Hermès
Acquired20 Feb 2024

Hermès

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:


More Acquired!

© Copyright 2015-2025 ACQ, LLC


Links:

Carve Outs:

‍Note: 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.

Avsnitt(213)

Episode 44: AOL - Time Warner (with the Internet History Podcast)

Episode 44: AOL - Time Warner (with the Internet History Podcast)

On this extra-long episode of Acquired, Brian McCullough from the Internet History Podcast returns to discuss perhaps the most (in)famous merger of all time: AOL - Time Warner. Who doesn’t remember th...

18 Sep 20171h 48min

Episode 43: The Square IPO

Episode 43: The Square IPO

Unicorns and ratchets and lawsuits, oh my! Our heroes dive into the history of Jack Dorsey’s famous “other” company, Square. Was the Square IPO a canary in the coal mine signaling doom & gloom for the...

16 Aug 20171h 22min

Episode 42: Opsware (with special guest Michel Feaster)

Episode 42: Opsware (with special guest Michel Feaster)

Acquired dives into the legendary acquisition of Ben Horowitz & Marc Andreessen’s “second act” software company Opsware, from a perspective never before heard—HP’s side of the story! Our heroes are jo...

5 Aug 20171h 20min

Episode 41: Booking.com with Jetsetter & Room 77 CEO Drew Patterson

Episode 41: Booking.com with Jetsetter & Room 77 CEO Drew Patterson

Acquired trains its lens on the “second or third best acquisition of all-time”, Priceline’s 2005 purchase of Booking.com. Our heroes are joined by friend-of-the-show and former Jetsetter & Room 77 CEO...

26 Juli 20171h 21min

Episode 40: Activision Blizzard

Episode 40: Activision Blizzard

Ben & David cover the creation of the gaming world’s equivalent of the 70’s rock supergroup: the 2008 merger of Blizzard and Activision. We tell the story from the Blizzard perspective, tracing the hi...

13 Juli 20171h 18min

Acquired Episode 39: Whole Foods Market

Acquired Episode 39: Whole Foods Market

Ben and David are once again live on the scene, this time covering the biggest disruption in grocery since… well, sliced bread: Amazon’s $13.7B purchase of Whole Foods Market. We place this deal in co...

21 Juni 20171h 19min

Acquired Episode 38: SoundJam (iTunes)

Acquired Episode 38: SoundJam (iTunes)

Ben & David revisit the birth of the digital music revolution and Steve Jobs' "digital hub" strategy, with Apple's 2000 acquisition of the Mac music player SoundJam MP, which would go on to become iTu...

31 Maj 20171h 22min

Episode 37: BAMTech, Disney and "the Biggest Media Company You've Never Heard Of”

Episode 37: BAMTech, Disney and "the Biggest Media Company You've Never Heard Of”

Ben and David continue Acquired’s “tech and sports” mini-series with Disney’s 2016 acquisition of a minority stake (with the right to purchase a majority stake at a later date) in BAMTech, the interne...

10 Maj 20171h 22min

Populärt inom Business & ekonomi

framgangspodden
varvet
badfluence
rss-jossan-nina
rss-borsens-finest
rss-svart-marknad
svd-tech-brief
avanzapodden
uppgang-och-fall
fill-or-kill
rss-inga-dumma-fragor-om-pengar
borsmorgon
rss-dagen-med-di
lastbilspodden
bathina-en-podcast
rss-kort-lang-analyspodden-fran-di
affarsvarlden
market-makers
rss-den-nya-ekonomin
borslunch-2