What Savannah James’ Hermès Incident Reveals About Luxury Brands and Black Consumers

Savannah James is speaking out about a negative luxury shopping experience she endured in Europe. Now, her story is sparking a larger conversation around Black people’s complicated relationship with designer stores.

James recently shared the information alongside her friend April McDaniel on the latest episode of the “Question Everything” podcast. During their chat, McDaniel prompted James to tell the story about a bad experience they had at the Hermès store while traveling in Milan.

“One time we were in Milan. They treated us like sh*t; they closed down the whole motherf*cking store…Then fired the lady. I said, ‘We’ll be back, I’ll be back for you,’” McDaniel said.

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James went on to explain that they’d already set up an appointment to shop the store, but upon their arrival, it was clear their business was unwelcome. As a result, McDaniel made a couple of phone calls, and the entire store was closed so that the two women could shop in peace.

“We were in the private room with champagne and macarons. We were up in there doing it,” McDaniel noted.

“They brought out everything,” James added.

The NBA superstar’s wife then shared a “crazy” experience she had at the Chanel store years ago, detailing how an employee told her not to touch a bag she was interested in that was sitting on the floor.

“It caught me off guard. Typically, when it’s like an exclusive situation, it’ll say, ‘Don’t touch.’ I can read. Very much so. And I can see very clearly. And there was nothing that said, ‘Don’t touch.’ And I’m in a merchandise store. That man said, ‘Don’t touch,’” she explained.

James went on to subtly express that after the encounter, she made the quiet choice to no longer shop at the store, while McDaniel shared that she’d be calling upper management at the highest level to make an example out of the ordeal.

Unfortunately, James’ and McDaniel’s encounters are nothing new to Black people. If you take one look at social media, you’ll find a plethora of videos and posts by everyday patrons who have either been ignored, “mistaken” for an employee, racially profiled, and more at designer stores like Chanel, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and others. And who could forget the two incidents that happened to Oprah Winfrey at luxury stores in 2005 and 2013?

If you’ll remember, the first incident caused a firestorm in the news after Winfrey was not allowed inside the Hermès store 15 minutes after they closed so that she could make a quick purchase. While some outlets reported that they were closed for a private event and Winfrey should’ve gotten there earlier, others felt it was an incident of racial profiling and questioned why she was being refused.

The second incident happened about eight years later when the popular TV host visited the Trois Pommes store in Zurich, and an employee refused three times to show her a specific Tom Ford bag she was interested in.

The mistreatment of Black customers at luxury stores is largely rooted in the innate stereotypes they embrace about Black consumers. As a result, it prompts them to do things like promote only their more colorful and “entry-price-point items,” as the Business of Fashion calls them, to Black customers while saving the “cleaner, elevated and pricier” items for white customers.

Ignorance and false stereotypes also lead to racially insensitive products, as we’ve seen over the years. The mistreatment even trickles down to their own employees of color, subjecting them to racial microaggressions and more on the inside.

Truthfully, we don’t know what it’s going to take for Black consumers to choose not to spend their dollars where they’re not respected. But hopefully, James’ story can continue sparking this much-needed conversation.