While in Spain a few weeks ago, my mom and I popped into Hermes Valencia. The store was in a beautiful area and there were beautiful bags sitting on the shelves begging me to take them home. There was the 25 cm Birkin in Etoupe, the baby, who was incredibly chic and cute. The Kelly’s were more vast and even more stunning, including a 40 cm Kelly in Rose Dragee with Swift leather. And while I loved the bag, my mom fell head over heels for it. Her heart was set on this bag, 100%. We took it out, she tried it on, she stood in front of the mirror. I was playing with the 30 cm Black Croc Birkin, but my mom was not having any of that, the Rose Dragee had her heart. Personally a Hermes Lindy or Kelly Longue in Rose Dragee would get my vote; but not my mom, the 40 cm Kelly was perfect. The problem was the price. It is not that we went into it thinking anything from Hermes is inexpensive, it is that the exchange rate is so horrible for the US Dollar versus the Euro. The 40 cm Kelly cost 6500 Euro. A whopping 10,036 US Dollars. Obscene, right? What happened to the times of traveling to Europe and finding deals? We realized that almost every English speaker we heard was from England, not the US. The economy in the US is definitely in a slump and the dollar is very weak, which means less Americans traveling abroad and meant that we left Hermes Valencia empty handed.
Have you felt the effect of the weak dollar on your travels?
Hermes Lindy in Rose Dragee
Photo from VerniLover on Purse Forum
You bet! We went to Paris with the twins for spring break and although shopping was fun it would have been so much better had the dollar been worth something. Even the kids noticed when exchanging money for things they wanted to purchase.
Absolutely! I did almost no shopping in Paris when I visited in March with my daughter. I had planned the trip almost a year in advance, and at that time, although the rates were not stellar, there were definitely deals to be had on French designer merchandise. By the time March rolled around, the exchange rate was up to $1.55 to the euro, and even French made merchandise was cheaper on sale at home. We settled for soap, gants de toilette, foodstuffs, etc. from Monoprix, and spluged on French chocolate and olive oil. No Hermes, no Chanel, not even any Longchamps
However, we did enjoy the many other wonderful things Paris has to offer and had a terrific time.
i had no idea that Hermes was spanish. very cool
They are French, but have stores in Spain
thank you for clearing that up. I just realized my error
I haven’t been. But I’m planning on going for a year or so next year, and am dreading it.
BTW. That bag is my Holy Grail. I wasn’t even sure they made it until right now. Thank you for giving me hope!
DH and I were planning on a Cruise and then a week in Paris next year…but we’ve canceled our plans. The cruise was not too $$$, but EVERYTHING else was sky-high.
The trip will wait!
We do. Luckily my husband gets paid in British pounds and dollars and when we go back to london, we use funds from the local account.
Definitely noticed it! We were in London and while everything seemed expensive (restaurants, hotel, etc.) We could tolerate that as our vacation. However, other than the kids buying a few small things, there was really no reason to buy anything and pay so much more for it when we could find almost everything for less at home.Quite different from trips a number of years ago! Still a great time and more time to take in the sights and the city!
I read you everyday and I love all purses you post here. I’m so sorry, my english is not good I’m from Valencia, where you didn’t buy Kelly, and I couldn’t avoid writing some words in this post.
I enjoy too much with your blog so keep writing please. And I hope you had enjoyed my city.
I absolutely love Valencia!! I can’t wait to go back. The city is stunning and the people are welcoming and beautiful. There is so much to offer there!
Tu ingles es muy bien! No es una problema. Necessito practicar mi espanol mas
Well yes. I’m in Sweden and I love that the dollar is so low against our SEK. It has dropped to almost half it’s value since 2000.
Im earning in Euros but my family lives in London so we are planning shopping in U.S. Havent made it over so far but they currency rate is really working in our favour…
This must be a new experience for those who shop with US dollars in Europe. And a healthy experience may I add.
But for a Canadian shopping in the States, the low American dollar is gold.
oh man, I did serious damage at a Coach outlet a little while ago!!
Oh yes! I went to Montreal last month (promising I would NOT buy a purse) and fell in love with a Marc by MJ bag. With the conversion, it was over $500. I knew I could get the bag in the US for much less, but not in the color I desired. So I bit the bullet and purchased it.
Did your mom buy end up buying the bag?? The last time I was at Hermes, I saw a Rose Dragee Birkin (I believe it was 28; do not remember). All I know is that the color was gorgeous and that I could not afford it!
well when the company pays for your travel, its not that bad!
I wouldn’t travel to Europe anyway, but our economy is doing much better than theirs are overall. A high currency exchange is brutal on business, and it’s difficult to sell European goods most anywhere without paying a premium price.
I personally don’t mind the low dollar, I’m loving the deals I can get on US ebay nowadays(as I am in Europe)! But I can understand that it is no fun for you american ladies..
Loved the story of your spanish trip and hope to see a few more!!
Got a Birkin 30 cm from Paris recently for 4950 euro and after getting VAT back, it is still decent.
Who has to go overseas to feel the weakness of the dollar? I encounter it everywhere I look for luxe bags and now, exclusively, I buy all my purchases on ebay from 100% recommended by tpf or otherwise. You are absolutely right though, Megs, Europe used to be the place for the good deals. Chanel coats are going up 30% this year (not that I even had the earlier rates in my budget) but the high cost of fuel and the weakness of the dollar when we buy anything imported is seen from handbags to bananas. By the by, love the rose dragee lindy. v. pretty!
Q: Have you felt the effect of the weak dollar on your travels?
A: Yes, I did, big time!!
Went to UK, Italy and France for three weeks last year. Had to nickle and dime on airfare, hotels and food simply because I wanted to buy my a Chanel, a LV and a Hermes. Even after carefully budgeting for a year beforehand, I still ended up empty-handed on Hermes… just too darn expensive when it converted to US dollars… not to mention AMEX charged 2-3% for foreign exchange rate! OUCH!
Hello,
I am currently in Spain and planning a (shopping!) trip to Valencia.
I am a Male, and I buy mainly Prada, Gucci, Elvis Jesus etc for clothes.
Likewise on shoes.
I would also like to find some Nike Summerwear for my girlfriend i.e. Their sporty version of the flip flop’sandal aka Nike Air Rift
http://www.nike.com/index.jhtml?l=nikestore,pdp,_pdp,cid-1/gid-154447/pid-154449&re=US&co=US&la=EN#l=nikestore,grid,_pdp,cid-1/gid-134264/pid-176722,_grid,s-Nike%20Air%20Rift&re=US&co=US&la=EN
http://www.j600.com/nike-air-rift/womens-rifts.html
I would be extremely grateful if anyone can make as many suggestion as to where i may find ALL that i need in one day!
My email, should I not be able to find this page again, is:
damo5 (at) talk21 (dot) (com)
Many thanks
Hi, I’m an Hermes newbie… How much is the 30, 35 togo kelly? It’s my TDF bag, want it want t want it…. I need to know the price, so I can save some and work for it. Thx!