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Watches 01 Hermès at 24, Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in Paris 02 Portrait of Luc Perramond 03 The Arceau Lift 04 Close up of the historical lift inside the Faubourg store
The quest for excellence is the trademark of the Maison Hermès, particularly in the field of watch-making, where it has been enlisting the support of the finest artisans for the past century.
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Interview with La Montre Hermès CEO, Luc Perramond 02
How did you find yourself in the luxury brand market and most specifically, working for Hermès? My whole career has been in the watch and jewellery business. The opportunity to join the Maison Hermès is a dream for anyone like me, who is passionate about beautiful high-quality objects. Moreover, the aim of making watch-making a genuine growth engine for the Hermès Group was an exciting challenge that I simply could not refuse.
What is the philosophy behind the Hermès brand? Hermès is about elegant style, discretion, creativity, quality and craftsmanship.
Which parts of the world are your watches manufactured, and how do you maintain quality control? Hermès watches are 100% Swiss made; equipped with the Hermès in-house movement for the manufactured watches, dials made by Natéber SA owned by Hermès, cases made by Joseph Erardalso owned by Hermès and leather straps made in the Hermès ateliers in Switzerland. We also work with the best Swiss suppliers for other components. Having the most important components in-house allows us to guarantee the best level of quality Hermès is always achieving. People still buy luxury goods despite the economic slowdowns and recession. Why do you think that is?
Clients are looking for quality and high-value objects from brands endowed with a heritage, genuine craftsmanship skills and unique creativity. Objects that will be cherished for a lifetime will acquire a delightful patina with age, and that will be passed on to loved ones, charged with intense emotion. These types of goods do not suffer from economic slowdowns because they are full of trust linked to the brand.
What region would you say your most persistent clients are from? France is the number one market followed by China, Japan and the US. We have an untapped potential in regions like the Middle East, Russia, India, Brazil and Indonesia. Even Europe offers nice growth perspective for us in larger watch markets like the UK and Germany for example.
Limited editions in every brand always have a special charm on customers. How does Hermès use this as a strategy? Each year, Hermès offers unique and limited edition timepieces presenting high craftsmanship such as Grand Feu enamel, gold engraving or straw marquetry. These timepieces are cherished by watch connoisseurs and collectors worldwide. The latest model from Hermès – the Arceau Tourbillon Lift – is the brand’s first flying tourbillon watch, and said to be inspired by the historical premises of Hermès at 24, Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in Paris. How did the idea for this model first originate?
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