Hermes Apologizes to Oprah

(andPOP) - Who would believe that talk-show queen and aspiring weight loss guru Oprah would be turned away from a door?

The French luxury store Hermes apologized to Oprah Winfrey for turning her away from one of its Paris boutiques last week, saying it was closed for a public-relations event when she tried to enter the store.

Winfrey and "an entourage" unsuccessfully tried to enter an Hermes boutique on Paris' posh Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore at 6:45 p.m. on June 14, Hermes said in a statement.

"People were in the store and they were shopping. Oprah was at the door and she was not allowed into the store," Gayle King, a friend of Winfrey who witnessed the incident, told TV show "Entertainment Tonight." "Oprah describes it herself as 'one of the most humiliating moments of her life'."

The store's normal closing time is 6:30 p.m., although high-end shops are known to make exceptions for celebrities. On that particular night, however, "a private public relations event was being prepared inside," the statement from Hermes said.

"Hermes regrets not having been able to welcome Madame Oprah Winfrey and the people accompanying her to give them all the attention and service that Hermes is committed to giving each of its clients in the world," said the statement, released Tuesday. "Hermes expresses its sincere regrets for any misunderstanding that these circumstances could have caused."

This humbling experience for Winfrey shows that even celebrity A-listers can get turned away at posh doors, not just less chic people like the rest of us.