Hermes - The Newest Zoo

French luxury brand Hermes has announced or admitted to the breeding of its own crocodiles on farms in Australia.  Hermes already has a difficult time keeping up with the high demand of the exotic-skin bags as customers wait years to carry what the celebrities are sporting.   Costs of the bag can reach nearly $50,000 and many argue that the price point in itself is sinful enough.  What strikes most readers is the fact that it takes so many animals to make a single accessory.  Hermes CEO Patrick Thomas states, “It can take three to four crocodiles to make one of our bags so we are now breeding our own crocodiles.”   High expenses are due to the reptiles being kept apart in separate rooms to keep their skins bite free.  I’m not sure which I fear more, the crocodile farms in Australia or the people at Hermes.

Picture of CEO Hermes International, Patrick Thomas and Rachel

Weisz at the opening on Wall Street in New York City in 2007.