I spent two years working in retail marketing and visual merchandising at Hermés. The French fashion house has been around for nearly two centuries and specializes in leather goods, though it might be best known for its coveted Birkin bags. These high-ticket items, which can cost thousands and are often carried by celebrities like and Jennifer Lopez, are offered to only a select number of the retailer's customers.
When I worked at Hermès, I learned a lot about the brand and how to score its most-coveted products. I've since transitioned to a career in sourcing luxury goods — and I'm no stranger to locating the brand's famous for my own clients. Here are a few while shopping at Hermès.
Many customers think they can walk in and score a high-ticket item Similar to other like Porsche, Hermès uses scarcity marketing — a concept in which consumers value a product when there's a limited supply or availability. This means most customers cannot simply walk into a boutique and purchase the brand's highest-ticket items, like a Kelly or Birkin bag. Birkin bags are so sought after that even its are selling out.
If shoppers want to increase their chances of being able to buy the real thing, they should "build a profile" or establish a consistent buying history with the store. This can be done by making entry-level purchases and working with a single, designated sales associate over time. After all, sales associates can play a major role in deciding who gets one of these coveted.