How Hermès Stalks Customers to Sell a Birkin

A new investigation by French publication Glitz has exposed the extreme and secretive measures Hermès allegedly uses to vet potential buyers of its iconic Birkin and Kelly bags.

According to the report, sales associates research customers by Googling their home addresses to assess the prestige of their neighborhood and meticulously scrutinize their public social media profiles for signs of wealth and “appropriate” taste—with a flashy Rolex watch even being a potential red flag.

The investigation claims the surveillance continues after a sale, with Hermès blacklisting both the client and the sales associate if the bag is spotted for resale online.

Beyond this vetting, customers reportedly need a long and consistent spending history with the brand, potentially requiring purchases of $200,000 on other items like scarves and shoes before even being offered a chance to buy a rare bag, which they must accept without choosing its color.

This system, for a bag that costs about $1,000 to make but sells for tens of thousands and has fetched over $10 million at auction, is designed to cultivate an aura of unattainable exclusivity and elite social status.