Paris trip for Hermes

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#29,204
Please try to stay on topic. I realise because of the complexity of some of the posts members may veer off but in answer do not 'go there'.

For info and questions on US customs please post on the thread below: post https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/us-customs-discussion-airports-importing.905560/

Detaxing (to US from Europe) https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/best-way-to-detax-after-h-in-europe.178302/

or non-US destinations: https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/does-h-store-paris-wants-to-ship.605014/page-3

For questions relating to prices https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/reference-hermes-current-prices.102567/page-357

For traveling with boxes https://forum.purseblog.com/threads...me-hermes-boxes-when-traveling.1044553/page-5



I will leave this reminder as a sticky because tthis is often a thread that new members (or new Hermès lovers) post on - hopefully temporarily.
 
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#17,342
I wanted to share my shopping experience at FSH.

A few friends and I arrived on Saturday at noon and saw no one in either queue. We walked up to a hostess in leather goods who told us there were no appointments for the day. I wasn’t fussed about this. I thanked her, told her I would look at scarves for now and come back on Monday. I also asked whether appointments could be made with a specific SA as my U.S. SA had recommended a few folks. She said of course.

After about 10 minutes of looking at scarves, the same hostess approached me and asked for my information. She said, as luck would have it, they had an appointment in the next 5 minutes. Yay!

We were met by a SA and he was lovely. I didn’t feel rushed at all – we chatted for about 10 minutes and I gave him a wish list of 4 bags. I further explained that my top 2 choices were a Double Sens (in blue and neutral) and a 32 Kelly (in a neutral color). For the Kelly, he asked about leather preferences. I mentioned that I wanted something a bit more casual (more togo leather than epson). He left us with champagne and water and went to check stock.

He came back with 2 boxes and said “one I can show you here, the other I’ll show you in a room.” I started to get super excited! Box 1 contained a Double Sens 45cm in Blue Abyss and Gold. It was perfect! He then led us to a private room and opened box 2 containing . . . a Kelly Retourne 32 cm in Origan/Oregano Veau Evercolor. It was magnificent! I typically don’t go for light color bags, but this was the perfect grey-olive green and shows beautifully on the evercolor leather. I wasn’t as familiar with evercolor, so had to do a quick search on PF. Thanks to all here who have reported on yours!

The price difference between the US and Paris is astounding.
· My bag is $10,600 before tax when purchased in the US. I live in SF, so with tax it’d be $11,527.50.
· In Paris, the bag is €7,350. With current exchange rates (€1 = $1.06), my bag comes in at $7791 USD. That’s a price difference of $3,737, which is further increased by my VAT refund.

I’m delighted by the bag and the sublime shopping experience. I’m also left wondering, why don’t I just visit Paris once or twice a year and buy bags?

Thanks for letting me share!Hermes Kelly 1000 px.jpg
 
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#17,343
This is stunning, what a beautiful unique colour in a Kelly. Congratulations!!

mmh131 said:
I wanted to share my shopping experience at FSH.

A few friends and I arrived on Saturday at noon and saw no one in either queue. We walked up to a hostess in leather goods who told us there were no appointments for the day. I wasn’t fussed about this. I thanked her, told her I would look at scarves for now and come back on Monday. I also asked whether appointments could be made with a specific SA as my U.S. SA had recommended a few folks. She said of course.

After about 10 minutes of looking at scarves, the same hostess approached me and asked for my information. She said, as luck would have it, they had an appointment in the next 5 minutes. Yay!

We were met by a SA and he was lovely. I didn’t feel rushed at all – we chatted for about 10 minutes and I gave him a wish list of 4 bags. I further explained that my top 2 choices were a Double Sens (in blue and neutral) and a 32 Kelly (in a neutral color). For the Kelly, he asked about leather preferences. I mentioned that I wanted something a bit more casual (more togo leather than epson). He left us with champagne and water and went to check stock.

He came back with 2 boxes and said “one I can show you here, the other I’ll show you in a room.” I started to get super excited! Box 1 contained a Double Sens 45cm in Blue Abyss and Gold. It was perfect! He then led us to a private room and opened box 2 containing . . . a Kelly Retourne 32 cm in Origan/Oregano Veau Evercolor. It was magnificent! I typically don’t go for light color bags, but this was the perfect grey-olive green and shows beautifully on the evercolor leather. I wasn’t as familiar with evercolor, so had to do a quick search on PF. Thanks to all here who have reported on yours!

The price difference between the US and Paris is astounding.
· My bag is $10,600 before tax when purchased in the US. I live in SF, so with tax it’d be $11,527.50.
· In Paris, the bag is €7,350. With current exchange rates (€1 = $1.06), my bag comes in at $7791 USD. That’s a price difference of $3,737, which is further increased by my VAT refund.

I’m delighted by the bag and the sublime shopping experience. I’m also left wondering, why don’t I just visit Paris once or twice a year and buy bags?

Thanks for letting me share!View attachment 3532116
Click to expand...
 
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#17,345
mmh131 said:
I wanted to share my shopping experience at FSH.

A few friends and I arrived on Saturday at noon and saw no one in either queue. We walked up to a hostess in leather goods who told us there were no appointments for the day. I wasn’t fussed about this. I thanked her, told her I would look at scarves for now and come back on Monday. I also asked whether appointments could be made with a specific SA as my U.S. SA had recommended a few folks. She said of course.

After about 10 minutes of looking at scarves, the same hostess approached me and asked for my information. She said, as luck would have it, they had an appointment in the next 5 minutes. Yay!

We were met by a SA and he was lovely. I didn’t feel rushed at all – we chatted for about 10 minutes and I gave him a wish list of 4 bags. I further explained that my top 2 choices were a Double Sens (in blue and neutral) and a 32 Kelly (in a neutral color). For the Kelly, he asked about leather preferences. I mentioned that I wanted something a bit more casual (more togo leather than epson). He left us with champagne and water and went to check stock.

He came back with 2 boxes and said “one I can show you here, the other I’ll show you in a room.” I started to get super excited! Box 1 contained a Double Sens 45cm in Blue Abyss and Gold. It was perfect! He then led us to a private room and opened box 2 containing . . . a Kelly Retourne 32 cm in Origan/Oregano Veau Evercolor. It was magnificent! I typically don’t go for light color bags, but this was the perfect grey-olive green and shows beautifully on the evercolor leather. I wasn’t as familiar with evercolor, so had to do a quick search on PF. Thanks to all here who have reported on yours!

The price difference between the US and Paris is astounding.
· My bag is $10,600 before tax when purchased in the US. I live in SF, so with tax it’d be $11,527.50.
· In Paris, the bag is €7,350. With current exchange rates (€1 = $1.06), my bag comes in at $7791 USD. That’s a price difference of $3,737, which is further increased by my VAT refund.

I’m delighted by the bag and the sublime shopping experience. I’m also left wondering, why don’t I just visit Paris once or twice a year and buy bags?

Thanks for letting me share!View attachment 3532116
Click to expand...

yes why not planned a trip to Paris every year? You get items at cheaper price and you get to visit this magical city :smile:

Congrats on your beautiful Kelly :smile:
 
#17,346
mmh131 said:
I wanted to share my shopping experience at FSH.

A few friends and I arrived on Saturday at noon and saw no one in either queue. We walked up to a hostess in leather goods who told us there were no appointments for the day. I wasn’t fussed about this. I thanked her, told her I would look at scarves for now and come back on Monday. I also asked whether appointments could be made with a specific SA as my U.S. SA had recommended a few folks. She said of course.

After about 10 minutes of looking at scarves, the same hostess approached me and asked for my information. She said, as luck would have it, they had an appointment in the next 5 minutes. Yay!

We were met by a SA and he was lovely. I didn’t feel rushed at all – we chatted for about 10 minutes and I gave him a wish list of 4 bags. I further explained that my top 2 choices were a Double Sens (in blue and neutral) and a 32 Kelly (in a neutral color). For the Kelly, he asked about leather preferences. I mentioned that I wanted something a bit more casual (more togo leather than epson). He left us with champagne and water and went to check stock.

He came back with 2 boxes and said “one I can show you here, the other I’ll show you in a room.” I started to get super excited! Box 1 contained a Double Sens 45cm in Blue Abyss and Gold. It was perfect! He then led us to a private room and opened box 2 containing . . . a Kelly Retourne 32 cm in Origan/Oregano Veau Evercolor. It was magnificent! I typically don’t go for light color bags, but this was the perfect grey-olive green and shows beautifully on the evercolor leather. I wasn’t as familiar with evercolor, so had to do a quick search on PF. Thanks to all here who have reported on yours!

The price difference between the US and Paris is astounding.
· My bag is $10,600 before tax when purchased in the US. I live in SF, so with tax it’d be $11,527.50.
· In Paris, the bag is €7,350. With current exchange rates (€1 = $1.06), my bag comes in at $7791 USD. That’s a price difference of $3,737, which is further increased by my VAT refund.

I’m delighted by the bag and the sublime shopping experience. I’m also left wondering, why don’t I just visit Paris once or twice a year and buy bags?

Thanks for letting me share!View attachment 3532116
Click to expand...

Congrats on your new beautiful bag! [emoji322]

You are right that it is a large savings. But don't forget that you have to declare it and pay import duty so that will be almost the same as your VAT refund. Still a nice savings though.

This is exactly what I have been doing for several years. I have always gone to Paris twice a year for vacation but since I got into Hermes I enjoy making some purchases there. I have been fortunate with bags. One caveat: it is truly luck if they have what you want. You have to be somewhat flexible about what you will accept. If you want something very specific it is difficult. And sometimes there really is just limited stock. This is why I discourage anyone from going to Paris just to try for a bag. But if you are going anyway, why not? It's fun, you save a bit and you will have wonderful memories whenever you carry her.

Enjoy! [emoji898]
 
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#17,348
mmh131 said:
I wanted to share my shopping experience at FSH.

A few friends and I arrived on Saturday at noon and saw no one in either queue. We walked up to a hostess in leather goods who told us there were no appointments for the day. I wasn’t fussed about this. I thanked her, told her I would look at scarves for now and come back on Monday. I also asked whether appointments could be made with a specific SA as my U.S. SA had recommended a few folks. She said of course.

After about 10 minutes of looking at scarves, the same hostess approached me and asked for my information. She said, as luck would have it, they had an appointment in the next 5 minutes. Yay!

We were met by a SA and he was lovely. I didn’t feel rushed at all – we chatted for about 10 minutes and I gave him a wish list of 4 bags. I further explained that my top 2 choices were a Double Sens (in blue and neutral) and a 32 Kelly (in a neutral color). For the Kelly, he asked about leather preferences. I mentioned that I wanted something a bit more casual (more togo leather than epson). He left us with champagne and water and went to check stock.

He came back with 2 boxes and said “one I can show you here, the other I’ll show you in a room.” I started to get super excited! Box 1 contained a Double Sens 45cm in Blue Abyss and Gold. It was perfect! He then led us to a private room and opened box 2 containing . . . a Kelly Retourne 32 cm in Origan/Oregano Veau Evercolor. It was magnificent! I typically don’t go for light color bags, but this was the perfect grey-olive green and shows beautifully on the evercolor leather. I wasn’t as familiar with evercolor, so had to do a quick search on PF. Thanks to all here who have reported on yours!

The price difference between the US and Paris is astounding.
· My bag is $10,600 before tax when purchased in the US. I live in SF, so with tax it’d be $11,527.50.
· In Paris, the bag is €7,350. With current exchange rates (€1 = $1.06), my bag comes in at $7791 USD. That’s a price difference of $3,737, which is further increased by my VAT refund.

I’m delighted by the bag and the sublime shopping experience. I’m also left wondering, why don’t I just visit Paris once or twice a year and buy bags?

Thanks for letting me share!View attachment 3532116
Click to expand...
Gorgeous bag and color. Congrats!
 
#17,350
Myrkur said:
Hi everyone. I was in Paris last week and told myself I would probably not go to FSH as I did not feel like lining up 2 hours before the stores are opening, without even being secured an appointment for that day. Anyway, I decided to go in later that day as our hotel was nearby, just to have a look at some bracelets and scarves. I thought, while I was there, why not. So when I asked if there was still an appointment available, she told me that I was very lucky as there was someone available for me right away. I told the SA what I was looking for, but honestly did not expect anything out of it. When she came back, she told me to follow her and I was still a bit in shock. She told me she had exactly what I was looking for and I just could not believe it. Here she is, my new Birkin in 30 Gold PHW Togo

View attachment 3508202
Click to expand...

Way to go! I wouldn't do a line like that either.
 
#17,351
So exciting to continue to read everyone's stories here! Thanks to all for sharing your experiences (both positive and negative), as it's been super helpful to read through everything.

My husband and I are officially going to Paris next month! Will be sure to share my experiences, and thanks in advance to everyone who's been a fount of information on this thread!

I still have a quick question regarding the logistics of getting an appointment at FSH though. I know that under the new system, you receive a text from the SA with a link so that you can refresh your appointment time in your browser; and you receive another text when your appointment is almost ready. Does this mean that we would have to get both a cellular AND a data plan for our phones in Paris? I have an iPhone, and of course, with just a data plan, someone could iMessage me, but they would have to have an Apple device, too.

I've read two different things on the thread:

greyish14 said:
any international number will work, as long as it can receive text messages. also you will need data/wifi, as you need to refresh the page to check your appointment time (which is constantly changing)
Click to expand...

AtiaOfTheJulii said:
Friday 9/30:
... Anyways My appointment time was for 11:35am. for people in the US you have the option to receive a text or email. For some reason I did no receive the text so I had them email me the confirmation. On the email is a link to the appointment time like this
Click to expand...

For those who have been recently, did you all have both cellular (for texting) AND data (for checking email and refreshing browser) while you were in Paris?

Thanks so much, everyone! :hugs:
 
#17,353
pursesandposes said:
So exciting to continue to read everyone's stories here! Thanks to all for sharing your experiences (both positive and negative), as it's been super helpful to read through everything.

My husband and I are officially going to Paris next month! Will be sure to share my experiences, and thanks in advance to everyone who's been a fount of information on this thread!

I still have a quick question regarding the logistics of getting an appointment at FSH though. I know that under the new system, you receive a text from the SA with a link so that you can refresh your appointment time in your browser; and you receive another text when your appointment is almost ready. Does this mean that we would have to get both a cellular AND a data plan for our phones in Paris? I have an iPhone, and of course, with just a data plan, someone could iMessage me, but they would have to have an Apple device, too.

I've read two different things on the thread:





For those who have been recently, did you all have both cellular (for texting) AND data (for checking email and refreshing browser) while you were in Paris?

Thanks so much, everyone! :hugs:
Click to expand...

My experience with my carrier (AT&T) when I travelled to EU recently is they offer combo plans. You cant just get texting vs. data. It's a combination of voice, text and data for additional $40 (minimum) then it goes up from there if you want more minutes/text/data.
 
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