It takes about two years to train an Hermes craftsman, with each one supervised by an existing craftsman. PHOTOS: HERMES
Hermes is bucking the downward retail trend. Its chief executive Axel Dumas attributes this to the French luxury house’s emphasis on craftsmanship.

It has been said that the first generation creates wealth, the second consolidates it and the third squanders it.
Hermes, the favourite bastion of Parisian good taste, not only bucks the trend, but is also a notable exception to the maxim.
Founded in 1837 as a saddlery by Thierry Hermes, the family-owned French luxury house, with its old-world elegance, holds an enviable and unchallenged position at the pinnacle of the luxury sector.

With an annual revenue of ?4.8 billion (S$7.4 billion) last year, up 18 per cent from the year before, sales in every geographical region have posted growth, according to its 2015 annual report: Japan (18 per cent); Asia, excluding Japan (5 per cent); America (7 per cent); Europe, excluding France (9 per cent) and France (6 per cent). Sales in most categories – or metiers as the French house calls them – have also seen an increase: leather goods and saddlery (13 per cent), ready-to-wear and accessories (8 per cent), perfumes (3 per cent) and other metiers which include jewellery and homeware (9 per cent).
Set against the current economic climate, in which growth is almost non-existent or snail-slow for many luxury companies such as Prada and Burberry, its ove...