mind, though, that even if they are able to make a small batch of paint for the stain on your bag, the rest of your bag has probably undergone natural wear over time (oxidation, dirt, oils from skin, etc.), so it still may not be an exact match. This is part of the reason Spa tries to avoid touching up/painting over damage to the body of the bag, whereas corners or edges are much easier to repair because touch-ups to those areas are less noticeable. Hoping everything turns out alright!

 

[stephbb9]

Wow! Well I was thinking of trying it myself too now as I am a talented crafty person (imo lol) but to get this Granny Green color will be difficult. I thought Hermès had their colors numbered so they can easily color match, no? I know once we touch our bags doing this type of work, they won't do work on our bag, but at this point I don't think they will ever meet my needs anyway as far as this bag is concerned. A good cobbler my be able to fix my bag. If my bag was needing some TLC ANYWAY I would have gave the ok to Hermès as Im getting the TLC on my bag at the least, but it doesn't need that, it needs the stain covered. Anyway, I just need to take a deep breath and just LET IT GO....LET IT GOOOO. Do you mind sharing what you used on your Chanel?

I found a Meltonian shoe polish (Amazon) in the exact blue. Saphir didn’t have the match. I have also heard of other people using these polishes for H bags.
There are so many H colors that I am not sure how the spa keeps track of them all for repairs. I am assuming that they mix colors to find a perfect match.
It’s maybe possible to mix the shoe polishes like paint until you find the correct color?

 

[QuelleFromage]

Think there is an inhouse artisan at the Beverly Hills location, but not 100% positive,
you may want to call to confirm

If I remember correctly from years ago the artisan was a WOMAN!!!
There may be other LA gals/guys that can bring you up to date as far as there being an artisan in house
You are welcome & hope you will be more satisfied with the outcome..

Thank you!!!!

There is an in-house artisan (2 actually) at BH. TBH I found the after-sales team (non-hands-on folks) at BH to be difficult but the artisans themselves were amazing. When I was working with BH on the regular, both craftspeople were women.

It's been almost 3 years since I took a bag there, though, so perhaps someone can speak to more recent experiences.

 

[Debbie65]

If I remember correctly from years ago the artisan was a WOMAN!!!
There may be other LA gals/guys that can bring you up to date as far as there being an artisan in house
You are welcome & hope you will be more satisfied with the outcome..

Thank you!

 

[Debbie65]

Thank you!!!!

There is an in-house artisan (2 actually) at BH. TBH I found the after-sales team (non-hands-on folks) at BH to be difficult but the artisans themselves were amazing. When I was working with BH on the regular, both craftspeople were women.

It's been almost 3 years since I took a bag there, though, so perhaps someone can speak to more recent experiences.

Do you have a contact person there that I can reach out to at the BH location?

 

[Debbie65]

I found a Meltonian shoe polish (Amazon) in the exact blue. Saphir didn’t have the match. I have also heard of other people using these polishes for H bags.
There are so many H colors that I am not sure how the spa keeps track of them all for repairs. I am assuming that they mix colors to find a perfect match.
It’s maybe possible to mix the shoe polishes like paint until you find the correct color?

Oh interesting. I will look into this. Thank you @stephbb9

 

[Debbie65]

@Debbie65 I doubt Hermès still has dye batches of Grany considering the colour hasn’t been produced for about a decade. Even if they do, there are several dye batches made of each colour, so the likelihood of them not only having an old colour but also the exact dye batch from when your bag was made is pretty slim. However, they should still have a record of the dye formulation ratio, so it shouldn’t be difficult for them to make a very small amount of paint to cover the stain on your bag.

Keep in mind, though, that even if they are able to make a small batch of paint for the stain on your bag, the rest of your bag has probably undergone natural wear over time (oxidation, dirt, oils from skin, etc.), so it still may not be an exact match. This is part of the reason Spa tries to avoid touching up/painting over damage to the body of the bag, whereas corners or edges are much easier to repair because touch-ups to those areas are less noticeable. Hoping everything turns out alright!

My discoloration is at the opening and I thought they can blend the color all in, similar to how you paint a car with a dent that has been repaired but just needs painting.. You don't paint the whole car, or even the entire side, you paint over the damage and blend the fresh paint into the old paint so that area looks uniform. That was what I envisioned so for them not being able to do that just surprised me. Perhaps because I'm not an Artistan so what do I know. Lol. Still disappointed but I'm getting over it thanks to my PF Family! Hugs to you all!

 

[WhiteBus]

My discoloration is at the opening and I thought they can blend the color all in, similar to how you paint a car with a dent that has been repaired but just needs painting.. You don't paint the whole car, or even the entire side, you paint over the damage and blend the fresh paint into the old paint so that area looks uniform. That was what I envisioned so for them not being able to do that just surprised me. Perhaps because I'm not an Artistan so what do I know. Lol. Still disappointed but I'm getting over it thanks to my PF Family! Hugs to you all!

that is a key point

it doesn't take much imagination to realise how difficult it might be to get the perfect end result
for starters:
if they had the exact colour, be it dye or paint, it would not be the same situation as ir was originally with undyed leather;
also the stain/mark on your bag will have to be removed or masked; it is a small area in a difficult and prominently place

yes, I can see why the reasoned response you suggest would make sense
but again, from a business point of view a straightforward policy not to commit in any way gives no ground for legal repercussions

I wonder if, in retrospect, it would have been better to have just sent it in for spa, in the hope that the defect would be spotted on examination and raised by Hermes
But that is being wise after the event

There is a consensus that Hermes tries to underpromise and overdeliver where spa/repair services are concerned
It would seem unwise to go down a DIY or alternative leather services route if you can avoid it because you never know when it might need an Hermes repair.

I can understand why you don't want to spend money on uncertainty, but I would take the risk first.

 

[r luvs h]

My discoloration is at the opening and I thought they can blend the color all in, similar to how you paint a car with a dent that has been repaired but just needs painting.. You don't paint the whole car, or even the entire side, you paint over the damage and blend the fresh paint into the old paint so that area looks uniform. That was what I envisioned so for them not being able to do that just surprised me. Perhaps because I'm not an Artistan so what do I know. Lol. Still disappointed but I'm getting over it thanks to my PF Family! Hugs to you all!

Love the analogy; I wish it were that simple. Going with this analogy, I would keep in mind that most cars come in 5 to 10 colours, whereas Hermès has used over 140 different colours for Swift leather alone! Moreover, the process of dyeing/painting leather— when done properly— is a bit more complex than that of painting a car. Perhaps this is why it takes the auto repair shop 2-3 days to fix the paint on a car, while Hermès takes 3-6 months to fix the paint on one of their leather pieces.

 

[Debbie65]

that is a key point

it doesn't take much imagination to realise how difficult it might be to get the perfect end result
for starters:
if they had the exact colour, be it dye or paint, it would not be the same situation as ir was originally with undyed leather;
also the stain/mark on your bag will have to be removed or masked; it is a small area in a difficult and prominently place

yes, I can see why the reasoned response you suggest would make sense
but again, from a business point of view a straightforward policy not to commit in any way gives no ground for legal repercussions

I wonder if, in retrospect, it would have been better to have just sent it in for spa, in the hope that the defect would be spotted on examination and raised by Hermes
But that is being wise after the event

There is a consensus that Hermes tries to underpromise and overdeliver where spa/repair services are concerned
It would seem unwise to go down a DIY or alternative leather services route if you can avoid it because you never know when it might need an Hermes repair.

I can understand why you don't want to spend money on uncertainty, but I would take the risk first.

Great points. ) I may try again later by going to a Hermès boutique that has artisans on site. My bag was sent in for the spa treatment by the Hermès boutique near me. Since they were very vague from the start and later said they were not sure and then said the stain will remain, I just said forget it. Lol. Too much correspondence back and forth yet nothing actually accomplished. Total turn off. Lol. If there are artisans at a Hermès location near me (2 hrs max), Ill go there and see what they say in person. I'll make a fun trip out of it.

 

[Debbie65]

Love the analogy; I wish it were that simple. Going with this analogy, I would keep in mind that most cars come in 5 to 10 colours, whereas Hermès has used over 140 different colours for Swift leather alone! Moreover, the process of dyeing/painting leather— when done properly— is a bit more complex than that of painting a car. Perhaps this is why it takes the auto repair shop 2-3 days to fix the paint on a car, while Hermès takes 3-6 months to fix the paint on one of their leather pieces.

Yes I'm learning they take months to return your bag but are they actually working on your bag the entire time for months or is it just sitting there waiting for it's turn, basically waiting in line? It will take about 2 weeks just for me to receive my bag back although they did nothing to it. Perhaps they let it sit there and wait to ship other items with it back to the boutique to save on shipping cost. I was told the spa that my bag was being shipped to was in the US but details were not given other then that. Yes metal cars and leather are totally different for sure. My car took over 1 month to get back as it needed body work and paint. due to dent to my side panel and another month for it to cure. Anyway not to get off topic. Hahaha! Well it is what it is at this point. I just expected more from them, that's all. l will survive. Lol. . Now I know they are not miracle workers. Lol