How to Score a Hermes Birkin in Paris – an ultimate guide

As we all know, it’s almost impossible to buy a Birkin by simply walking into the Hermes store. First, there used to be a waiting list where you could sign up for a Birkin and it took people years to get the bag. This system was eventually cancelled. Next, people were asked to line up outside the store in Paris before the boutique opens, wait for hours in order to guarantee an appointment to be seen later that day to try and score the bag of their dreams.

Now the process has changed yet again. In this blog post I would like to talk about all the specifics for the new online system for Hermes.

Before I begin, important information: you can only request an appointment the day before you want to be seen, from 10 in the morning until 6:30 in the afternoon. You cannot do it any earlier.

To get an appointment you have to go to hermesfaubourg.com

Please, note that at this time you may only register with a smartphone. You have to fill in your personal information, like your name, your phone number and your passport number. All communication with Hermes will be conducted over the phone. They will be sending you SMS messages about your appointment. They need your passport number in order to identify you as an individual and make sure that the appointment is unique to you! You cannot request multiple appointments by, for example, using different email addresses. With your passport number they also track your purchase history. But they can only track your purchases made at Hermes within Europe. So, if you, for example, shopped at Hermes in the US, the SA in Paris will not be able to find these purchases in their system.

Once you have filled all the required information and submitted the form, Hermes will send you an activation text with the code, and that is to verify that you gave a real phone number as your contact information. Once you have verified your phone number, your appointment request in official and later that day you will hear from Hermes on whether you’ve got your appointment or not. Important note: the time for your appointment may change. Please, check regularly for updates.

When at the store

Once you arrive to the Hermes Boutique for your appointment, you will be greeted by the hostess. The hostess will then check your passport and she will assign you to a specific sales associate.

I do believe that it is important to dress nicely for your appointment as you might get judged by your appearance. If you already own a Hermes bag, I would suggest you carry it as well.

During your appointment the first questions the SA is going to ask you are what they can help you with and what bags are you looking for. So it’s important that before you go for your appointment you’ve done your research. It’s extremely important to let your Hermes SA believe that you are a Hermes lover. Therefore, when you are asked what bags are you looking for, it’s always better to reply “I am looking for a Birkin in size 30 in colors like Indigo, Thalassa, Blue Roi or Midnight Blue” instead of just “blue Birkin”. Also, know what you’d be happy to settle with because you don’t always get your first preference. Your SA is going to look at what’s in stock at the moment and if it matches what you have requested they might offer you a bag. So, definitely give them at least a few options to look for! Then your SA will go and check for you. It can take some time. They will either come back and say that, unfortunately, they don’t have anything to offer you at the moment, or they would ask you to come with them. Side note: when the SA asks you to come with them it is a very good sign and most likely they will offer you a bag!

The bottom line:

Do I believe it is possible to get a Birkin in Paris? Absolutely! The most important thing is to know what you want and be open for options.

You may ask: “What if I don’t have any purchase history at Hermes”? Yes, you do have a chance to score a bag even without having any purchase history at Hermes. I’ve heard a lot of stories where people with no history at Hermes have scored a Birkin. But do I think that it helps having some purchase history? Definitely.

I really hope that this blog post helps!

If you have previously scored a Birkin in Paris and have any other tips that you’d love to share with me, please, leave them in the comments below! I’d love to hear from you!