Price Increase Update
- Thread starter guccigal07
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Exactly. Louis Vuitton also do this because they are losing their upper upper class clients who thinks LV has become mainstream. Of course, it didn't work because there are a lot of people now who can afford , say, a Speedy than before.
this is just lousy news...sigh. i have reconciled the fact that I will from now on purchase bags from trusted resellers instead of the store...I kinda like the hunt anyway and getting a good deal always makes me happy.
on the plus side, I no longer have to worry about maintaining a relationship with an SA so I can one day get the bag of my dreams (which fortunately I already own!)
on the plus side, I no longer have to worry about maintaining a relationship with an SA so I can one day get the bag of my dreams (which fortunately I already own!)
:cry: No more for me, I'm afraid. Back to Louis Vuitton I go. Except, of course, to lurk in here and admire everyone else's purchases :shame:
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I would think it helps their competition who is below H pricing. It's a heck of a lot easier to afford BV and Chanel than H. But that's illogical since they don't own other brands. (Is it possible they have relationships that aren't readily known?) Maybe it relieves pressure on the stores who have less inventory than the demand for it? But that doesn't make sense since they are opening 4 new boutiques in the next year in the US West Coast. That seems to me to be a response to demand.
Does the higher pricing make the brand even more coveted, more desireable?
I don't know.Just throwing it out there. Staring down a 20% increase in one year certainly bothers me.
WHEN I WAS CHATTING WITH THE SA IN THE ATLANTA STORE LAST SATURDAY, SHE MENTIONED THAT HERMES IS OPENING 70 (YES 70, THAT'S NOT A TYPO) STORES IN CHINA IN THE NEAR FUTURE. SO, I'D SAY THAT THEY'RE DEFINITELY NOT TRYING TO DISCOURAGE SALES!
THEY'RE DISCOURAGING ME, HOWEVER! I JUST ASKED MY SA TO PLACE AN ORDER FOR A 35 CM ROUGE GARRANCE BIRKIN (LINED IN HERMES ORANGE IF POSSIBLE) AT THE JULY PODIUM, BUT IF THE DARN THING IS GOING TO COST $10,000 OR MORE PLUS 8% SALES TAX WHEN IT FINALLY ARRIVES, I THINK HERMES IS GOING TO HAVE TO KEEP IT
THERE'S A POINT WHEN YOU JUST CAN'T JUSTIFY THE COST ANY LONGER REGARDLESS OF HOW WONDERFUL THE QUALITY IS, ETC.I'D REALLY LOVE TO KNOW WHAT THE ACTUAL COST IS TO PRODUCE A STANDARD BIRKIN. WE KNOW THAT IT TAKES AROUND 24 HOURS OF LABOR, AND WHILE I'M SURE THAT THE HERMES' CRAFTSMEN ARE WELL PAID, I DOUBT THEY'RE MAKING $100 AND HOUR. SO, SAY THAT THEY'RE MAKING $50 AN HOUR. $50 X 24 HOURS WOULD EQUAL $1,200 IN LABOR. OF COURSE, THERE'S THE COST OF THE HIGH-END LEATHER AND THE OTHER MATERIALS, ADVERTISING, MARKETING, SHIPPING, TAXES, EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, OPERATING COSTS, ETC. ALL OF WHICH ARE COSTLY, NO DOUBT. BUT EVEN SO, THERE SEEMS TO BE ONE HECK OF A MARKUP INVOLVED.
two price increases now and three more coming? that is insane!! I agree with Lilach, H feels that they must increase their prices so that they're still that top of the league/the priciest of the priciest brand. 8k for a leather bag is becoming easy for most comfortable people and the wealthy. They need to keep raising the bar to stay 'way up there'.
Yay G and major congrats - that's one gorgeous Birkin!!
Scarves used to cost $225. .
Those were the good old days, weren't they. And, I'll even go further to say that when I first noticed Hermes scarves back in 1985, even before Hermes had a boutique in Atlanta, they were selling for $75 in Neiman-Marcus. Of course, I thought they were an extravagance but decided to buy one about six months from the original sighting. They'd jumped to $125. I stupidly passed on the purchase. Darn, why didn't I just sell the car and buy every one they had!
And, just so that we can all feel really badly, a Kelly cost $2,225 back in the early 80's. I read that in an old article on Hermes I'd saved. I'll have to dig it out and report on the exact date, so all of us (of a certain age anyway) can partake in the coulda, woulda, shoulda game!
And, just so that we can all feel really badly, a Kelly cost $2,225 back in the early 80's. I read that in an old article on Hermes I'd saved. I'll have to dig it out and report on the exact date, so all of us (of a certain age anyway) can partake in the coulda, woulda, shoulda game!
TBH that doesn't make the current prices sound like they have gotten so ridiculous when you think that price could be 28 years ago and in that time a Kelly has actually only tripled in price
With some brands, it's about 10% of the final selling cost, and with Hermes it's probably somewhere around 15%. If you look at the various designers, cosmetic/skincare/fragrance companies and jewelers that are coming into the game, they're almost all trying to be at the "luxury" level. You don't have to produce as much, and you can go for the highest margins possible. Customers have been well trained to believe that price equals quality, and that "you get what you pay for" is true is every way. It's not, but marketing is a big deal now, and the misrepresentations are why I didn't enter the field after college. It's my first degree, but I refused to work in the industry more than I had to.
In 18 years though, the scarves have nearly tripled in price. They're keeping well ahead of inflation and then some. And at 28 years to do the same thing with the bags, again, they're still ahead of inflation. They're doing it simply because they can. They'll lose some customers but gain others so they don't care.
Atlanta actually had an Hermes in the early 1980s. It was located at the now-imploded CNN Center. There was the Syd & Marty Kroft mini theme park that didn't last, and they were aiming for some high-end retailers. Little by little the stores disappeared, and as I recall from my visit, the store was a bit smaller than the one we have now at Lenox Square. Or at least they didn't have as much space behind the storefront.
I got the news about this from someone inside Hermes, and others seem to be hearing the same thing. We don't always know exactly when, but it's coming.
70 stores in China? wow... I would understand maybe 3-5, in the large metropolitan cities like Shanghai, Beijing, etc, but 70?! Sure, China is supposed to be the fastest developing country in the world right now, but I really don't know if there is a market for 70 stores... 
70 stores in China? wow... I would understand maybe 3-5, in the large metropolitan cities like Shanghai, Beijing, etc, but 70?! Sure, China is supposed to be the fastest developing country in the world right now, but I really don't know if there is a market for 70 stores...
The exact number is not 70...LOL. I read the same report but can't remember the figure right off the bat. I believe 15 to 20 or so are planned for China, and the rest are for other parts of Asia like Korea and so forth. Hermes is expanding alright.