Pierre-Alexis Dumas was born on 4 June 1966, a sixth-generation descendant of Thierry Hermès, the harness-maker who founded the house in Paris in 1837. His father was Jean-Louis Dumas, who led Hermès from 1978 and transformed it into a global house, and his mother was the Greek-born architect Rena Dumas, whose practice designed many Hermès interiors. At the age of eleven he was taught saddle-stitching by his grandfather, Robert Dumas, the creator of the house's first silk scarves and of the bag later named the Kelly.
He took a degree in visual arts at Brown University in 1991, then spent ten months with the silk firm Ratti in Como, learning engraving for printed textiles, colouring and pattern design. In 1992 he joined Hermès in Hong Kong, where over five years he helped establish the Chinese subsidiary and open the first shop in Beijing. From 1998 he ran the British subsidiary in London for four years.
Returning to Paris in 2002, he worked on new products for the silversmith Puiforcat and the crystal-maker Saint-Louis, both Hermès companies, and took charge of the house's communications. In 2005 he was appointed artistic director of Hermès, responsible for the creative direction of all its métiers. Under his direction the house has broadened its range of savoir-faire, adding high jewellery in 2010, furnishing fabrics and wallpaper in 2011, and a partnership with Apple in 2015; he also oversees its architecture, store design and heritage collections.
In 2008 he founded the Fondation d'entreprise Hermès, which supports craftsmanship and its transmission, young artists, who may take residencies in the house's workshops, and environmental and social causes. Its budget reached 25.2 million euros in 2023. Since December 2015 he has also been president of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.
He was made a Knight of the Legion of Honour in 2013 and a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2023. As of 2026 he remains artistic director of Hermès and its Artistic Executive Vice President. He is married to Sophie Bouilhet, of the Christofle silverware family, and they have three children.