Tightly controlled production and premium positioning are helping maker of Birkin and Kelly bags outshine rivals
www.ft.com
there was an article in FT re Hermes, entitled The Hermes Game, How the luxury house is defying the slowdown
(I included t(e link, but it is behind a paywall! Apologies),
Some takeaways included:
Hermes (and brunello cuchinelli and Loro Piana) are weathering the economic slowdown by focusing on top tier customers ; creating artificial scarcity; and basically ignoring the broader base of occasional, aspirational shoppers. Its focus is on highest tier, high annual spend, local clients. The rationale, as narrated by the article, is that those clients might cut back on spending slightly but don’t tend to compromise on quality. These clients do tend to shop in person, frequently, at the store.
Kering group, like
Gucci, Ferragamo, and Burberry are doing less well bc their core customer is the occasional, aspirational shopper, who tend to tighten their belts and cut fashion shopping when economic times are tough.
My takeaway :
if you can figure out where you land in that description, you will have a pretty accurate idea of your relationship to the brand and to your SA.
ETA: the article also pointed out that Hermes weathers the economic storm by reliance on local clients. It does not encourage dependence on tourist dollars which are considered to be more fickle. Hermes clientele in Japan is 90% local; in NY, the clientele is 75% local. This would also track with reports from the Paris thread that lottery bags are increasingly more difficult to get. Hermes wants you to stick to your local store. Hermes stock and profits are on the rise with slow and steady growth.
Demand is 4-5 times greater than supply of the bags. Hermes is of course conscious of the fact that if they increased supply, it would not be as good for their value to shareholders
