Oprah refused entry at hermes store

[LostInNJ]

A bit of an update:
from WFTV.com
"She's not well known in Paris," said Sia Gotsis. "She is well known in America."

I don't buy the "she's not well known in Paris thing at all...they knew who she was when she was in town for the couture shows...people in countries I haven't even heard of know Oprah, so I find it a little hard to believe that statement.

 

[Diorling]

On a lighter note...

This gives me an idea for worst experiences at a boutique...

 

[Kimkhuu]

The point is not about being Oprah or not, it's about discrimination....

 

[CelineChic]

I don't buy the "she's not well known in Paris thing at all...they knew who she was when she was in town for the couture shows...people in countries I haven't even heard of know Oprah, so I find it a little hard to believe that statement.

Who cares if they did or didn't recognize her? it's totally irrelevant. they didn't let her in because she's black.

 

[ultramarine]

On a lighter note...

This gives me an idea for worst experiences at a boutique...

There's already a topic about this ... and a huge discussion on it

 

[Anastasia]

not sure this is quite on topic but i think it relates...although it sounds like she was denied because of her race (which is deplorable) i think perhaps it was also because-it states she didnt have her hair done-so maybe she didnt "look" like she had money..that may have contributed to it. but thats such an ignorant attitude. store owners and employees need to realize that, especially in this day and age, what you look like has nothing to do with how much money you have. i dont dress up to go shopping-last time i went downtown SF to shop i was in jeans and a t shirt and flip flops...but when i went into Dior i must say i was helped as if i'd walked in carrying a croc birkin wearing a diamond encrusted watch. it honestly was kind of cool-they didnt make assumptions about me because of how i looked..consequently they got a sale. i remember the opposite happening at Burberry once..i'd gone in looking to buy a bag, but after the SA's attitude towards me of being totally uninterested-as if she assumed i was just "there to look", i decided to take my jeans wearing *** (and my money) elsewhere

my main point-anyone should be allowed to enter, look around, and shop. and they all should be treated with respect, no matter what race they are, what country theyre from, or if they have their hair done or not.

On my trip to Rome last winter (to see the ruins and churches and all) we were also lucky enough to be a lovely hotel within easy walking distance of the Condotti/Spanish Steps area where most of the stores are. I was always clean, but often it was the end of the day, my hair was in a messy ponytail, I wore jeans and a sweater and a huge tapestry bag to haul around all my guides and film - typical student tourist I suppose, probably without much money. The differences in how I was treated in various stores were startling.

Dior, Gucci, and Fendi were incredible. Not only did I feel like a human being, I felt like a PRINCESS. If I ever win the lottery, they're getting my money Louis Vuitton, Prada (I think), Armani were decent, didn't go out of their way, but didn't make me feel like a leper either. Moschino and Cavalli just wanted me desperately to buy something. Versace made me feel like I'd only fit in if I were a desperate, aging wh*re. Hermes and La Perla let me in with many evil looks and much contempt (of course I'm blonde, and not African, so maybe that's why I was let in at all) and proceeded to follow me around literally on my heels at times, shooing me back towards the door and locking it quickly behind me. I was more saddened than angry. With all the security measures they have in place, to they really need to shadow and make uncomfortable potential customers? It's dehumanizing.

 

[Mr-Dale]

I think it's incredibly stupid that any kind of store would refuse any kind of costumer what so ever. I mean, It's everyone's choice to enter a store if they want. It's the right of a person. If I were to arrive at Hermes in my pyjamas, they still would not have the right to refuse my entry. I mean, they let me in at Dior with my sneakers on and wearing a hooded sweater, so.... Do you think you have the right to sue when being refused to enter?

 

[Witchbaby]

Can you imagine that? That would be horrible... I'm half Asian so I would have to ask "Can I put one foot through the door?"

Well I'm half hispanic, so maybe we'll just have to tie our legs together (3 legged race style) so we can make one full white person.

 

[Golden_butterfly]

However the hair might have been done, frizzy hair, a big afro or deadstraight,
Oprah is Oprah and discrimination is discrimination no matter how one tries to
roll that up in fancy words.

 

[jssy4eva]

Just saw this on www.imdb.com

Hermes Bosses Apologize to Oprah
Bosses at Paris, France's Hermes store have been forced to apologize to talk show queen Oprah Winfrey after refusing to let her into their posh store last week. Winfrey was turned away when she turned up at the shop to buy a gift for pal Tina Turner, because staff were taking part in an after-hours public relations event inside. In a statement released yesterday, Hermes bosses said,

"Hermes regrets not having been able to accommodate Ms. Winfrey and her team and to provide her with the service and care that Hermes strives to provide to each and every one of its customers worldwide. Hermes apologizes for any offence taken, due to such circumstances."

 

[cattyxoxo]

Well I'm half hispanic, so maybe we'll just have to tie our legs together (3 legged race style) so we can make one full white person.

It's a plan!

 

[CelineChic]

with the service and care that Hermes strives to provide to each and every one of its customers worldwide.

I suppose he's only refering to the people they actually allow into the store.

 

[Jacque Marcel]

Oh please, why don't they just admit they were discriminating against a black woman and call it a day. Like the public is going to believe a pissy store like Hermes doesn't judge people. All those stores do it, Hermes was just busted for doing it with one of the most powerful women in the world. Sucks for them....

 

[lolita729]

Jacque Marcel, that s so true but they ll never admit to discrimination.

 

[pradaromance]

her next show, anti-hermes

...pointing around...
"you get a bottega, you get a bottega, you get a bottega"
...crowd faints...

i think this whole story is awful, anyone should be let in a store no matter who they are...because you cant judge a book by its cover

 

[Libra Skye18]

Perhaps Hermes is 'apologizing' due to this story...*shrugs*

Snub a pocketbook issue to Oprah

Oprah Winfrey wants to hit Hermès where it hurts - in its fine leather wallet.


You may have heard that the talk queen was denied entry to the luxury-goods store's Paris branch last weekend at closing time. According to one report, Hermès staffers rebuffed Winfrey because they didn't recognize her and because they'd been "having a problem with North Africans lately."

But friends of Oprah say that's bunk.

"They knew exactly who she was," a pal tells us. "They specifically said, 'We know who you are.'"

The source says Oprah arrived just after 6:30 p.m., when there were still shoppers inside the store. According to the source, Oprah politely asked an Hermès sales clerk if she could dash in. She knew what she wanted: a specific watch for Tina Turner, her dinner partner that evening.

Now if the No. 1 celebrity on Forbes' power list - a woman who earned $225 million last year - knocked on their doors, many shopkeepers would carry her in on a litter, even if it was midnight.

Instead, she was rebuffed - first by the clerk, then by a store manager.

Though Oprah hasn't accused the Gauls of racism, her friend suggests, "If it had been Celine Dion or Britney Spears or Barbra Streisand, there is no way they would not be let in that store."

Hermès' brusque treatment understandably came as a shock to someone who recently bought a dozen of the store's Birkin bags, which can run $6,500. In fact, Oprah had just ordered another one.

After last weekend, she canceled that order.

We also hear she's called Robert Chavez, president of Hermès in America, to inform him that, although she has long enjoyed his stores, she will no longer be shopping there.

We also hear she may share the incident with her 22 million-plus viewers.

"We are calling it Oprah's 'Crash' moment," says the friend, recalling the new movie about race in America.

Our calls to Hermès weren't returned yesterday. This isn't the first time Oprah is alleged to have gotten a hard time in the luxe lane. In 1994, a former employee of Bulgari alleged in a lawsuit that the jewelry store hiked its prices for Oprah and other celebs. The store denied the charge.

http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/321289p-274724c.html

 

[tweedy]

Also from CNN:

Luxury store apologizes to Oprah

Hermes' Paris store had rebuffed talk show host


Hermes regrets not having been able to accommodate Ms. Winfrey and her team and to provide her with the service and care that Hermes strives to provide to each and every one of its customers worldwide," the store said in a statement. "Hermes apologizes for any offense taken due to such circumstances."

The store said the incident occurred on June 14 around 6:45 p.m., about 15 minutes after the store closed. It said Winfrey and her team arrived at a time when "a private PR event was being set up inside."

Harpo Productions spokeswoman Michelle McIntyre said Winfrey "will discuss her 'crash moment' when her show returns from hiatus in September."

"Crash" is a film dealing with race relations. The phrase "crash moment" refers to situations where a party feels discriminated against on the basis of skin color.

The New York Daily News cited sources close to Winfrey as saying the talk show host was first rebuffed by a clerk and then a store manager. The Daily News reported Winfrey had gone to the store to buy a watch for singer Tina Turner, her dining partner that night.

McIntyre confirmed that account for CNN.

The New York Post, in its Monday Page Six gossip column, reported she was turned away because the store had been "having a problem with North Africans lately."

In comments to CNN, an Hermes spokeswoman categorically denied that allegation.

"There was never any discussion of North Africans," she said. "The story is not true."

The spokeswoman said Winfrey came to the store 15 minutes after closing and a security guard informed her the store was closed and gave her a card, telling her she could come back the next day.

Surveillance videotape of the encounter supports the store's account, according to the spokeswoman.

She said the CEO of Hermes has called Winfrey's people to explain "the situation" and invited her to come back to shop in the store.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/22/oprah.apology/index.html

 

[Taitai]

On my trip to Rome last winter (to see the ruins and churches and all) we were also lucky enough to be a lovely hotel within easy walking distance of the Condotti/Spanish Steps area where most of the stores are. I was always clean, but often it was the end of the day, my hair was in a messy ponytail, I wore jeans and a sweater and a huge tapestry bag to haul around all my guides and film - typical student tourist I suppose, probably without much money. The differences in how I was treated in various stores were startling.

Dior, Gucci, and Fendi were incredible. Not only did I feel like a human being, I felt like a PRINCESS. If I ever win the lottery, they're getting my money Louis Vuitton, Prada (I think), Armani were decent, didn't go out of their way, but didn't make me feel like a leper either. Moschino and Cavalli just wanted me desperately to buy something. Versace made me feel like I'd only fit in if I were a desperate, aging wh*re. Hermes and La Perla let me in with many evil looks and much contempt (of course I'm blonde, and not African, so maybe that's why I was let in at all) and proceeded to follow me around literally on my heels at times, shooing me back towards the door and locking it quickly behind me. I was more saddened than angry. With all the security measures they have in place, to they really need to shadow and make uncomfortable potential customers? It's dehumanizing.

So interesting that you would post this because I was just thinking about the extremely inconsistent service in the stores on Condotti in Rome! In one store alone - Gucci - I had both atrocious (soooo bad & rude in the morning, my friends and I complained to the manager) and marvellous service (in the afternoon!) in one day.

Prada across Gucci on Condotti had great service I remember. And Tod's on Borgognona was always nice.

 

[modelmama]

her next show, anti-hermes

...pointing around...
"you get a bottega, you get a bottega, you get a bottega"
...crowd faints...

I wish to be in that audience.

 

[MissAnia]

all that story is....