Hermès Case Study

Silk square: The mystique of Les Carrés d’ Hermès Originated in 1937, this commemorative Carre, the famous 90x90cm printed silk scarf, is a piece of priceless sentence. Bemused by the hunt for the perfect silk scarf; don’t you want to know; what about a simple accessory for which such a devoted parade?

Worn by England’s queen on1956 postage stamp to Audrey Hepburn’s clean headscarf look; For three quarters of the century; The Hermès scarf has become a fashion compulsion establishing itself as a connoisseur of style, which is there to stay!

The groove, the skillfulness, the crafty and the ingenious ways of creating the scarf; has enabled it to stand the test of time. Women of all age, seemingly popular amongst the younger ones, have their

Hermès's trademark i.e a horse-drawn carriage harkens back to its origins as a wholesale saddlery business. The maison introduced luxury items for women in the early 20th century. First to be launched were the leather handbags in 1922 followed which a women’s couture in Paris in 1929. The company marked its hundredth anniversary; launching the 36-Carre` which means ”Square” in French. The first scarf was based on a woodblock drawing by Robert Dumas; a member of the Hermès family. Over 1500 versions have been made since the late 1930’s. The early patterns took inspiration from sources like maps, museums and nature. The “ Brides- De-Gala” version introduced in 1957; has been produced more than 70,000 times but; the horseback motif is particularly the most famous and

80 years after the first Carre` up till today; there has been a changed approach in the Artistic passion and the aesthetic dimension of the scarf. It Began with Pierre-Alexis Dumas; the brands artistic director who had a vision to create iconic collaborations which led him to marry design and art in a fashion accessory. Famous personalities from the world of fashion and art collaborated with him for designing the Carre`. From acclaimed Japanese photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto, to Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garcons. The purpose was to make the craftsmen meet its craft and transforming the expertise; innovating it in a way making the seemingly impossible to beautifully possible! The brand’s third edition “Carre` d’artiste” saw the normal designing of a scarf go beyond its boundaries; where Sugimoto’s snapshots projecting the amalgamation of colors that emerge when dawn’s light passed through a monolith prism, by overlapping them onto Hermès scarf. The result was a piece of wearable artwork of the most renowned fashion accessory. Printing photography had never been used on an Hermès scarf earlier. Reinventing the scarf; was the whole purpose behind the collaborations.

Every season, Hermès works with a number of different artists to create a universally appealing merchandise. While a typical scarf is like a $410, larger sizes are the price doubled, with special editions costing much more. No- matter what the price is ; there is something enchanting about the Hermès