I was in France from October 12th-23rd (Paris, 12th-17th then 21-23rd, Corsica in between then). I hoped for an appointment, but I set my expectations super low for getting one, and also since it was just post-fashion week, hopes for obtaining anything I was looking for were tempered. But it was my birthday while there, so I had my fingers crossed.
Mind you, I do not have a local store (the closest is 4-5 hours away) and haven't in a long time - I was a patron of the Charlotte, NC store and adored it, but we lost our store in 2016. So my purchases since then have been a combination of online, secondhand, and via my husband's NYC work travel.
The second day I was there I went to FSH and purchased the shawl I wanted (the botanica one in a colorway I haven't seen here), and a rose Mexico leather roulis bracelet (I love the thin leather bracelets, my fave to wear!). This also started my profile there, as I didn't have one at the store yet.
I was there with my husband and my best friend. All three of us entered the lottery each day. When we departed for Calvi on the 17th, we had been declined each day. Upon getting settled into our house in Calvi, I received the nightly email, except this time I was given an appointment at FSH at 10:30am the next day (of course hah)
I was going to just let it go (the lottery entry was an accident on my end - I forgot what day it was lol), but my companions were worried I'd regret not trying, especially the day before my birthday. So I booked a flight out of Bastia the next morning at 6am and, operating on 2 days with maybe 3 hours of sleep total, flew to Paris for the day (I flew back around 5pm that evening).
My wishlist was as follows:
32cm or 35cm Kelly, gold hardware, in clemence/togo/chevre and in either black or a vibrant color (lime, rose Mexico, etc.)
30cm Birkin, gold hardware, same color/leather specs as above
She asked me repeatedly if I wanted anything else and I said no. I don't buy things I won't wear (shoulder-only bags, small bags, totes, etc. are not for me) for the sake of my profile. I got the vibe that my requests were definitely going to be tough (be it a lack of items on my profile or lack of supply - ya'll know the deal, life is a mystery lol).
I waited for about 10 minutes, and she returned with two boxes. One box contained a blue epsom rainbow Bolide 1923 - a fine bag and I dearly love Bolides and carried one that day, but I didn't want another large sized bolide, I am not a big epsom fan, and the bag has a brown stripe in it, and I don't like or wear any brown or earthy colors. The second box contained a dark blue chevre Geta - too small for me and shoulder only.
I declined both, and she asked if I wished to see anything else, and I politely declined, thanked her for her time, and left. I was not feeling like doing an extended social back and forth or pleading my case. At that point, I was wildly tired and really just wanted to sleep!
I flew back to Corsica, slept like 12 hours, and made an online appointment at Collector's Square to view some bags. I went to this appointment when I was back in Paris before departing (properly on schedule hah) and none of the bags I tried suited my tastes.
I also visited all 3 Hermes stores 1-2 times each (my friend and I, we love to shop hah) and asked about obtaining a 27cm or 31cm bolide, along with a few other leather items - no luck on a bag without an appointment, and out of stock on literally all other leather items I inquired about (womp womp). The Sevres store was my favorite - big, open, pretty, and friendly staff! FSH was my second favorite though it is so consistently chaotic and people really do have meltdowns when they do not get what they want - it is wild to see full-grown-ass adults losing their gourds over material goods. Also, all the people doing videos/live feeds >___> But all the staff I interacted with were super kind! George V was my least favorite - small, crowded, and the staff were more difficult to interact with.
I had flagged a bunch of bags before I left on various sites and when I was searching around when I got back, I completely fell for a black Kelly 32 with gold hardware in the softest looking, most deliciously buttery-appearing bag in gulliver, a leather that hadn't even really been on my list! I love floppy but textured leather - chevre, clemence, togo, the resiliency and the feel. But this one looked SO SOFT and COZY.
So I didn't luck out in Paris, but just the right first Kelly for me arrived today, and I adore it!
I'll post it in the latest purchases thread. These are my only shop purchases from the trip! It was cool to get an appointment, and I know the rarity of that, so the experience alone was a memory banked.
Oh! And I was able to get the shoes I had wanted for a year from John Lobb, the one connected to FSH. They only had silver buckled ones left and I wanted gold, so while I was in Corsica they had the shop swap the buckles out for me for pick up upon my return to Paris (super quick! super nice!) and I am SO in love with them!
I adore the textured Courchevel for shoes!
. (H uses business WhatsApp accounts, like most SAs at brands - Chanel, Alaia do as well.)
