“Two rich people go into Hermès to buy a Birkin” could be the beginning of a joke. With the outcome, of course, only those of us who have not spent “tens of thousands of dollars” on the firm to try without success to achieve it would laugh. This is the story of Tina Cavalleri and Mark Glinoga, the two owners of the class action lawsuit filed this week in California against the French maison that accuses it of applying conditioning practices and violating antitrust law. And these, their stories collected in legal documents:
“Plaintiff Cavalleri has spent tens of thousands of dollars at Hermès and has been coerced into purchasing accessory products in order to gain access to Hermès Birkin bags, consistent with the practices alleged herein. In approximately September 2022, the plaintiff contacted Hermès to purchase another Birkin bag, but was told that the special bags go to ‘customers who have been consistent in their support of our business.’ Plaintiff Cavalleri understood that she would have to spend more on accessory products to gain access to another Birkin bag. As a result, Plaintiff Cavalleri was unable to purchase another Birkin bag in September 2022.”
“[…] In approximately 2023, Plaintiff Glinoga attempted to purchase a Birkin bag, but was advised by Defendant’s salespeople to purchase accessory products to potentially obtain a Birkin bag. Plaintiff Glinoga attempted to purchase a Birkin bag on several occasions, but in “Each was told she needed to purchase other items and accessories. As a result, Plaintiff Glinoga was unable to purchase a Birkin bag.”
They didn’t sell them the Birkin, wow. The company’s way of operating, which purposely does not produce enough bags to meet its demand, has generated controversy for decades. In the past there were legendary waiting lists and now, it is true, Hermès requires the purchase of other items (blankets, sandals, tableware, etc.) to be able to access its most famous bags. In fact, on TikTok, the narration of these expenses has become a trend.
Do you have any chance of winning? According to the lawyer I have consulted and who prefers to remain anonymous (probably so that word does not spread that he does not charge for consultations), no. They would have possibilities if the purchase of a Birkin was linked to the purchase of another specific product, so that the consumer was truly “coerced” to purchase that other product. Or if Hermès didn’t randomly sell a Birkin this Easter (just because you’re rich doesn’t mean you can’t win the lottery). Or if that sales policy applied only to the Birkin model, and not also to the Kelly or Constance bags.
Everything indicates that when this story ends the plaintiffs will be left with the memory of the protagonism that they undoubtedly seek (if they have the money to buy a Birkin and to file a lawsuit because it is not sold to them, wouldn’t it be easier for them to buy what that they have to buy to get it?) and that Hermès will close the chapter with its reputation as the most exclusive brand in the world strengthened. Although it is already known that the scales of justice can tilt to either side. The good news, if the reader has and is willing to spend the money that a Birkin costs (starting at 6,000 euros), is that, perhaps now the firm is going to have to demonstrate that its sales policies do not go against of the law, is the best time to achieve it. Sometimes the misfortune of some is the happiness of others.
In another vein of things that also happened this week, Kering has advanced its first quarter results, which predict a 10% drop in year-on-year sales for all of its brands and a 20% drop in sales for Gucci, its star brand. The reasons for this decline are found in the crisis in the Asian market and the fact that the entire first collection of Sabato de Sarno, his creative director since 2023, has not yet reached stores. The curious thing is that they have decided to make these poor results public more than a month before the official announcement date, set for April 23.
They may have thought that bad news is better delivered in parts. It may be that with this advance they will achieve that next month their results will be compared less with those of the competition, which will easily be better. They may be taking very naturally the idea that things have to get worse in order to get better (those new collections are working very well in the United States).
