New H Policy

[Melora24]

I'm quite surprised to see such passionate reactions! Is it because I'm French? But for me, sell a bag *with* the plastics on is like selling an unfinished product. And remove them in front of the client could be seen as a progress, compared to have them removed in the back of the store.
(I have never bought an H product myself, though, mine were all gifts, without tags, and it didn't seem strange)

 

[HPassion]

Yes, I noticed that Chanel Paris removes the sticker from the cc logo, but Chane HK leaves it on.

 

[duna]

whenever i hear about new hermes policies, i roll my eyes. If hermes really wanted to deter resellers (which at a certain level i doubt), they would produce more birkins and kellys and other highly coveted products, period.

Part of hermes' mystique are some items' rarity; and the fact that people will buy these things at 3x their already high per item costs because they are impatient or feel they will never be offered what they want.

So people who purchase from resellers don't care about the plastic, just authenticity and condition.

this!!

 

[antheakate]

this!!

Double agree!
Also, just like with Chanel and Louis Vuitton, it probably differs from store to store from my experiences.
All of the Hermes items came with plastic on them (if they had plastic in the store).

 

[HPassion]

I think the issue is not that people wont buy from resellers without protective stickers, but that the HK resellers may not pay the H client a "100% new" price for the bag if the stickers and plastics are missing. The H client would not bother to sell if he/she doesnt make a profit.

 

[pinkx3x3]

If this is true, just another ridiculous policy that will alienate good clients. I have a thing about removing the vellum. It is a process for me to remove them....MYSELF!

Haha, love doing it home alone too!!!

 

[Vinia]

I bought a clic clac from HK as well and the SA removed the stickers for me as well and I felt twinges of unhappiness. She said that it was to prevent the plastic from eating into the plating. It's not possible to use this to deter resellers here as the prices are quite high here.

 

[Mindi B]

There was a flurry of conversation here some months ago when someone who left the plastic on her bags found that it did, indeed, damage the hardware over time. I understand not wanting to scratch the hardware, but the plastic is truly not meant to stay on the bag. Reminds me a little of keeping all one's furniture in plastic slipcovers forever to avoid damage to the upholstery. Yes, it makes the furniture nasty to sit on, but one knows it's clean! Anyhow, clearly there are some strong feelings about this, so hopefully if a client speaks up and says "please don't" most boutiques will oblige. For me, treating any consumer product as a ceremonial object is one step on a slippery slope toward the sort of relationship to material goods that I don't want to have, but that's me. . . and I think there are cultural forces at work here, too, as our French contributor suggested.
This would be an interesting subject of study: to some, a well-used bag suggests a desirable level of wealth and ease ("Oh, this old thing?"); to others, the more pristine the item, the better. A lot of this is about something called "signalling" theory (in evolutionary psychology, economics, and other disciplines). Fascinating!
Sorry, pretty off-topic there. Never mind.

 

[cvw1004]

It is true that no matter how much more inexpensive, I try not to buy silks when visiting France because I know it won't come with the tag. I like to know everything about the silk, and I don't know why it bothers me having to google the exact color way. Why should I? It should say so on my tag!

I always ask to keep the tag on and it's never been an issue once I explain why. Otherwise just ask to take a pic of the tag first.

 

[purselover888]

I always ask to keep the tag on and it's never been an issue once I explain why. Otherwise just ask to take a pic of the tag first.

I've asked, and they say "We need it for inventory control." I just don't want the extra hassle, but I do buy hard-to-find silks in France.

 

[Love Of My Life]

To deter resellers? Really? Resellers just need to wrap the bag in clear plastic and list a price tag twice more than the original price. The bags sell. With or without stickers. People who buy a resellers are less likely to quibble over lack of stickers. I'm not sure what the point of sticker removal in store is about.

Exactly... if you want the bag bad enough the buyer will take it in the
condition it comes . The stickers are not deterring a buyer/reseller who wants
to buy a bag

Auction houses are setting record prices for H bags so many are new
or never been used.. It's the H bag buyers want.. stickers?? Strictly
up to the buyer & for many its not a big deal in the store or the secondary market
They have to come off sooner or later...

 

[eagle1002us]

There was a flurry of conversation here some months ago when someone who left the plastic on her bags found that it did, indeed, damage the hardware over time. I understand not wanting to scratch the hardware, but the plastic is truly not meant to stay on the bag. Reminds me a little of keeping all one's furniture in plastic slipcovers forever to avoid damage to the upholstery. Yes, it makes the furniture nasty to sit on, but one knows it's clean! Anyhow, clearly there are some strong feelings about this, so hopefully if a client speaks up and says "please don't" most boutiques will oblige. For me, treating any consumer product as a ceremonial object is one step on a slippery slope toward the sort of relationship to material goods that I don't want to have, but that's me. . . and I think there are cultural forces at work here, too, as our French contributor suggested.
This would be an interesting subject of study: to some, a well-used bag suggests a desirable level of wealth and ease ("Oh, this old thing?"); to others, the more pristine the item, the better. A lot of this is about something called "signalling" theory (in evolutionary psychology, economics, and other disciplines). Fascinating!
Sorry, pretty off-topic there. Never mind.

A big wave to you, Mindi, as I careen down the slope!


Your comments about signaling theory, the kind of message people consciously or inadvertently telegraph to others by their preferences and behavior, and what MYH said about getting the bag ready to go, were interesting. I am sure an anthropologist could get a dissertation out of people's behavior toward aspirational and luxury items.

 

[jmen]

Change is typically not something living beings deal with well not just with H but everything. With H silks in particular I use those tags to make labels so I can find what I want pdq. The last thing I want to do is open every orange box to find what I want. When I bought a bracelet from H online it came sans plastic and what was the first thing that came to mind? Was this a dang return? Maybe, maybe not the thing is that's the first thing that came to mind. "Twould be funny if the boutiques had no tags either so locating an item would be a real PIA. I don't think SAs would take kindly to it, so why should the customer? If I catch a tag being taken off, I'll ask for it to be put in the box. It is fine if it isn't on but I want it or else the SA can take the time to write it out the description/colors on a piece of paper.

 

[snarfy]

Only bought scarves and shawls in the last couple of months but was annoyed that the tags were removed and not even included inside my bags (stores in Hawaii and Toronto). I like to keep the tags with their respective boxes with my silks or shawls for name and CW reference. Luckily, my silks and shawls are still available online and I was able to note them down.

I like keeping protective plastics on my hardware so I don't scratch them so I hope my SA doesn't remove them the next time I get something with hardware.

Aha....so I wasn't the only one experiencing this in Hawaii. Last year I bought stuff from both H stores in Hawaii. One store removed the tag on my shawl, the other didn't. Eventually I asked the Waikiki store why Ala Moana store removed the tags, the SA said she had no idea. The Waikiki store SA then told me if it bothered me that much she could exchange the shawl for me. I didn't bother. I was more curious than annoyed. Interesting enough, while my store at home doesn't remove tags on scarves, they never include tags with leather items. So I guess this is not really a store policy.

 

[Mindi B]

A big wave to you, Mindi, as I careen down the slope!


Your comments about signaling theory, the kind of message people consciously or inadvertently telegraph to others by their preferences and behavior, and what MYH said about getting the bag ready to go, were interesting. I am sure an anthropologist could get a dissertation out of people's behavior toward aspirational and luxury items.

You go, girl! You are absolutely not alone in the desire to have some private "prepping" time with your Hermes bags, as this and other threads demonstrate. Truly, I think I am sufficiently OCD that if I allow myself to give too much attention to the condition of my bags, my head will explode. Therefore, I make a virtue out of necessity and embrace the "well-loved" look. And the fact that I'm a total klutz doesn't help. Putting a hole in a never-worn garment by removing the tag wrong? Yup, me, right here, I've done it.