Hermès opens eighteenth leather workshop
Parisian luxury goods house Hermès recently opened its eighteenth leather workshop, neighbouring the company-owned Tannerie de Montereau in the Montereau commune of France’s Seine-et-Marne department, around 56 kilometres from central Paris.
The brand described the new site as fostering a strong artisan and human culture in a press release, particularly on account of its long-term links with local recruitment and training partners on the ground in Montereau.
Hermès emphasised the value placed upon both leather cutting and table work in the workshop, adding how artisans’ ability to exchange expertise with the house’s nearby tanners helps to create a sense of “innovative synergy” around the brand’s leathers and leathermaking.
Built on former brownfield land, over 200 trees and “thousands” of shrubs have been planted at the site, contributing to a re-greening strategy that is consistent with the luxury company’s sustainability ambitions, as the brand described it. 250 square-metres of hybrid solar panels and a fully LED lit space round out the house’s eco-conscious efforts.
Currently, Hermès employs more than 4,000 saddler-leatherworkers, with a further leather workshop planned to open in Guyenne in the Gironde department of France’s Aquitaine region in September 2021.
Three additional French workshops are also “in the pipeline”, the brand said, including in Louviers (Eure, Normandy), Tournes (Ardennes) and Riom (Puy-de-Dôme, Auvergne).
Image: Hermès.
