Treatment in Hermes Stores

[honhon]

nit_ang, I would also like to know the end to this story. Do follow up please.

 

[excalibur]

Hi everyone, I want to share my experience with Hermes.

So, let me tell you the whole story from the very beginning. I've been searching for a Lindy bag for around 2 weeks and have contacted every stores in London, Manchester, & Glasgow almost every morning/day.

Finally, on 20 January (around 12pm), I was able to book a Lindy 30 in Blue Sapphire in Hermes Glasgow store to collect on 21 January. After I got this info, I directly booked a return ticket from London to Glasgow (fyi, I live in London).

On 20 January around 5pm I got a call from Hermes in London (Harrods) and an SA offered me a Lindy 30 in Green Malachite. She told me that I have to make a decision in the next 15-30mins, and if I refuse, she would put the bag on display for others to purchase.

I then called Hermes in Glasgow (at around 5.15pm) to confirm my reservation for the bag. An SA told me that she couldn't find my reservation, but informed me that the bag is still there, so "hopefully" it'll still be there to purchase on 21 January.

With the risk not getting any of the bags, I decided to purchase the one in London, and was told by the SA that I can exchange the bag with another bag in any Hermes store, or even return it for a full refund. I asked her whether it will be the managers' discretion or is it Hermes policy to accept such exchange, and she said that it is my right as a customer. I confirmed this detail with Hermes store in Manchester and another Hermes store in London.

Today (21 January) I went to Glasgow and I brought the Green Lindy with me. When I enter the store and asked about the Blue Lindy, the SA said "Oh you're Miss Xxx (my name)?" And I said yes. Afterwards, she then proceed to take the Blue Lindy from the display and showed it to me. When I told her that I wanted to do an exchange, she said that I'm allowed to do so and she is going to prepare the bag for me.

A couple of minutes later, the SA came out and told me that I couldn't do the exchange, because the Blue Lindy was reserved to be bought, not exchanged. I told her about the Hermes policy, and afterwards she disappeared to speak to the manager.

After another couple of minutes, the store manager stormed out and spoke rudely to me. She said that she wouldn't accept such exchange because blue is a very popular color and that the she wouldn't be able to sell the green one in Glasgow. She also said that it is not Hermes policy to accept exchanges, but it is up to the manager's discretion, and that Hermes policy only applies to stand-alone stores (Hermes in Glasgow is located inside a department store). Then, she said that the only way I can get the Blue Lindy is to purchase it, and she didn't care what will I do with the green one. She gave me time to think, and left.

I was very offended, so I went out of the store and called Hermes in London (Sloane Street) and discussed about this event. An SA told me that it is Hermes policy to accept exchange in 3 months, given that I have the original receipt, box, and the bag is in saleable condition, despite the color of the bag, and what happened to me in Hermes Glasgow was weird and inappropriate. He then contacted the Commercial Developer about this matter and told me that either him or the Comm. Developer will contact me later on.

To make the story short, when the Comm. Developer contacted me after he investigated the real story of this incident, he said that according to Glasgow store manager, she couldn't accept an exchange because the bag was reserved by someone else, and not me. I think this is absurd, because if it was true, why would the SA showed the bag to me after she knew my name, and the manager asked me to purchase the bag?

I told the Comm. Developer the whole story again from the very beginning, and gave him all the small details. I even told him that I could screen shot my call log if he needs more proof. He said that the will investigate the matter further and offer me a solution.

I am very much offended and surprised by the way I was treated. I bought a bag from a very reputable brand, for more than £4000 and I was treated like rubbish. How can a store manager defy the company policy and used her power as a manager to make certain things different according to her "discretion"?!

We'll see what will the Comm. Developer do to solve this matter.

Yeah the manager in Glasgow (inside Selfridges I believe) is very unprofessional and rude. I once had a bad experience with her, after I got a brilliant service from another SA.
I think this manager needs to take "customer svcs for dummies."

 

[H. for H.]

Hi everyone, I want to share my experience with Hermes.

So, let me tell you the whole story from the very beginning. I've been searching for a Lindy bag for around 2 weeks and have contacted every stores in London, Manchester, & Glasgow almost every morning/day.

Finally, on 20 January (around 12pm), I was able to book a Lindy 30 in Blue Sapphire in Hermes Glasgow store to collect on 21 January. After I got this info, I directly booked a return ticket from London to Glasgow (fyi, I live in London).

On 20 January around 5pm I got a call from Hermes in London (Harrods) and an SA offered me a Lindy 30 in Green Malachite. She told me that I have to make a decision in the next 15-30mins, and if I refuse, she would put the bag on display for others to purchase.

I then called Hermes in Glasgow (at around 5.15pm) to confirm my reservation for the bag. An SA told me that she couldn't find my reservation, but informed me that the bag is still there, so "hopefully" it'll still be there to purchase on 21 January.

With the risk not getting any of the bags, I decided to purchase the one in London, and was told by the SA that I can exchange the bag with another bag in any Hermes store, or even return it for a full refund. I asked her whether it will be the managers' discretion or is it Hermes policy to accept such exchange, and she said that it is my right as a customer. I confirmed this detail with Hermes store in Manchester and another Hermes store in London.

Today (21 January) I went to Glasgow and I brought the Green Lindy with me. When I enter the store and asked about the Blue Lindy, the SA said "Oh you're Miss Xxx (my name)?" And I said yes. Afterwards, she then proceed to take the Blue Lindy from the display and showed it to me. When I told her that I wanted to do an exchange, she said that I'm allowed to do so and she is going to prepare the bag for me.

A couple of minutes later, the SA came out and told me that I couldn't do the exchange, because the Blue Lindy was reserved to be bought, not exchanged. I told her about the Hermes policy, and afterwards she disappeared to speak to the manager.

After another couple of minutes, the store manager stormed out and spoke rudely to me. She said that she wouldn't accept such exchange because blue is a very popular color and that the she wouldn't be able to sell the green one in Glasgow. She also said that it is not Hermes policy to accept exchanges, but it is up to the manager's discretion, and that Hermes policy only applies to stand-alone stores (Hermes in Glasgow is located inside a department store). Then, she said that the only way I can get the Blue Lindy is to purchase it, and she didn't care what will I do with the green one. She gave me time to think, and left.

I was very offended, so I went out of the store and called Hermes in London (Sloane Street) and discussed about this event. An SA told me that it is Hermes policy to accept exchange in 3 months, given that I have the original receipt, box, and the bag is in saleable condition, despite the color of the bag, and what happened to me in Hermes Glasgow was weird and inappropriate. He then contacted the Commercial Developer about this matter and told me that either him or the Comm. Developer will contact me later on.

To make the story short, when the Comm. Developer contacted me after he investigated the real story of this incident, he said that according to Glasgow store manager, she couldn't accept an exchange because the bag was reserved by someone else, and not me. I think this is absurd, because if it was true, why would the SA showed the bag to me after she knew my name, and the manager asked me to purchase the bag?

I told the Comm. Developer the whole story again from the very beginning, and gave him all the small details. I even told him that I could screen shot my call log if he needs more proof. He said that the will investigate the matter further and offer me a solution.

I am very much offended and surprised by the way I was treated. I bought a bag from a very reputable brand, for more than £4000 and I was treated like rubbish. How can a store manager defy the company policy and used her power as a manager to make certain things different according to her "discretion"?!

We'll see what will the Comm. Developer do to solve this matter.

Thanks for sharing your experience with us. It must be so aggravating, hope it all works out for you. Good luck!

 

[Crocodiva]

I must post that I just recently had a great experience in the Charlotte NC store. All professional and helpful. Much better experience than the store in Cleveland. I haven't gone back to that one for over a year.

 

[Kitty S.]

Hi everyone, I want to share my experience with Hermes.



So, let me tell you the whole story from the very beginning. I've been searching for a Lindy bag for around 2 weeks and have contacted every stores in London, Manchester, & Glasgow almost every morning/day.



Finally, on 20 January (around 12pm), I was able to book a Lindy 30 in Blue Sapphire in Hermes Glasgow store to collect on 21 January. After I got this info, I directly booked a return ticket from London to Glasgow (fyi, I live in London).



On 20 January around 5pm I got a call from Hermes in London (Harrods) and an SA offered me a Lindy 30 in Green Malachite. She told me that I have to make a decision in the next 15-30mins, and if I refuse, she would put the bag on display for others to purchase.



I then called Hermes in Glasgow (at around 5.15pm) to confirm my reservation for the bag. An SA told me that she couldn't find my reservation, but informed me that the bag is still there, so "hopefully" it'll still be there to purchase on 21 January.



With the risk not getting any of the bags, I decided to purchase the one in London, and was told by the SA that I can exchange the bag with another bag in any Hermes store, or even return it for a full refund. I asked her whether it will be the managers' discretion or is it Hermes policy to accept such exchange, and she said that it is my right as a customer. I confirmed this detail with Hermes store in Manchester and another Hermes store in London.



Today (21 January) I went to Glasgow and I brought the Green Lindy with me. When I enter the store and asked about the Blue Lindy, the SA said "Oh you're Miss Xxx (my name)?" And I said yes. Afterwards, she then proceed to take the Blue Lindy from the display and showed it to me. When I told her that I wanted to do an exchange, she said that I'm allowed to do so and she is going to prepare the bag for me.



A couple of minutes later, the SA came out and told me that I couldn't do the exchange, because the Blue Lindy was reserved to be bought, not exchanged. I told her about the Hermes policy, and afterwards she disappeared to speak to the manager.



After another couple of minutes, the store manager stormed out and spoke rudely to me. She said that she wouldn't accept such exchange because blue is a very popular color and that the she wouldn't be able to sell the green one in Glasgow. She also said that it is not Hermes policy to accept exchanges, but it is up to the manager's discretion, and that Hermes policy only applies to stand-alone stores (Hermes in Glasgow is located inside a department store). Then, she said that the only way I can get the Blue Lindy is to purchase it, and she didn't care what will I do with the green one. She gave me time to think, and left.



I was very offended, so I went out of the store and called Hermes in London (Sloane Street) and discussed about this event. An SA told me that it is Hermes policy to accept exchange in 3 months, given that I have the original receipt, box, and the bag is in saleable condition, despite the color of the bag, and what happened to me in Hermes Glasgow was weird and inappropriate. He then contacted the Commercial Developer about this matter and told me that either him or the Comm. Developer will contact me later on.



To make the story short, when the Comm. Developer contacted me after he investigated the real story of this incident, he said that according to Glasgow store manager, she couldn't accept an exchange because the bag was reserved by someone else, and not me. I think this is absurd, because if it was true, why would the SA showed the bag to me after she knew my name, and the manager asked me to purchase the bag?



I told the Comm. Developer the whole story again from the very beginning, and gave him all the small details. I even told him that I could screen shot my call log if he needs more proof. He said that the will investigate the matter further and offer me a solution.



I am very much offended and surprised by the way I was treated. I bought a bag from a very reputable brand, for more than £4000 and I was treated like rubbish. How can a store manager defy the company policy and used her power as a manager to make certain things different according to her "discretion"?!



We'll see what will the Comm. Developer do to solve this matter.

Hope you get this resolved in your favor! Good luck!

 

[Camaro Chic]

You know... oddly enough, I wasn't impressed with the FSH "Mothership" either, and I bought several bags, 4-5 scarves, ties, etc from there, all at once, last year. The SA was rather cold and disinterested and none of them seemed too eager or concerned with helping me. However, the London H... fabulous, IMO, with wonderful SA's and excellent, personal service, along with the Charlotte, NC shop. My Harrod's H experiences have always just been par for the course. I honestly believe it varies by store and how harried they are. Can you imagine how crazy it must be to deal with a constant huge number of customers, clamoring? I'd think it would be maddening.

 

[nit_ang]

Yeah the manager in Glasgow (inside Selfridges I believe) is very unprofessional and rude. I once had a bad experience with her, after I got a brilliant service from another SA.
I think this manager needs to take "customer svcs for dummies."

The Hermes store is inside House of Fraser. And yeah, she is. I'm also thinking of sending an email to Hermes about this story.

 

[fromparis]

FSH has been "my" store for years now, a lot of people know me there, and (maybe due to this fact) I always had the best experience in this store.
But yesterday I had a problem with a blanket, and it was more convenient to go to GV, and I was really happy with the experience even if I'm an unknown customer there : The 2 SA's were very polite, smiling, and helpful (and solve my little problem). I think I'll go visit GV also now (really close from home) when I won't have anything too specific in mind (since the inventory is more limited than FSH).

 

[DesignerDreamsx]

Really sad to hear this, please let us know what is the result of this investigation! Hopefully you end up with two Lindy's

 

[Kbuzzbuzz]

Hi everyone, I want to share my experience with Hermes.

So, let me tell you the whole story from the very beginning. I've been searching for a Lindy bag for around 2 weeks and have contacted every stores in London, Manchester, & Glasgow almost every morning/day.

Finally, on 20 January (around 12pm), I was able to book a Lindy 30 in Blue Sapphire in Hermes Glasgow store to collect on 21 January. After I got this info, I directly booked a return ticket from London to Glasgow (fyi, I live in London).

On 20 January around 5pm I got a call from Hermes in London (Harrods) and an SA offered me a Lindy 30 in Green Malachite. She told me that I have to make a decision in the next 15-30mins, and if I refuse, she would put the bag on display for others to purchase.

I then called Hermes in Glasgow (at around 5.15pm) to confirm my reservation for the bag. An SA told me that she couldn't find my reservation, but informed me that the bag is still there, so "hopefully" it'll still be there to purchase on 21 January.

With the risk not getting any of the bags, I decided to purchase the one in London, and was told by the SA that I can exchange the bag with another bag in any Hermes store, or even return it for a full refund. I asked her whether it will be the managers' discretion or is it Hermes policy to accept such exchange, and she said that it is my right as a customer. I confirmed this detail with Hermes store in Manchester and another Hermes store in London.

Today (21 January) I went to Glasgow and I brought the Green Lindy with me. When I enter the store and asked about the Blue Lindy, the SA said "Oh you're Miss Xxx (my name)?" And I said yes. Afterwards, she then proceed to take the Blue Lindy from the display and showed it to me. When I told her that I wanted to do an exchange, she said that I'm allowed to do so and she is going to prepare the bag for me.

A couple of minutes later, the SA came out and told me that I couldn't do the exchange, because the Blue Lindy was reserved to be bought, not exchanged. I told her about the Hermes policy, and afterwards she disappeared to speak to the manager.

After another couple of minutes, the store manager stormed out and spoke rudely to me. She said that she wouldn't accept such exchange because blue is a very popular color and that the she wouldn't be able to sell the green one in Glasgow. She also said that it is not Hermes policy to accept exchanges, but it is up to the manager's discretion, and that Hermes policy only applies to stand-alone stores (Hermes in Glasgow is located inside a department store). Then, she said that the only way I can get the Blue Lindy is to purchase it, and she didn't care what will I do with the green one. She gave me time to think, and left.

I was very offended, so I went out of the store and called Hermes in London (Sloane Street) and discussed about this event. An SA told me that it is Hermes policy to accept exchange in 3 months, given that I have the original receipt, box, and the bag is in saleable condition, despite the color of the bag, and what happened to me in Hermes Glasgow was weird and inappropriate. He then contacted the Commercial Developer about this matter and told me that either him or the Comm. Developer will contact me later on.

To make the story short, when the Comm. Developer contacted me after he investigated the real story of this incident, he said that according to Glasgow store manager, she couldn't accept an exchange because the bag was reserved by someone else, and not me. I think this is absurd, because if it was true, why would the SA showed the bag to me after she knew my name, and the manager asked me to purchase the bag?

I told the Comm. Developer the whole story again from the very beginning, and gave him all the small details. I even told him that I could screen shot my call log if he needs more proof. He said that the will investigate the matter further and offer me a solution.

I am very much offended and surprised by the way I was treated. I bought a bag from a very reputable brand, for more than £4000 and I was treated like rubbish. How can a store manager defy the company policy and used her power as a manager to make certain things different according to her "discretion"?!

We'll see what will the Comm. Developer do to solve this matter.

I totally saw that sapphire Lindy on display this past weekend. It's quite pretty but I can't believe they are unwilling to exchange it. I'm not sure I understand why green is a difficult colour to sell in Glasgow either? Malachite is such a pretty colour too!

 

[MASEML]

Omg, that's so weird. Sorry, this happened to you. What does it say on your invoice/receipt?

If glasgow wasn't willing to exchange the bag, would she have allowed returning the green and then buying the blue? I guess not. But, if, as they pointed out, they follow "different rules" (given they are a concession within House of Fraser), wouldn't they then be following the dept store rules, which allow for return/exchanges?

It sounds like the SA was throwing every excuse in the book and such a runaround. Yes, you should send an email to Hermes corporate and let them know about your experience.

 

[nit_ang]

I totally saw that sapphire Lindy on display this past weekend. It's quite pretty but I can't believe they are unwilling to exchange it. I'm not sure I understand why green is a difficult colour to sell in Glasgow either? Malachite is such a pretty colour too!

Probably blue is considered a more safe and neutral color than green. However, is it really my business that it is a difficult color to sell in Glasgow?

Whoa! I am shocked at this. Do keep us posted.

nit_ang, I would also like to know the end to this story. Do follow up please.

Thanks for sharing your experience with us. It must be so aggravating, hope it all works out for you. Good luck!

Hope you get this resolved in your favor! Good luck!

Thanks everyone! Hopefully this will all be sorted positively.

Omg, that's so weird. Sorry, this happened to you. What does it say on your invoice/receipt?

If glasgow wasn't willing to exchange the bag, would she have allowed returning the green and then buying the blue? I guess not. But, if, as they pointed out, they follow "different rules" (given they are a concession within House of Fraser), wouldn't they then be following the dept store rules, which allow for return/exchanges?

It sounds like the SA was throwing every excuse in the book and such a runaround. Yes, you should send an email to Hermes corporate and let them know about your experience.

The receipt clearly says "14 days for full refund and 3 months for exchange". And apparently this policy applies to every Hermes store (in the UK) that I called, both for stand alone stores or concessions. How weird is that?
And yes, I do feel like both the SAs and store manager in Glasgow is just making up excuses. I feel like they wanted me to buy the bag instead of exchanging it, so that the sales in Glasgow store will increase. But then again, it is none of my concern, is it?

 

[nit_ang]

Really sad to hear this, please let us know what is the result of this investigation! Hopefully you end up with two Lindy's

Maybe a Lindy and some Twillies....

 

[Kbuzzbuzz]

Probably blue is considered a more safe and neutral color than green. However, is it really my business that it is a difficult color to sell in Glasgow?










Thanks everyone! Hopefully this will all be sorted positively.




The receipt clearly says "14 days for full refund and 3 months for exchange". And apparently this policy applies to every Hermes store (in the UK) that I called, both for stand alone stores or concessions. How weird is that?
And yes, I do feel like both the SAs and store manager in Glasgow is just making up excuses. I feel like they wanted me to buy the bag instead of exchanging it, so that the sales in Glasgow store will increase. But then again, it is none of my concern, is it?

I wish you could do a exchange when the manager isn't there.

 

[mistikat]

I wish you could do a exchange when the manager isn't there.

The sales manager likely has to approve exchanges or returns; I know it has been like that at my store.

I have also seen the store refuse an exchange on an item they did not order or carry or a colour they did not order because it is harder for them to sell to their client base. That's what podium is all about - ordering items specifically for each store. It's one reason why not all Hermes stores stock the identical merchandise in the same colours or sizes.

I am sure it is terribly frustrating, but I believe they do have the discretion to refuse returns if the item was not bought at their store.

Hope the OP can get it all worked out.