Hermès: Still Winning, Still Expensive, Still Unbothered. While its luxury rivals are breaking a sweat, Hermès International is gracefully trotting ahead like a well-groomed show horse. Sales soared 18% in the fourth quarter, hitting a casual 4 billion euros because apparently, the ultra-rich are still panic-buying Birkins like it’s a stock market crash.

Meanwhile, competitors like LVMH and Kering had a rougher time. LVMH eked out a 1% growth, while Kering saw a 12% sales drop, possibly because even wealthy shoppers decided they should maybe stop impulse-buying another Gucci bag for their dog.

Analysts had expected Hermès to deliver a solid 11% growth, but the brand casually exceeded expectations—like that one kid in class who claims they didn’t study but still aces the test. Naturally, investors threw a little celebration, sending Hermès shares up 2.1%.

The Secret Sauce: No Marketing, Just Mystique. CEO attributes Hermès’ success to a few key factors: loyal clients, a “local-first” retail model, and something vaguely called “authenticity.” Translation: they don’t do ads because their products already come with a built-in aura of unattainability.

“They don’t do marketing,”And yet, somehow, people are willing to go to extreme lengths to be seen with a Birkin even if it’s not actually a Birkin. The “Wirkin” Dilemma: A Battle Against Budget Birkins.

 Officially, Hermès is ready to fight counterfeits with the full force of the law.But the media frenzy probably the first time in history that Hermès has been mentioned in the same sentence as Walmart.

Concerning U.S. Tariffs it is the Price of Being Fabulous.

On the geopolitical front, potential U.S. tariffs on European goods are a “source of concern” for the brand. If tariffs go up, so will Hermès pricesalthough let’s be honest, at this price range, what’s a little extra markup?

But fear not! American shoppers are experts in price comparison. So, if buying a Birkin in New York gets too pricey, they’ll simply hop on a plane to Paris and pick one up there instead.

Meanwhile, sales in the Americas jumped 22.3%, helped by new store openings in Atlanta and Princeton. Clearly, there’s still plenty of room in the U.S. for more orange boxes and very, very long waiting lists.

FM