1837–1880
An equestrian beginning
Thierry Hermès founded a harness workshop in Paris. The family moved the business to 24 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in 1880, an address closely associated with the house ever since.
The House & Its Designers
Hermès
Paris · 1837
The saddler’s discipline, carried into everyday objects.
Hermès began with harnesses and saddlery. Its later bags retained that concern for strong construction, useful closures and materials that change with use, even as the house expanded into silk, clothing and other métiers.
13 photographs · Reviewed August 2026
Explore the history ↓
01 / The house
The story behind the name.
20th century
Beyond the saddle
As travel and daily life changed, Hermès expanded into bags, clothing and silk. The first silk carré appeared in 1937.
1930s–1956
The Kelly’s earlier life
Robert Dumas developed the bag in the 1930s. A widely circulated photograph of Grace Kelly carrying it in 1956 helped establish its lasting association with her.
1984
The Birkin
A conversation between Jane Birkin and Jean-Louis Dumas inspired a capacious handbag. Its construction and practical details tied it back to the house’s leather-working tradition.
The house in pictures
People, places and objects, with source credits.
02 / The designers
The people who shaped the house.
Selected creative chapters; dates distinguish appointments from runway debuts.
Founder
Thierry Hermès
Established the harness-making workshop.
Successive family generations
Robert Dumas and Jean-Louis Dumas
Helped develop the bags and broader creative world of the house.
Women’s ready-to-wear · 1997–2003
Martin Margiela
Brought a restrained, construction-focused approach to the wardrobe.
Women’s ready-to-wear · 2003–2010
Jean-Paul Gaultier
Explored equestrian references with wit and theatrical flair.
Women’s ready-to-wear · 2010–2014
Christophe Lemaire
Focused on supple, understated clothes.
Appointed 2014 · women’s ready-to-wear
Nadège Vanhée
Develops a modern wardrobe in dialogue with the house’s materials and craft.
03 / The bags
A vocabulary in leather and form.
A selection of the house’s designs. Resale photographs illustrate individual examples; size, finish and condition vary.
01
Birkin
A structured top-handle bag with a flap, belted straps and a turn-lock closure.
02
Kelly
A trapezoid bag with a single top handle and belted flap closure.
More designs to know
- Constance
- A compact shoulder bag fastened with an H-shaped clasp.
- Bolide
- A rounded zip-top bag with short handles and a smooth, domed profile.
- Evelyne
- A practical crossbody with a broad strap and perforated H panel.
- Picotin
- An open, bucket-shaped bag with short handles and a strap closure.
- Garden Party
- A roomy tote offered in canvas-and-leather and all-leather versions.
- Lindy
- Two handles sit at the ends of a soft, folding body.
- Herbag
- A canvas-and-leather bag with a structured flap and central closure.
- Jypsière
- A crossbody silhouette that adapts the house’s belted flap closure.
- Halzan
- A folding leather design that changes shape for hand, shoulder or crossbody carry.
- Plume
- A clean-lined rectangular zip bag with short handles.
- Kelly Pochette
- A small clutch-like interpretation of the Kelly, with a short leather handle.
- Mini Kelly II
- A miniature, structured Kelly silhouette with a top handle and shoulder strap.
- Hermès 24/24
- A supple body contrasts with a structured flap and turn-lock.