What’s your unpopular Hermes opinion?

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Just because a bag is by Hermès it doesn't mean its beautiful or even a good design;
I'm looking at you Videpoches, and Transat Sailor (to name but two).
Also I really don't get the appeal of Epsom.
I want my leather to look and feel like leather not plastic.
For many, many years, I thought the Evie TPM was the ugliest bag on earth. (I bought a Barenia one because it is Barenia. Barenia certainly cures ugliness.). Boy, I guess I spoke too early. H said, "Hold my beer!" and here comes the new wave of ugly bags and I can't even rank them.
 
My unpopular opinion is I really don’t get the hype around some of the most popular H items:

- Chypre has been discussed many times before, so I won’t say more
- Lindy - it’s such an odd shape to me
- Rodeos - I don’t like hanging cutesy stuff on my bags
- Calvis and Bastias - I think they’re fine from a utility perspective, but I don’t quite understand needing more than 1 of each
- Avalon blankets - way too many Hs

In contrary, nobody seems to care for the items I find beautiful (example - Mors de Bride bag, Atrium trays). Sometimes I wonder if I just have bad taste :-s
 
My unpopular opinion is I really don’t get the hype around some of the most popular H items:

- Chypre has been discussed many times before, so I won’t say more
- Lindy - it’s such an odd shape to me
- Rodeos - I don’t like hanging cutesy stuff on my bags
- Calvis and Bastias - I think they’re fine from a utility perspective, but I don’t quite understand needing more than 1 of each
- Avalon blankets - way too many Hs

In contrary, nobody seems to care for the items I find beautiful (example - Mors de Bride bag, Atrium trays). Sometimes I wonder if I just have bad taste :-s
You are my people!
the Chypre sandals I don’t know which I dislike more those or Chanel Dad sandals?.. My feet are not small either so they would draw attention to this!
Lindy - maybe I could do the mini.
Rodeos - just no
Calvis and Bastia - agree I’m practical it’s in my bag I need one - I have had the same Chanel caviar wallet for years from Rue Cambon I’m probably making a total faux pás taking it out in Hermes to pay For my items now I think about it.
Blankets my dogs/cats/adult kids have no respect for these items in my home - so no I can’t do it.
 
I’m tired of orans and oasis which is a problem bc I have a few
I bought one twillance bc I used to adore ex libris, but it does look like a bathrobe
i wear H scarves and CSGM less bc I do wear more H RTW, and I don’t want to be entirely in one designer
i dislike logo intensive sneakers (H, chanel, Dior, I’m looking at you) :smile:
My SA found some chpres for me finally, but he doesn’t like them, and my DH doesn’t like them on me either,
so I passed.
 
I am struggling a bit with the notion that a brand which stands for artisanal products that are meant to be generational also has a strategy of encouraging significant regular consumption of its products for pre spend.

Edited to add: Everyone should shop as much as they want and can afford. I am not judging anyone who enjoys shopping and does it a lot. I am a little weary these days of the no matter how much I shop, I get encouraged to buy more. I am focusing on fewer better things I will use a lot. At this stage, I’d rather buy one amazing coat than ten scarves.

Because Hermès isn't an entirely artisanal brand as it makes itself out to be and is commonly believed to be by people.

Before anyone comes out with pitch forks and sends me to the gallows, let me explain. A lot of the confusion comes from carelessly using words like "artisanal" and "industrial" without necessarily agreeing on what they exactly mean. The vast majority of dictionnaires agree that "artisanal" means something made by hand on a small-scale. Hermès bags are, without a doubt, made by hand, that's to say according to traditional craftsmanship and without the assistance of industrial sewing machines, but they are by no means created in limited numbers (with the exception to special and Horizon orders): they are churned out on an industrial scale in the hundreds of thousands in order to be sold in 300 boutiques spread out in 45 countries. Why? Because Hermès is a public multinational company with 6.7 billion EUR in sales in the first half of 2023. Increasing profits matter. Sure, production may be capped for certain models but this is a deliberate choice made by corporate in order to create artificial scarcity: cowhides are not rare and leather craftsmen can be trained.

This doesn't mean that Hermès doesn't value quality over quantity compared to some of its competitors in the same price range. Take for example its enduring commitment to making bags by hand. This is a deliberate choice - they could easily invest in creating machines capable of replicating the famous saddle stitch (if we can send men to the moon, create a vaccine against COVID-19 in record time, etc., then we are absolutely capable of this). But they haven't because handmade bags are key to their marketing that has en enormous influence on how they want their consumers to perceive their other non-leather products: as in "artisanal." It's the same reason why Chanel and Christian Dior could never get rid of their haute couture divisions: handmade, bespoke and made-to-order clothes are essential to their own respective brandings.

The truth is, however, that the vast majority of Hermès products are not "artisanal" but industrially made: shoes (special orders don't count as "artisanal" here because they are made by machines and their sizes are standardized, that's to say not bespoke), costume and fine jewelry, ready-to-wear (with the exception to bespoke tailoring) and homeware. Don't misunderstand me: there is nothing wrong with high quality industrially made goods! But, for example, an Hermès ready-to-wear coat in a size 38 is not "artisanal" (despite what some SAs may say during a sale) because a handmade coat created to fit exactly a client's body from a French house is from a completely different sector known as "haute couture."

So there you have it. Hermès does create artisanal bags (although on an industrial scale) but remains, like its competitors, a public multinational company that needs to prioritize profits. The vast majority of their products are industrially made. There's nothing wrong with that in the system we live in but it's important to not get sucked in by their marketing strategies (or by any other marketing strategy from any other brand). Being an informed consumer allows you to make the best shopping choices for your needs and wants.
 
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The Heidi hood reminds me of medieval chain mail head coverings. Perhaps it was intentional given the name. But I can’t stop thinking King Arthur and his knights or Robin Hood running from the Sheriff of notingham’s posse in the Sherwood Forest.

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OMG, this reminds me of the balaclava masks the IRA wore during the Troubles. :eek:
 
Not an unpopular opinion, but perhaps more of an unpopular behavior:

If I'm carrying a recognizable H bag, and then we start taking photos, I prefer to not have my bag very visible in the photo. It just veers into gauche for my own personal behavior, and I believe that it'll be the focus of the picture instead of the event, or the moments I'm having with family and/or friends. As much as I find myself wanting to post in threads like the Your Hermes in Action, or others where modshots are the norm, I find myself having trouble with it.

I wouldn't say it's a confidence thing. Just an off-feeling.

Time to message my therapist, I suppose!

Thoughts?
I would have to agree with you on this and will take a slightly different angle too. I've been to weddings where attendees were carrying designer bags and I find it rather gauche to intentionally hold it front and center during EVERY photo. Fine for an "ootd" shot but to have it in every single group photo makes me fee like that person is more about showing off than living in the moment of a special event that is completely irrelevant to the bag.
 
Not an unpopular opinion, but perhaps more of an unpopular behavior:

If I'm carrying a recognizable H bag, and then we start taking photos, I prefer to not have my bag very visible in the photo. It just veers into gauche for my own personal behavior, and I believe that it'll be the focus of the picture instead of the event, or the moments I'm having with family and/or friends. As much as I find myself wanting to post in threads like the Your Hermes in Action, or others where modshots are the norm, I find myself having trouble with it.

I wouldn't say it's a confidence thing. Just an off-feeling.

Time to message my therapist, I suppose!

Thoughts?

I would have to agree with you on this and will take a slightly different angle too. I've been to weddings where attendees were carrying designer bags and I find it rather gauche to intentionally hold it front and center during EVERY photo. Fine for an "ootd" shot but to have it in every single group photo makes me fee like that person is more about showing off than living in the moment of a special event that is completely irrelevant to the bag.
I have to admit that I used to do this when I was younger :biggrin: I didn’t have money to buy a lot of beautiful things, so I was very proud to show off a $2k YSL bag because it was the only designer item I owned. No bags (including QBs) have ever felt as special as that first YSL bag to the young me.

I look at this “faux pas” with the same fondness I have for my old self :biggrin:Perhaps they are showy people … or perhaps they are just genuinely excited about a beautiful piece they own :heart::smile:
 
The Oran sandals are widely overhyped and overpriced. While I get the timeless appeal, it's also superr basic and plenty of reasonably priced, high quality copycats.
My real complaint about the Orans (and the many copycats on the market) is that they just don't feel particularly substantial. Obviously, no one's looking to a glorified flip-flop for supportive shoes or anything, but I feel like I'd have less of a risk of slipping if I just went barefoot at that point.
 
The Heidi hood reminds me of medieval chain mail head coverings. Perhaps it was intentional given the name. But I can’t stop thinking King Arthur and his knights or Robin Hood running from the Sheriff of notingham’s posse in the Sherwood Forest.

View attachment 5862020

:shocked: I love that. I'm going to send to my SA
 
My real complaint about the Orans (and the many copycats on the market) is that they just don't feel particularly substantial. Obviously, no one's looking to a glorified flip-flop for supportive shoes or anything, but I feel like I'd have less of a risk of slipping if I just went barefoot at that point.
I love the femininity of the Orans, but I don't love the slapping sounds they make when I try to walk down the stairs. They are LOUD.
 
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