The Hermés sample sale, at Short Hills Mall, kicked off to a small number of invited guests, on Wednesday afternoon. The sale opens to the public Thursday morning and is expected to draw huge crowds.
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Wednesday’s VIP invites were limited to about 100 shoppers who were admitted to the sale at 2pm. Once the sale opens to the public on Thursday morning, the crowd is guaranteed to swell. This particular Hermes sale will be run a little bit differently than prior East Coast Hermes sales. There will be no tickets issued. Each person will have to wait in line until it’s their turn to enter the sale space.
Today’s VIP shoppers say that the sale was very good. Discounts are 50% off most items. Men’s clothing is 60% off. There are several canvas beach bags ($1000)and canvas cosmetic cases in assorted bright colors and prints. The sale also contains beach towels ($290), throw pillows and blankets– “the thinner solid ones.” (We have some pictures here and will continue to add more as they are received.)
Shoppers will also report silk scarves, Maxi-Twillies ($167) and ties, hats and leather gloves for men and women, two-piece bathing suits and men’s swim trunks for $186. Ties are $98 and 90cm scarves are $208. As we initially reported, there are no jewelry, leather goods or belts.
In the shoe section, we are told that there is an abundance of men’s options. For women, there are many brown jumping boots ($1312) and Oran sandals. The best assortment is in size 38 and 38.5. The selection was smaller for the 37 and 37.5 options. There are lots of small shoe size options.
Orans can be found in ostrich, various colors of patent leather, two-tone, black leather with tiny logo studs and a few in orange/red and coral/gold. A pair in black leather with rhinestone trim is reduced to about $890 from $1775. There are mid-heel Oran sandals in multi-colors of suede, Epsom, Solaris, and blue/Bordeaux. There is also bright red/orange and pale blue lizard.
Shoppers also reported lots of Corfu-style sandals, which are flat with skinny criss-cross straps and CDC-style hardware. There are lots leaf sandals, some Rivage Jellies, and canvas wedges–printed and solid.
Among the housewares, our spies spotted a few blankets, which could be found behind the silks counter. Embroidered blankets were about $1400. There are no Avalon styles or H-logo prints. The overall housewares selection is described as “small.” Options include lacquered boxes and trays and a few porcelain styles.
In order to limit hoarding and reselling, there are some shopping limits. Only two shawls per customer and five scarves, five men’s ties, five women’s shoes and two men’s shoes– but only one Night 70, Night 90, Oasis, Oran, Legend and jumping styles
An employee for Taubman, which owns and manages the Short Hills Mall, said shoppers will be permitted to begin lining up outside the mall, near Legal Seafood, at 9am, Thursday morning. Cars will not be permitted onto the mall property until 8:30am. “You can sit in your car for a little bit, and make your way to the line at 8:50, and begin officially standing in line at 9am,” she said.
There will be police patrolling the mall property at all times. Anyone who attempts to cue for the sale before the allotted time will be asked to leave the property and arrested if they don’t comply, she warned.
“This isn’t the first big event we’ve had at the mall. There is an Apple store at the mall that does big launches all the time. We know how this is done,” said our advisor.
The last East Coast Hermes sale was hosted at Americana Manhasset. Attendees reported waiting for over 8 hours and still not gaining admittance.
Keep in mind, purchases made at a Hermes sample sale do not come with boxes. All items are marked with the letter “s” symbolizing that they were purchased at a sale. You can click here to see our overview from the Hermes sample sale in Manhasset in October 2018. Here is a post from when the sale was hosted at Soiffer Haskin in 2010. Here are more insights from 2012 and 2015.
No pictures will be permitted at the sale but we will have a team of spies reporting live from the sale. Feel free to send tips, leave comments and follow along on Instagram. You can use the tag #Hermessale2019 to crowdsource information.
Hermes Sample Sale
VIP: Wednesday, July 24 from 2pm-6pm
Public shopping: Thursday, July 25
Thurs to Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 11am-5pm
Short Hills Mall, 2nd Floor (Outside Neiman Marcus)
The line will begin outside the Mall at Legal Seafood at 9am