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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#27,063
Thank you to all you wonderful TFP contributors, without whom I NEVER would have found the bag of my dreams! In Paris, for my birthday, no less! Was there last week and just found time to write this thank you to all of you.

I’ve read and studied dozens of threads over time, and when I knew I was going to be in Paris, I then re-read everything on this particular one (at least 12 times!) Plus of course the VAT thread, detax thread, leather types, etc. Anyway, everything you said and all your helpful hints, points and insights were instrumental for me- and made this truly magical.

Specifically, helpful points that were made or implied in your posts (none of which are not MY particular thoughts, but gleaned from you ) were:

1. Although it’s worth putting in for the Mothership lottery, get yourself to one (or both if needed) of the other stores (when they open). I got to Sevres at 11:00, was told I had 24 people ahead of me, and it would be approx. 3-4 hours. So we had a great 3 .5 hours at the Musee Luxembourg, then a stroll through the gardens, then were there promptly on time. (note- never got an appt at the Mothership).

2. Part 2 of the above is have a plan- don’t wait until your last day in Paris to be turned down at the Mothership 4 times and then go to GV or Sevres at 4 pm- go early in your trip, and if it works, great. If not, establish a relationship and return.

3. Know and love the brand- and communicate that to the SA. Don’t just walk in and ask for a Birkin or Kelly- I saw not one, but 2 people do just that and with a very polite,” Oh, I am sorry, we have nothing now” were turned down. (I just had a scarf on- nothing fancy). I first asked about a longer strap for my Bolide, and, after discussing various options, was then able to move into my real request.

4. Know your wants and needs- give the SA direction. I was fairly specific as to color, but open to a number of leathers/HW (which because of you and going to my store multiple times, could actually discuss intelligently).

5. Be cognizant of the SAs experience, and give him/her as much information as you can about your wants and needs, so he/she can best help you and find something that you will love. Although I have met SAs who could not read me, or maybe were just rushed, most are really excellent, and you need to help them know you so they can do a great job.

6. ALWAYS be polite and respectful of everyone’s time, knowledge and attention.

7. And of course, take pictures and Facetime your mom in the US from the room so she can be part of the experience!

8. Although this goes in the VAT thread- I had everything done already. Receipts in order, math done ( 2x- once divided as to country and once as to bags and silk scarves) and yes, was always respectful and polite. And yes, the officers really DID appreciate that.

A giant thank you to everyone who has ever contributed to TPF- you have all really helped me learn so much and ( of course!!) TOTALLY enabled me on this journey. (PS-It's a week and I STILL can't believe it!)
 
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#27,064
nymeria said:
Thank you to all you wonderful TFP contributors, without whom I NEVER would have found the bag of my dreams! In Paris, for my birthday, no less! Was there last week and just found time to write this thank you to all of you.

I’ve read and studied dozens of threads over time, and when I knew I was going to be in Paris, I then re-read everything on this particular one (at least 12 times!) Plus of course the VAT thread, detax thread, leather types, etc. Anyway, everything you said and all your helpful hints, points and insights were instrumental for me- and made this truly magical.

Specifically, helpful points that were made or implied in your posts (none of which are not MY particular thoughts, but gleaned from you ) were:

1. Although it’s worth putting in for the Mothership lottery, get yourself to one (or both if needed) of the other stores (when they open). I got to Sevres at 11:00, was told I had 24 people ahead of me, and it would be approx. 3-4 hours. So we had a great 3 .5 hours at the Musee Luxembourg, then a stroll through the gardens, then were there promptly on time. (note- never got an appt at the Mothership).

2. Part 2 of the above is have a plan- don’t wait until your last day in Paris to be turned down at the Mothership 4 times and then go to GV or Sevres at 4 pm- go early in your trip, and if it works, great. If not, establish a relationship and return.

3. Know and love the brand- and communicate that to the SA. Don’t just walk in and ask for a Birkin or Kelly- I saw not one, but 2 people do just that and with a very polite,” Oh, I am sorry, we have nothing now” were turned down. (I just had a scarf on- nothing fancy). I first asked about a longer strap for my Bolide, and, after discussing various options, was then able to move into my real request.

4. Know your wants and needs- give the SA direction. I was fairly specific as to color, but open to a number of leathers/HW (which because of you and going to my store multiple times, could actually discuss intelligently).

5. Be cognizant of the SAs experience, and give him/her as much information as you can about your wants and needs, so he/she can best help you and find something that you will love. Although I have met SAs who could not read me, or maybe were just rushed, most are really excellent, and you need to help them know you so they can do a great job.

6. ALWAYS be polite and respectful of everyone’s time, knowledge and attention.

7. And of course, take pictures and Facetime your mom in the US from the room so she can be part of the experience!

8. Although this goes in the VAT thread- I had everything done already. Receipts in order, math done ( 2x- once divided as to country and once as to bags and silk scarves) and yes, was always respectful and polite. And yes, the officers really DID appreciate that.

A giant thank you to everyone who has ever contributed to TPF- you have all really helped me learn so much and ( of course!!) TOTALLY enabled me on this journey. (PS-It's a week and I STILL can't believe it!)
Click to expand...
Congrats! What did you get?
 
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#27,073
Hi everyone! Wanted to post my story now that i've settled back home! It's a long story so bear with me! When I had posted, I scored a beautiful bag. But later on, I actually ended up scoring another bag later!! :biggrin::nuts:


I want to mention that I had gone to Paris in September 10th-17th in 2018. We received 3 appointments at FSH and was declined with the, “No shipment and no bags are available.” Every single time I received a confirmation that we got an appointment, I tried to sell my story of, “This is my first Hermes bag and first time in Paris celebrating my birthday, really hoping to get either a B or K”. I had gone with my BF at the time and tried every day asking for cancellations along with applying online. I was rejected 3 times and got an appointment the 4th try, same with the BF.


Actually, the whole experience left me really bitter as I was so upset being rejected with nothing available every single time. I was told the artisans had just come back from vacation and so stock was low. Also, knowing that Fashion Week was the week after, I assumed they saved stock for their VIPs. It really ruined the whole trip as reading the posts, it seemed like you had a good chance if you had an actual appointment. So I *expected* I would be able to get one — which was a terrible mistake. :sad: Tried George V and was also rejected. So last few days of that trip, went to Chanel and LV and had an amazing experience and bought a bunch of items that made my heart sing.


So tip #1 - don’t expect anything. Even if you were nice to the SA and they were nice back, sometimes, it just doesn’t happen.
 
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#27,074
Now you have a bit of background — Fast forward to finding a super great flight deal for April and made sure there were no holidays, no Fashion Week and nothing that could be in the way. In April, was there the 6th-17th. I knew better this time and was hopeful but not expectant. I was NOT going to let it ruin my trip and actually was expecting to be rejected. In my head, if I was rejected, I was going to spend my money on other brands. But the experience this time was completely different. It was like my bad juju went away and I was just super, super lucky this time. Was able to enjoy this trip wonderfully and actually did a bunch of touristy things. The only bad thing that happened while we were there was Notre Dame was on fire — very sad!!


My BF and I applied the night before I left for the flight to get the first rejection out of the way. We weren’t expecting an appointment confirmation and of course, when we woke up, we received a rejection. Once we arrived on the 6th, we applied again for the Monday, the 8th and was rejected and kept my hopes up. *I remember the first time in Paris, I felt so defeated every time I got a rejection.*


Monday comes, we decide to stop by Sevres and try our luck, got there at 10:29 and had a wait of 9 people ahead by the time we got to the leather department. While waiting, I saw people asking for B/K and was rejected and even GP was rejected! I heard the similar stories being told, “Sorry, no deliveries today and we have no bags at all.”


No bags?! That made me a bit nervous! I was worried I was going to get the same SA’s that people were getting. Then, it was my turn. I got this young looking guy who must have came downstairs to help out, I didn’t see him helping the other people earlier. I thought I had a decent chance, he asked what he could help me with and I asked for a K28/32 or B25/30 in neutral colors. If that wasn’t available, I’d be interested in an Evelyne TPM. He told me that store doesn’t get small sizes, that B25 and K28 was hard to get in that location and would go look anyway and let me know. Don’t know if that is true or just trying to let me down right away but I took it with a grain of salt. I was also rejected for an Evelyne TPM first time around in Paris so I didn’t think my chances were high. I saw him come back with a small box, knew it was an Evelyne so my glimmer of hope increased. He said it’s the only one available, there was a green one but his colleague took it, no B or K right now.


He showed me an Evelyne TPM in Rose Extreme with PHW! I thought no bags were available and took this as a good sign! I took it immediately and he gave me some perfume samples along with my purchase. I told my BF that I thought my luck was turning around this time!



Was rejected for an appointment for Tuesday and continued to enjoy my Paris trip. Then, on Tuesday evening, I got confirmation for an appointment at 3:10 PM on Wednesday, the 10th!
 

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#27,075
Hello all! I have been a silent reader for some time and learned a lot from reading everyone's experience and thought I should share my recent experience although it wasn't all so successful.

I visited Paris with my mom the first week of April for our first mother-daughter trip and it was my mom's first time in Europe. Of course enjoying the beautiful city of Paris was our priority and if I can get a Birkin for my mom then that would be a bonus. My mom was set on a birkin and nothing else since she already has a kelly. She gravitates towards classics when it comes to bags and is pretty picky. And if possible I wanted to get a evelyne pm or tpm and mini roulis.

I made appointments with both our phones for the FSH store everyday we were there and I was only successful getting an appointment on my 4th try under my name which was the day before our departure and the appointment was at 530pm. As my appointment was very late in the day, I didn't go in with high hopes of being able to buy my mom her dream bag. I was appointed to a very friendly SA and she just went straight into asking how she can help us. I explained that it was my mom's first time in Paris and would love to get my mom a gift and her dream bag is the birkin. She asked if we were looking for specific color, hardware and I said my mom was open to dark neutral colors ex: noir, blue encre, etain, etoupe etc. and was open to hardware. I mean all the colors are beautiful its just my mom babies her bags and found light colors harder to take care of and bright colors hard to wear so she was ok with any dark shade of gray,blue, red, green if not black. Trying to add a bit of "color" to the wardrobe through accessories heh. Then she asked if we were looking for anything else. I asked her about the mini roulis and evelyne tpm in dark neutral colors. She said she will check and while I was waiting I saw the person next to me being shown a picoctin in one of the new blue shades and a mini roulis in blue encre saying it was the last one. So right then I knew I wouldn't be taking home a roulis but didn't mind after seeing the color, I didn't really like it as much as I thought I would.

My SA came back after about 20 minutes with 2 boxes saying she didn't have any of the bags we were looking for but brought something else we might be interested in. It was a lindy in black and halzan in etoupe. I was actually really surprised at how even though she couldn't get us the bags we wanted, she really took into consideration the styles/colors we might be interested in based on what we told her. My mom was thinking of the lindy but came to the conclusion it didn't suit her. We politely declined and thanked her for her time. Although I wasn't able to purchase anything, I was satisfied with the pleasant experience.

The day before this, I happened to be passing by the George V store and went in to see as I didn't know the system for this store and since it was late in the day I knew I would probably not even get to ask but I just thought I'd go in and try. When I went in, the hostess asked how she can help me and I asked if it was possible to inquire about handbags. She was apologetic and said no more appointments for the day and that I should come back tomorrow earlier in the day and I said thank you and then I asked are appointments needed for other handbags like evelyne and roulis. Another lady came by and she started to talk to her and then she said she will be able to squeeze me in if I can wait a few minutes. And of course I was willing to wait. In 5 minutes an SA came up to me asking what I was looking for and I asked her about the evelyne pm or tpm and told her the colors. She was checking the inventory on the phone and said she had a evelyne pm I couldn't really hear the name of the color (my ears were clogged from allergies) it was between a craie and etoupe i think she said. After looking at it, it was too light so I asked if she had any darker shades and she said she had a dark green and if i would like to see it. I said of course. It was a beautiful vert vertigo and when asking if this was togo she said yes, but now looking at my receipt it says clemence..? but either way, I love it. I purchased the evelyne GM in black 5 years ago and found it to be a bit big for my mom to wear so this was perfect because we can both use it :biggrin:.

I did get to visit the sevres store while I was in the neighborhood around 11am, to quickly summarize: I was able to get an appointment, they texted me in about 1 hour or less that an SA was ready for me, I went in and the SA went straight into asking what I was looking for, asked about the birkin, then asked if there was anything else and then also asked about the evelyne tpm, mini roulis. she disappeared for like 2 minutes came back and said she had nothing. Politely thanked her for her time and left. She didn't seem too interested and I wasn't too interested in trying too hard so that was that.

Overall, it was a great experience :biggrin:
 
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