My Experience at the Hermes Sample Sale

As you may have heard, Hermes is hosting a sample sale this week, so I thought it might be helpful to share my own experience at a prior sale in NYC about two years ago. I learned about the sale right before I left for an already planned trip, so I decided I would make time to check it out. The sale was held at a nondescript event space near Penn Station a.k.a my arch nemesis. When I got in line there were probably 30-40 people ahead of me in the parking lot next to the space. Since I’d never been, I was not entirely sure if the line I was in would lead to another line, but I decided to just wait and see. I think I waited about 40-50 minutes in that outside line.

At one point, the event organizer proclaimed that you could not bring any food or drink into the event. I had just walked up from High Street on Hudson, where I’d purchased $40 worth of Kouign-amann to bring home to my dad. I then spent the next 10 minutes debating whether I needed to eat my body weight in pastries or try and smuggle the goods inside. I went with the latter. The event requires you to coat check to prevent shoplifting. Of course when I handed the man my coat and my bag with the contraband inside, he immediately asked, “no food or drink inside right?” I am a horrible liar, but somehow managed to say “no” and quickly scurried away. Better to ask for mercy than permission sometimes!

I first stopped at the few racks of shoes. It’s probably not a surprise that none of the popular shoe styles were available but there were plenty of strange options! Typically, VIP Hermes clients get to shop the sale a day early, so if there are desirable styles they’re often gone by the time the general public can shop. If I remember correctly, shoes were 50% off. I found one diamond in the rough riding boot, but it was size tiny so I moved on.

The scarves were 50% off as well and there were a variety of sizes and colors. As we all know, I love Hermes scarves, but I really struggled to find any that I actually liked. The event provides shoppers with a few clear plastic bags, so I added a few to my bag to ponder while I kept looking. People were also being a bit grabby in the scarf area (which I can’t stand) so I went to try my luck in the jewelry section.

The only real line inside the event was to see the jewelry. Again, I had a few Hermes bracelets and bangles on my wishlist, so I decided to wait in line. I probably waited another 30-40 minutes. This was probably my favorite part of the experience.I met a number of lovely ladies in the line who clearly LOVED Hermes so it was fun chatting with them. Many had been the day before and planned to go back the next day as well. We took turns letting each other walk around the event while we held each other’s place in line. We also did some bag edits. I didn’t mention anything about T&T, but I did offer my two cents about whether the prices were better in the sale versus secondhand. I also showed them a few scarves I was considering and they gave me the thumbs up or a thumbs down. This was particular helpful since I was at the sale alone. The show has a strict no photography policy but I did also sneak a quick picture to send to my mom. She veto’ed the last scarf in my bag.

When I reached the jewelry portion, I was assigned a sales associate. You could not look at jewelry in the case without one. The jewelry was 50% off and I believe there was maybe a 10 minute time limit. Some shoppers were not on their best behavior and barked demands at the sales associates. I looked at the lady helping me and said, “you deserve a drink” to which she said, “you have no idea”, smiled, and we became fast friends. They had a variety of styles in the case including Clic Clacs, Double Tours, Extreme, Hapi 3, and printed enamel bracelets in multiple sizes. Many were in odd colors, so I kept running through my T&T 10 Questions in my head. I finally landed on a wide printed bangle (pictured above). I had seen it before in store previously and liked it. I’ll also admit that after the whole ordeal I wanted to leave with a prize of some kind. In hindsight though, I am not sure I would have picked that bracelet if it was full price and there were other designs to choose from. The good news is I ultimately was able to sell it on Poshmark and made probably about $30 on the resale!

Overall, I am glad that I went. It felt like an experience every deal lover would enjoy, but if you never are able to attend it’s also not the end of the world.

Here are some high level tips for attending the Hermes sample sale:

Make sure you eat and go to the bathroom before you get in line. Otherwise the line will feel like torture.
Arrive with a book, a charged phone, or both.
Do not buy $40 of pastries before getting in line.
Bring a buddy, if you can, to help talk some sense into you when you decide you’re going to buy teal green Hermes sneakers.
Try to come with a wishlist in mind, whether that is pattern or style. This will help you avoid impulse buys.
Be realistic about what you’re going to find. It’s unlikely they’ll ever have bags and certainly you’ll never get a Birkin at a sale. Remember sample sale items are pieces that did not sell in store, so they’re likely to be less popular sizes, styles, or colors.
Make friends with people in line. They may hold your place in line, point you in the right direction, or give you their castoffs.
Don’t buy a bunch of things thinking you’ll resell them. Everything is marked with a S for sample sale so consignment buyers clearly know you purchased it during the sale. Most importantly, the margins won’t be that great by the time you account for the discount buyers expect and the fees on Poshmark, Tradesy, Mercari, eBay etc.
Only go to this sale if it’s local. Spending money on a flight, hotel, train, food etc. to attend negates any savings you’ll find at the sale. You’re better off going to your local Hermes and buying the thing you really want. You’ll probably spend less at the end of the day in that scenario. The best color ways and styles won’t be at the sale anyway.
Remember that you can also find really great deals on Hermes on Fashionphile or The Real Real. With those sites, you can take your time and wait for the exact piece on your wishlist.