Excuse my french(ness).

{ Message censuré sur le board du site d'Oprah. }

 In France we used to have an expression: The costumer is King but remember we cut kings heads off few centuries ago.

Ok, lets make a presentation, i'm french, 26 years old male, traveled all around the world, and i lived in Paris my all life, France is the most visited country in the world so we don't realy care about colours (even less in shops like Hermès), we are use to. I think the most important part of the Hermès customers as well as for others "high class" trader marks (Vuitton, Chanel,...) are rich arabic princess, japones tourists, and wealthy americans (black or not, think about bling-bling hip-hop boys and girls). Also remember that Paco Rabanne (french designer) was the first one to bring black models on runways and he was boycott in USA because of that !! I work in a tourist hotel in the city center (latin quater if you been there) and most of our clients are americans, and let me tell you that we don't despise americans as you seem to believe, we watch your tv shows (my favorit is HBO's "Six Feet Under"), listen to your music, watch your films, how a country who gives birth to people like David Linch, Bret Easton Ellis, Christina Aguilera (no, was kidding on that one) or Nina Simon can be hated ! Most of us just don't understand your political choices (at least for half of you) or some of your manners but we kind of like you, and not for your money ! France is the 4th richest country in the world, Paris is almost as expensive as New York to live in, France don't live on tourism money, your tips won't make us live, stop seeing the rest of the world as a holiday resort, we're pretty much the same. We more have a problem with the all "i spend my dollars so i treat you like a dog" attitude some americans can have, money don't necessarily give you respect over here, you have to show respect to get some, we are not a "bling-bling" country (we just sell them, lol). We know that americans who come to France are not the narrowminded ones (most of the time), it's always interesting to exchange points of views and i'm sad to see that someone like Oprah, who had such an influence (only in the states, she's totaly unknown here) and do stuff to help people, falling totaly in the all diva cliché and delivering such an image of french. What's her point, make people get fired and make americans hate more France ? ... (but i'm pretty happy and surprise with all your reactions !)

(And by the way "North Africans" are not black.)