On Thursday afternoon, Hermès artistic director Nadège Vanhée was getting ready to present part two of her Fall 2024 collection in downtown New York, after showing the first chapter in Paris in March. The venue was Pier 36, an empty warehouse space along the river on the Lower East Side, typically used for large-scale exhibitions and events. Vanhée was sequestered in a greenroom outfitted with an expensive-looking couch and chairs, and fruit platters too pretty to touch.
”It’s interesting to think about Hermès as a brand that encourages singularity. It has built a massive business on one-of-a-kind bags owned in bulk by the one percent. Hermès is one of the most recognizable labels on the planet, and its history is steeped in craft. For Vanhée, the challenge has always been about evolution, and how to successfully iron out the paradoxes that arise from combining singularity and mass luxury, which have long existed in the house codes.