Hermes apologizes to Oprah

[bryce330]

Apparently she showed up 15 minutes after they closed and then threw a hissy fit when they wouldn't let her in. My favorite line is: "Hermes regrets not having been able to . . . provide her with the service and care that Hermes strives to provide to each and every one of its customers worldwide." Does that mean I will get a formal apology if I show up to a Hermes store after hours and they don't let me in? http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/0...ogy/index.html

 

[PhiloVance]

you probably had not purchased 15 bags from them at $6500 a pop last week.

 

[LA Guy]

And you're not Oprah.

 

[dorian]

Nonono....

This is all a PR coup.

According to reports as late as yesterday, Hermes employees refused Oprah (whose hair was down and messy) entry because they "have been having problems with North Africans recently."

I sh_t you not.

Now you can understand all this stuff about "oooh the store was already closed" etc. If that was all it was, Hermes wouldn't have gone to such lengths to apologize.

 

[RJman]

Nonono....

This is all a PR coup.

According to reports as late as yesterday, Hermes employees refused Oprah (whose hair was down and messy) entry because they "have been having problems with North Africans recently."

I sh_t you not.

Now you can understand all this stuff about "oooh the store was already closed" etc. If that was all it was, Hermes wouldn't have gone to such lengths to apologize.

That led Kaga to post that he thought ernest had got a job.

 

[PhiloVance]

RJ Man,
Do you think they might have apologized because the woman with the $225 million annual income as well as legions of adoring fans was a little pissed off and was debating whether she should tell her viewers about how she was treated on the air???

I don't know much about the demographics for Oprah-ites around the world, but some of them must buy Hermes. And they all wait on Oprah's every word

 

[LabelKing]

I don't think the Japanese who buy the most Hermes care about Oprah too much.

 

[countdemoney]

Race complicates this, and I'm willing to believe either side of the story, but I will say that many finer establishments will provide written apologies for incidents of a similar nature.

I think it was Le Cirque in NY, where Sirio Maccione was famous for his notes to patrons.

I think there are several members on this board who have handwritten notes from well known bespoke tailors on items of casual inquiry. Imagine the note if they had missed an opportunity to consult with you?

It's just good business sense to send the note. I will agree that the PR move of publicizing the note is sublime.

 

[dorian]

It was a blatantly racist refusal at the door.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Notes? I don't they Hermes has written Oprah a note; they have tried to do damage control. When you have your employees saying, "well, we didn't know it was Oprah and we've been having problems with North Africans recently" - well, I find it difficult to believe this about a note.

 

[Roy]

It was a blatantly racist refusal at the door.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Notes? I don't they Hermes has written Oprah a note; they have tried to do damage control. When you have your employees saying, "well, we didn't know it was Oprah and we've been having problems with North Africans recently" - well, I find it difficult to believe this about a note.

I believe they said they have problems with North Africans. They're not the first store to do this type of thing. I know quite a few stores who don't want to have people from 'risk-groups' entering their store. (Although they're not of the 'hermes' level). They just messed up with a woman that a TV-Audience of millions and millions of people.

But there are many smalltime stores near schools that won't let kids from highschool in without attendence for instance. Because they steal A LOT.

 

[johnapril]

That store is in a f**ked up part of town anyway.  Tons of fashion mistakes--LIVE.  Lots of bad karma waiting to happen.  Such a huge concentration of wealth made me feel a bit ill at ease, having spent time in other parts of Paris where wealth isn't worn on the sleeve.

Is it safe to assume most of the people hanging out in this quarter are foreigners come to shop?

Lobb, next to Cartier, had only Saudi shoppers (well, they had me in there too).

 

[itzamazing]

*Confused*
How is Hermes having problems with North Africans relevant to the matter at hand. Aren't the majority of North African countries Arab (hence the constant seperation of North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa when any stats are given, etc.)...so how would one confuse a typical woman from Algeria or Morocco with someone like Oprah?  Of course black people could and do reside in these countries and are Arabs, but if the Hermes people are using the North African thing as an excuse for this behavior, I'm afraid it makes no sense being that Oprah wouldn't fit into this category....especially if Oprah's hair was *unkept* at the time.

 

[Roy]

*Confused*
How is Hermes having problems with North Africans relevant to the matter at hand. Aren't the majority of North African countries Arab (hence the constant seperation of North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa when any stats are given, etc.)...so how would one confuse a typical woman from Algeria or Morocco with someone like Oprah?  Of course black people could and do reside in these countries and are Arabs, but if the Hermes people are using the North African thing as an excuse for this behavior, I'm afraid it makes no sense being that Oprah wouldn't fit into this category....especially if Oprah's hair was *unkept* at the time.

There are many black people in the north of africa too. But it's true that the majority are Arabs. Anyway you look at it, it's racist.

 

[faustian bargain]

i thought the whole 'north african' reference was just a rumor or a red herring, published in the Post...?

anyway...the whole stink seems to be oprah being upset that they didn't uphold retail's usual double standard of giving special treatment to celebs. it doesn't seem like something she would benefit from having publicized extensively.

 

[Cliff]

What a load of horse crap. I don't care what store it is when you show up fifteen minutes after closing.....you're screwed. How does this become a race thing ??????
Whatever happened to common sense ??