If Hermès can do what it wants, such as investing in its manufacturing capacity, but not in merchandise expansion, it owes it to its mix of financial strength and independent judgment. This is perfectly clear when one reads, parallelly, two articles, respectively from Financial Time and Sole 24 Ore.
Hermès can do whatever it wants
CEO Axel Dumas claims with FT that the strength of Hermès is, like the other big French luxury brands, withstanding the terrible economic situation because it is “more resilient”. That the brand maintains a strong “financial capacity to invest, develop e-commerce and control retail channels”. Unlike other brands, however, Hermès is not attempting to develop new categories (such as beauty and hotels) just to grow at a faster rate. “There is a great mathematical dispersion in the growth of our sector that was not there before”, which is why Dumas doesn’t want to hear comparisons (dimensional and organizational model) with other brands, such as Vuitton. “We don’t sell the same products, so exceeding their size is not a goal. As my uncle (former CEO Jean-Louis Dumas, ed.) used to say: I don’t look at what others are doing, I might be influenced”.
Jewel factories
That being said, one thing Hermès isn’t tired of investing in, however, are the jewel-factories. Jewels not only for the quality of the final product or structure, but for the same underlying sociological model, dare we say. Vice President Guillaume De Seynes explains this to Il Sole 24 Ore, to which he opens the doors of Manifattura di Riom, a 280-employee leather factory: 250 of which are artisans. “We believe the ideal number of people in each atelier is around 300. Our experience tells us that this is the only way we can create a small community where everyone knows each other and has quality relationships”.
It therefore depends on the relationships within the teams. “It’s equally important that the heads of the atelier sections get to know each person”, the vice president concludes, ” in turn, they can feel more valued and can grow day by day. The uniqueness of the bags created at Riom is not only related to the authentical manual workmanship, but also to the fact that each employee gives them his or her own touch“.
Read also:
