Maintaining a H relationship

[papertiger]

Please focus on the title of this thread rather than each other, TY

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[FrenchNewbie]

I don’t think this is an unpopular opinion but H works in a certain way and you likely hurt your sa client and potentially boutique relationship with buying from the website particularly after you asked the sa for the items.

I totally get it, and I always love for (and would totally prefer that) my SA's to get the commission whether it be at H or LV or Chanel or even a regular retailer, etc. I go out my way for the person I am working with to receive the credit.

However, I feel I shouldn't have to "chase" and "beg" these people to spend my money. I don't want to feel like that unpopular kid in school who begs to be in the "in-crowd" or is the last to get chosen when picking dodgeball teams LOL. It's not about that. Bottom line is: either you want to work with me or you don't. I gave her over a month to respond when she said "I'll get on it and have it in a few days". As some members have written here, you don't want to keep pestering your SA and seem desperate, so I give them their space and try to be considerate/respectful of their time. When she didn't return the favor, that's when I took matters into my own hands and ordered from the website for fear of missing out on the opportunity to get them. It shouldn't be about "hurting the SA's feelings or hurting the relationship with the boutique". I try to always assume positive intent for everyone. When she didn't respond for 1-2 months (after repeated attempts to call/text her), I assumed she a) was too busy for me; b) didn't have them, or didn't bother to search for them. Consideration should be about reciprocity, IMO.

 

[jimmyshoogirl]

Exactly!! I actually did say that to the SA that was there but she didn't say anything so I didn't pry. At the end of the day, it's not my business so i didn't push it. And LOL at the date comment cuz some of my wording sounds like that. I was like I feel like I'm writing about a date!! LOL It's my first SA and I started not long ago so I was unsure. I didn't leave with the shoes because they didn't fit but I asked for a larger size. I just want to be respectful but, at the same time, I want to be respected as well

Yes totally understandable. I can tell the relationship with the SA is new. It’s a lot of uncertainty in the beginning, speaking from experience. Once you two click you will start to learn each other and not feel so unsure. I wasn’t necessarily talking about you with the dating thing but more so that’s how some people really act lol

I’m so glad to hear that you asked about your shoes and got to try them on! To me it was still a successful trip! Hopefully you had a good store experience! I’m really hoping this will be a stress free shopping experience for you!

We all want and deserve respect! That’s a given! I don’t think anyone is in disagreeable that things could be handled better. She absolutely should’ve communicated with you which is why a convo need to be had. Image you do one thing on your job wrong and you get punished.

When I first started working with my Chanel SA in 2020 she had done something similar. We agreed to meet and she wasn’t at the store. She didn’t respond to me for WEEKS. She finally responded. One week her husband was in the hospital. The following her grand mother passed from Covid that the whole family had. I’m sorry in that situation I can’t think straight when it comes to my family so my job will have to wait. Not saying something extreme happened to your SA but things happen and hindsight is always 20/20. Give her some grace. If she doesn’t correct it and if she does it again pick another SA and don’t look back.

 

[FrenchNewbie]

Honestly, I felt exactly the same way! You verbalized it perfectly. I'm not one of those problem clients (I've seen a few of them in store). I'm always polite and considerate and I always expect people to be considerate in return (overall, not just with Hermes). If I had a meeting at work, if an emergency came up, I'd reschedule or advise the person. And in this case, I took a day off work (I had it but still I took it specifically yesterday) because she is leaving for Paris on Friday then I'm away and I wanted to see her. I could have gone to the store on Saturday with just anybody but I didn't' So i was shocked when she was not there. I mean I could order these off the website, they have my size and it gets delivered to my house but I don't because i want to maintain a relationship and also a person gets commission over no one. I was thinking all this yesterday and my mom was saying the same thing but the I was like am I overreacting?? I just feel it was a bit rude and then I started thinking of the other times and I was like is she trying to tell me something?

I totally get what you are saying and I can definitely 100% relate to you, being in your shoes on more than one occasion. You shouldn't have to apologize or feel guilty for wanting to be treated with consideration, especially after you've gone out of your way to be kind and respectful to the SA & do everything in your power to ensure they get commission from items they sell. If I were an SA--I'd love to work with clients like myself (what an easy job to have a client who places orders from me remotely, I don't have to take time to meet with them in the store (which means more break time or time to meet w/ local clients), and they actively help me to get more money in my paycheck)! LOL

We're all people, whether on the retail side or the client side. IMO, the SA's should be more respectful of your time and feelings. Relationship building is a 2-way street.

 

[lala_retro]

I totally get it, and I always love for (and would totally prefer that) my SA's to get the commission whether it be at H or LV or Chanel or even a regular retailer, etc. I go out my way for the person I am working with to receive the credit.

However, I feel I shouldn't have to "chase" and "beg" these people to spend my money. I don't want to feel like that unpopular kid in school who begs to be in the "in-crowd" or is the last to get chosen when picking dodgeball teams LOL. It's not about that. Bottom line is: either you want to work with me or you don't. I gave her over a month to respond when she said "I'll get on it and have it in a few days". As some members have written here, you don't want to keep pestering your SA and seem desperate, so I give them their space and try to be considerate/respectful of their time. When she didn't return the favor, that's when I took matters into my own hands and ordered from the website for fear of missing out on the opportunity to get them. It shouldn't be about "hurting the SA's feelings or hurting the relationship with the boutique". I try to always assume positive intent for everyone. When she didn't respond for 1-2 months (after repeated attempts to call/text her), I assumed she a) was too busy for me; b) didn't have them, or didn't bother to search for them. Consideration should be about reciprocity, IMO.

I think we all tend to give H SAs more leeway than others because of the unique way that shopping is done at H, but if it's been more than a month since she agreed to source the item, and she doesn't give an update when you check in, then and as long as you reached out to let her know that you are going to get it from the online store, it's fair game if she doesn't respond to tell you to hold off.

She didn’t respond to me for WEEKS. She finally responded. One week her husband was in the hospital. The following her grand mother passed from Covid that the whole family had. I’m sorry in that situation I can’t think straight when it comes to my family so my job will have to wait. Not saying something extreme happened to your SA but things happen and hindsight is always 20/20. Give her some grace. If she doesn’t correct it and if she does it again pick another SA and don’t look back.

Haha for the past 2 years whenever a communicative SA doesn't respond for more than a week I just assume they have COVID, and mostly it's been a valid assumption.

 

[jimmyshoogirl]

I think we all tend to give H SAs more leeway than others because of the unique way that shopping is done at H, but if it's been more than a month since she agreed to source the item, and she doesn't give an update when you check in, then and as long as you reached out to let her know that you are going to get it from the online store, it's fair game if she doesn't respond to tell you to hold off.



Haha for the past 2 years whenever a communicative SA doesn't respond for more than a week I just assume they have COVID, and mostly it's been a valid assumption.

I definitely agree to the bolded. My SA has actually said get things that I like off of the website if I can’t come in the store.

Lol same at assuming people have COVID, not being ghosted

 

[lala_retro]

I definitely agree to the bolded. My SA has actually said get things that I like off of the website if I can’t come in the store.

Lol same at assuming people have COVID, not being ghosted

Mine too, some items she's just like, yeah there's no chance of me getting that, if you see online just grab it. Other items that look like the store ordered but just hasn't arrived yet, she'll put my name down, but sometimes things that are ordered don't come in, or the system doesn't flag them for the SA.

I think you are right in that it's definitely more uncertain at the beginning when the client and SA are still getting to know each other's style of handling business. I used to wonder when my SA doesn't respond for days about item inquiries, now I don't even ask I just consolidate requests to when I go in person.

 

[shazzy99]

SA’s in different countries also have different rules about phones, and only have their phone while at work, they can’t take them home. It also depends on their position, as some managers can take phones home and it’s up to them when/how they respond.
My Chanel SA has only recently been allowed to start taking her phone home, as per responsibilities have changed.
My Hermes SA cannot take her phone home, so even if I had scheduled an appointment for a certain day and she ended up being away for whatever reason, I wouldn’t know until I turned up as there would be no way for her to let me know. It hasn’t happened yet, so am not sure how the store itself would handle such a situation when appointment in place.
My SA has said she is constantly bombarded with messages all day asking for various things, while she’s super responsive and proactive, she has said it can get a bit too much and can’t answer all the messages in a working day, between attending in store clients etc. Just like everyone else when they are busy at work. Everyone is human, and we don’t always know what’s going on in people’s lives.

 

[withsriracha]

My SA has said she is constantly bombarded with messages all day asking for various things, while she’s super responsive and proactive, she has said it can get a bit too much and can’t answer all the messages in a working day, between attending in store clients etc. Just like everyone else when they are busy at work. Everyone is human, and we don’t always know what’s going on in people’s lives.

This is really important to step back and remember! I don't work with the general public, but my job is fundamentally a client service one, and most days I have way more people who need me to do something for them (preferably asap) than I have ability to do those things. It's also party my job to be very on top of emails and requests, but if it's really busy something can fall through the cracks and it does make a difference if someone follows up kindly rather than aggressively

IME the early days of a H relationship can feel so fraught that it can seem more like dating than a professional interaction and there's a lot more emotion wrapped up in it, so it was helpful for me to take that step back! I am still relatively early days with my SA and just getting more comfortable in our interactions, but definitely remember parsing wording and response time very intensely when we first started to message each other since I looked at it as trying to figure out if she "liked" me and wanted to continue the relationship.

 

[missBV]

Yes totally understandable. I can tell the relationship with the SA is new. It’s a lot of uncertainty in the beginning, speaking from experience. Once you two click you will start to learn each other and not feel so unsure. I wasn’t necessarily talking about you with the dating thing but more so that’s how some people really act lol

I’m so glad to hear that you asked about your shoes and got to try them on! To me it was still a successful trip! Hopefully you had a good store experience! I’m really hoping this will be a stress free shopping experience for you!

We all want and deserve respect! That’s a given! I don’t think anyone is in disagreeable that things could be handled better. She absolutely should’ve communicated with you which is why a convo need to be had. Image you do one thing on your job wrong and you get punished.

When I first started working with my Chanel SA in 2020 she had done something similar. We agreed to meet and she wasn’t at the store. She didn’t respond to me for WEEKS. She finally responded. One week her husband was in the hospital. The following her grand mother passed from Covid that the whole family had. I’m sorry in that situation I can’t think straight when it comes to my family so my job will have to wait. Not saying something extreme happened to your SA but things happen and hindsight is always 20/20. Give her some grace. If she doesn’t correct it and if she does it again pick another SA and don’t look back.

Thanks for your sharing. I love the part about giving others grace and when others dont reciprocate, move on and don't look back. It shows how much grace you have as a person. SAs are not dogs and they dont need to be trained like one. They are humans and experience perturbing life events. Be gracious to others and I'm sure you will be treated graciously as well.

 

[R21]

I wanted to get your advice if I should stay with my SA in Hawaii. I went to Hawaii more than 6 times in the past 1.5 years. I met a wonderful SA and built a good purchase history. I was able to get a C24, C18, two TPM Evelyne and two ML from her. She offered a mini 24/24, Halzan but I declined those bags. I told her my dream bag is a B30. I went to Paris last October and also met a great SA who gave me her card. I was able to get a TPM Evelyne without an appointment.She told me to let her know when I’ll be back in Paris. We have exchanged texts since then. I also met a nice SA in my local store when I went to exchange an item. No purchase made. I am deciding if I should go to Hawaii or Paris in the next couple of months or should I just shop at my local store which seems to be competitive but doesn’t involve travel. Thanks for the advice!

 

[smoothsailor]

I wanted to get your advice if I should stay with my SA in Hawaii. I went to Hawaii more than 6 times in the past 1.5 years. I met a wonderful SA and built a good purchase history. I was able to get a C24, C18, two TPM Evelyne and two ML from her. She offered a mini 24/24, Halzan but I declined those bags. I told her my dream bag is a B30. I went to Paris last October and also met a great SA who gave me her card. I was able to get a TPM Evelyne without an appointment.She told me to let her know when I’ll be back in Paris. We have exchanged texts since then. I also met a nice SA in my local store when I went to exchange an item. No purchase made. I am deciding if I should go to Hawaii or Paris in the next couple of months or should I just shop at my local store which seems to be competitive but doesn’t involve travel. Thanks for the advice!

I think u should give paris SA a go. But don’t be surprised if she ask u to try to get a leather appointment online for quota bag. If that fails, i suggest just to stick to tried and tested SA as building new relationship is very tiring.

 

[WhiteBus]

I wanted to get your advice if I should stay with my SA in Hawaii. I went to Hawaii more than 6 times in the past 1.5 years. I met a wonderful SA and built a good purchase history. I was able to get a C24, C18, two TPM Evelyne and two ML from her. She offered a mini 24/24, Halzan but I declined those bags. I told her my dream bag is a B30. I went to Paris last October and also met a great SA who gave me her card. I was able to get a TPM Evelyne without an appointment.She told me to let her know when I’ll be back in Paris. We have exchanged texts since then. I also met a nice SA in my local store when I went to exchange an item. No purchase made. I am deciding if I should go to Hawaii or Paris in the next couple of months or should I just shop at my local store which seems to be competitive but doesn’t involve travel. Thanks for the advice!

So, we know you can travel around the world at will.
Paris is the only place that, once you get an appointment, it is likely that to get a Birkin without any previous history. You are fortunate to have a contact there.
You have been a successful shopper in Hawaii and seem to have built a 'relationship' there.
That should not be compromised by shopping in Paris, but if you give credence to the power of store loyalty and SA 'relationship' transferring your patronage to your local store might not be the best course of action.
Whatever you decide it is important that you make your wishes known and ask face to face about the likelihood of achieving your goal, then you can push the conversation harder. An SA will not commit via text.

 

[jimmyshoogirl]

I wanted to get your advice if I should stay with my SA in Hawaii. I went to Hawaii more than 6 times in the past 1.5 years. I met a wonderful SA and built a good purchase history. I was able to get a C24, C18, two TPM Evelyne and two ML from her. She offered a mini 24/24, Halzan but I declined those bags. I told her my dream bag is a B30. I went to Paris last October and also met a great SA who gave me her card. I was able to get a TPM Evelyne without an appointment.She told me to let her know when I’ll be back in Paris. We have exchanged texts since then. I also met a nice SA in my local store when I went to exchange an item. No purchase made. I am deciding if I should go to Hawaii or Paris in the next couple of months or should I just shop at my local store which seems to be competitive but doesn’t involve travel. Thanks for the advice!

I would keep Hawaii SA since the relationship has already been established. I’d also ask for a hypothetical timeline for when you can expect to get a B. Keep Paris SA since it will not count against you.

 

[Daydrmer]

I wanted to get your advice if I should stay with my SA in Hawaii. I went to Hawaii more than 6 times in the past 1.5 years. I met a wonderful SA and built a good purchase history. I was able to get a C24, C18, two TPM Evelyne and two ML from her. She offered a mini 24/24, Halzan but I declined those bags. I told her my dream bag is a B30. I went to Paris last October and also met a great SA who gave me her card. I was able to get a TPM Evelyne without an appointment.She told me to let her know when I’ll be back in Paris. We have exchanged texts since then. I also met a nice SA in my local store when I went to exchange an item. No purchase made. I am deciding if I should go to Hawaii or Paris in the next couple of months or should I just shop at my local store which seems to be competitive but doesn’t involve travel. Thanks for the advice!

Since your relationship with your Hawaii SA is established and they know of your B30 wishes, I would go to Paris. Just be realistic about your expectations.

 

[R21]

Thank you for all the feedback! I’ve booked two Hawaii trips to visit my SA - Feb and April. Paris SA said she will be off when I was planning to visit next month so I’ll just see her in May.