In luxury, there’s Hermès… and there’s everyone else. Stewarded by one French family over six generations, Hermès sells the absolute pinnacle of the French luxury dream. Loyal clients will wait years simply for the opportunity to buy one of the company’s flagship Birkin or Kelly bags. Unlike every other luxury brand, Hermès:Doesn’t increase supply to meet demand (hence the waitlists)Doesn’t loudly brand their products (IYKYK)Doesn’t do celebrity endorsements (stars buy their bags just like everyone else)Doesn’t even have a marketing department! (they barely advertise at all)And yet everyone knows who they are and what they represent. But, despite all their iconoclasm, this is not a company that’s stood still for six generations. Unbeknownst to most, Hermès has completely reinvented itself at least three times in its 187-year history. Including most recently (and most dramatically) by the family’s current leaders, who responded to LVMH and Bernard Arnault’s 2010 takeover attempt by pursuing a radical strategy — scaling hand craftsmanship. And in the process they turned the company from a sleepy, ~$10B family enterprise into a $200B market cap European giant. Tune in for one incredible story!Sponsors:Anrok: https://bit.ly/anrokacquiredStatsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig24Anthropic: https://bit.ly/acqclaudeMore Acquired!:Get email updates with hints on next episode and follow-ups from recent episodesJoin the SlackSubscribe to ACQ2Merch Store!© Copyright 2015-2025 ACQ, LLCLinks:See our episode page for visuals!The saddle stitch (video)Inside the Saddlery at the FaubourgHermès 2022 Annual ReportAxel Dumas InterviewAll episode sourcesCarve Outs:Anker GaN Prime 100W chargerMatterPerplexityThe Score Takes Care of ItselfNote: Acquired hosts and guests may hold assets discussed in this episode. This podcast is not investment advice, and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. You should do your own research and make your own independent decisions when considering any financial transactions.
Full Episode
So I don't know if you realize this, Hermes is reporting earnings in like two days. Yes. And at first I was like, we should probably not do this episode because their annual report comes out in two days. What if we're not current? And then I realized this is Hermes. The short term is of no consequence. Yeah.
Also, the Hermes annual reports are the most beautiful annual reports ever created in the history of the financialization of mankind.
You might think you can't do all of your charts in orange. You need different colors, but you would be wrong.
The illustrations, the themes, you can tell they care. You can tell. All right, let's do it. Let's do it.
Who got the truth? Is it you? Is it you? Is it you? Who got the truth now?
Welcome to Season 14, Episode 2 of Acquired, the podcast about great companies and the stories and playbooks behind them. I'm Ben Gilbert.
I'm David Rosenthal.
And we are your hosts. Today, we tell the story of a handbag company that won't sell you a handbag. A traditional saddle maker that makes very little of their revenue from saddles. A company that somehow has grown to be worth over $200 billion despite rejecting manufacturing efficiencies and economies of scale.
a company so obsessed with craft and a reputation for quality that they have stayed independent while every other luxury brand has merged into conglomerates. That's right, listeners. Today, we tell the oldest story we have ever told here on Acquired, older than Standard Oil or The New York Times. This company dates back to 1837 in Paris, France, the crown jewel of the luxury industry, Hermès.
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