Hermes opens its gilded doors

Mario Katigbak never fails to create a highly pleasurable experience in his events. As GM of Hermes, the formal opening of the first Hermes store in the country was a unique one. Sipping Piper-Heidsieck, we spotted elegant ladies-who-lunch with their eye-catching Birkins; to name a few, Mellie Ablaza, Helen Ong, Nympha Valencia, Czarina Syquia, Natasha Morse. The crowd was eyeing the main attraction: a purple alligator Birkin with diamonds worth the price of a car. Overheard some guests congratulating my husband Rupert, on his recent ‘Faaabvlous’ exhibit. Dusky beauty Chu Chu Madrigal Eduque gushed: “Oooh, my portrait was so beautiful. Jaime (Zobel) himself told me.”After the welcome speeches, we were guided onto a pathway, covered on both sides with 8-ft high hedges, which ran from the Hermes boutique to the Ayala Museum, its pavement lined with orange hoofs. It’s as if one had entered a chateau garden in Western Europe, forgetting that we were in Greenbelt. The innovative design was highlighted with waiters donning horse heads, as well as waiters carrying trays with more bubbly for the thirsty traveler. The glitzy opening was led by Hermès executives, Bertrand Michaud and David Smaniotto, H.E. Ambassador Thiery Borja de Mozota, Jaime and Bea Zobel, and the Rustan’s top brass, Ambassador Bienvenido Tantoco, Nedy Tantoco and Anton Huang. At the Ayala Museum, musical numbers were provided by Jay Cayuca, with more cocktails galore and gastronomic fare by The Peninsula Manila.