It’s playtime for Hermes

Hermès has always been a brand full of charm and whimsy, but this year they’re making it official.  For 2018 the company theme is “Let’s Play,” and the French brand spared no expense in showing just how game it was during the opening of its sixth and biggest store in Hong Kong at the Landmark Prince’s building on Jan. 10.

During the welcome dinner at Hong Kong’s exclusive China Club, a chef used the noodles he was pulling as a jump rope, skipping over our would-be dinner. (The noodles were not actually served.)

At the lavish opening-night party in the Western Kowloon Nursery Park, guests were ferried by orange rickshaw to a venue where magic was literally in the air, with glowing paper comets flying under a starry sky wheeling with constellations.

Guests were invited to play at tables where the currency wasn’t money but nostalgia, with games like Pong (remember Pong?) and — at the store itself — foosball, not to mention a shop window featuring a candy-colored paper skyline by the French artists Zim & Zou.

“We are a traditional company of craftsmanship and a creative company of today,” noted Hermès CEO Axel Dumas. Even he — a sixth-generation scion of Hermès founder Thierry Hermès — isn’t immune to the brand’s playfulness. “We have this wonderful equestrian anti-noise (product) for horses that is quite new for the Hong Kong market,” Dumas said. “I will probably buy it myself.”

Almost the entire executive board of Hermès flew to Hong Kong for the store opening, showing how valuable the market is to the 180-year-old French company.

“Hong Kong for us at Hermès is and has always been an inspiration,” said Hermès artistic director Pierre-Alexis Dumas. “Our family has always been curious and open-minded to go and travel the world. The city is ever changing — our first experience coming here for retail we walked up and down the streets until we found the right place. We’re opening not just a simple store or flagship but a central place.”

During the opening, the STAR spoke to the CEO of Hermès Greater China Luc Hennard, who used to manage Hermès Philippines prior to his current position.  Here’s what he had to say about what makes the Hong Kong store so special, which new bags to crave and how Hermès feels about the Philippine market.

THE PHILIPPINE STAR: The Hong Kong Landmark Prince’s opening is marked by such a big opening celebration, with guests around the world and even the Hermès executive board.  What makes this particular opening important?

LUC HENNARD:  If you listened to the introduction by Axel Dumas and Pierre-Alexis Dumas, you will know that Hong Kong is important for Hermès, as it was the second country to open in Asia, after Japan. In terms of Greater China, this shop was the first in the region, set up in 1975. For a long time, operations were managed from Hong Kong.  We took our time when picking the location and selecting this beautiful space.

Walking into the store is an experience in itself. Is there a particular way the métiers (product categories) are arranged in order to tell a story?

The way we build the store is always similar, meaning we can attract as much traffic as possible. When you come in you see silk. Or you see a tie, fashion accessory, perfumes, or objects that you can buy easily. Small things. Most of the time the men’s department is on the first floor because the men usually want to get in and out quickly and are less concerned about spending time in the store. Thus, if they want to pick up a tie they can go inside, select a tie and leave quickly. The men’s universe is a very important part of Hermès’ business.

As you go up inside the store, the more time you can spend there. You will find the women’s universe, shoes, jewelry and watches — you take time to experience the universe. On the third floor are the Maison and furniture universes, a tranquil area with plenty of space to browse.

The store’s layout gives the impression of being inside the Faubourg store itself, as the floor mosaic, as well as other architectural pieces, are replicated in and adapted to stores all over the world.

Did you create special, limited-edition items for the opening?

We have three items being created: the Sac à Malice, where you will see an illustration relevant to Hong Kong, limited-edition scarves and leather charms. A common pastime in Hong Kong is walking one’s bird in the park, so you will see that the bag has a birdcage drawn on it. This bag is particularly amusing because its buckle is part of the birdcage drawing. Then you have the skyline of Hong Kong, you have the dice because of Macau, and you have the parrot because there are lots of them in Hong Kong. It's therefore an object made especially for this region — these drawings are also for small leather goods. Only 50 pieces are available at the store, because much of the range has already been sold since it is so unique.

Is this the first time the Sac à Malice is being revived? 

The Sac à Malice was a bag created by Jean-Louis Dumas a long time ago. Pierre-Alexis Dumas was very happy to pick up this bag again and to revamp it.

In Hong Kong what are the top three métiers? 

They are the same everywhere in the world. We are known for leather, so this métier is very strong, and we're not talking about bags alone but also small leather goods. Leather is really vital for us. Silk is a big part of the business, and then you have all the fashion. Fashion accessories is really a métier that we are developing constantly in order to express the modernity of Hermès.

Which métier would you like to see grow in the future? 

Fashion accessories are something that we really want to develop and push in the future. We have projects planned to expand the perfume métier, and we would like to see watches and jewelry grow in the future, such as in the high-jewelry pieces that you see here.

Could you tell me more about the new installation by French artists Zim & Zou?

It's the sixth time they are doing windows for us — they also did the Shanghai Maison. Each country has the freedom to create their own windows, but the theme has to be present/visible. “Let's Play” is really the inspiration.

What can you say about the Philippines and your local partner there, Luxury Concepts, Inc.?

I was managing Hermès in the Philippines prior to Greater China. It is a powerful economy nowadays and an interesting place to be, so we are very happy to have a store there. It was a real pleasure to work with the people there, as they are very friendly and very dedicated to the house.

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In the Philippines, the Hermès store is located in Greenbelt 3, Ayala Center, Makati City.

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