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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Paris, France

Hermès

Partially verified

Luxury goods including leather, silk, watches, and jewellery

History

Thierry Hermès founded the company in Paris in 1837, originally operating as a specialist in the saddlery and harness-making trade.

Following Thierry's death in 1878, his son Charles-Émile Hermès assumed control and relocated the business to 24 rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré in 1880. In the early 20th century, the firm was known as Hermès Frères and began expanding into luggage and fashion under the leadership of Émile-Maurice Hermès. During the mid-20th century, the company diversified into various luxury lines including perfumery and women's ready-to-wear, while the ownership remained within the family branches of Dumas, Guerrand, and Puech.

Jean-Louis Dumas took over in 1978 and significantly modernized the brand, establishing the watchmaking subsidiary and introducing major products like the Birkin bag.

The extended history summarises the open references listed under Sources; each statement was checked against the cited passage. Confirm key dates in period documents before relying on them.

Current watchmaking & later fate

  • As of 2025, Hermès remains a controlled luxury house with annual sales of 16 billion euros.
  • The company continues to be led by descendants of the founder, such as Axel Dumas.

As stated in the references listed under Sources, retrieved 2026-11-03. Ownership and collections change; check the maker's own announcements for the latest position.

Key models

Kelly bag
Originally a ladies' bag with straps created in the 1930s, it was renamed the Kelly bag in the 1950s after Princess Grace of Monaco.

Major innovations

  • Émile-Maurice Hermès introduced zipper technology to leather goods and fashion in France after returning from a trip to the United States.

Known markings

  • The company uses the trade name Hermès Paris.

Serial numbers

No serial-number system for this maker is recorded in the cited references.

Collecting significance

The catalogued pieces listed on this page show the kinds of objects auction houses, dealers and museums attribute to this maker; each attribution is the source's own.

In the object catalogue

3 catalogued objects are recorded under Hermès. Attributions are as given by each source and are not independent authentication.

Diagram

cap jewel (endstone)bridgeplatepivot running in a hole jewel
Schematic: jewelled bearing at a pivot. An outline schematic drawn to show the arrangement of the parts discussed here. It is not a dimensioned working drawing and does not depict a particular maker's calibre.

Sources & references

  1. Hermès, Wikipedia (English), retrieved 2026-11-03 (text CC BY-SA 4.0)
  2. Hermès (Unternehmen), Wikipedia (German), retrieved 2026-11-03 (text CC BY-SA 4.0)
  3. Hermès International, Wikipedia (French), retrieved 2026-11-03 (text CC BY-SA 4.0)
  4. Jean-Louis Dumas, Wikipedia (French), retrieved 2026-11-03 (text CC BY-SA 4.0)

Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.