Luxury Fashion's Resale Playbook with Fashionphile's Sarah Davis

For Fashionphile’s founder and president, Sarah Davis, selling pre-owned luxury isn’t new. An integral player responsible for pioneering the re-commerce approach to luxury, Davis began selling handbags on eBay as a law student in 1999. Now, more than two decades later, Fashionphile is the largest online platform for buying and selling luxury handbags and accessories in the U.S.

Despite the pandemic, the luxury resale sector was estimated to be worth $25-$30 billion in 2020, proof that the stigma once associated with buying pre-owned items is fading fast. Ripe with opportunity, some luxury brands see resale as a vehicle to attract younger customers, boost sales, access data, and reinforce their sustainability credentials.

However, for some, the rewards of the secondhand market don’t outweigh the challenges. While there’s a good case for luxury brands to embrace resale, many are reluctant to capitalize on the booming pre-owned market, concerned that resale could cannibalize the sale of new products. Fakes and stolen goods being smuggled into the resale market are also a concern as this could lead to market saturation that brands worry could dilute their exclusivity. For others, the potential financial rewards of resale don’t outweigh the complexity of implementing the logistics necessary to own their customer experience.

As sustainability continues to grow as a priority for both consumers and companies, it’s clear that luxury resale is here to stay and those who don’t actively engage are missing out on business and brand-building opportunities.

In this episode of the Crash Course Fashion podcast, SFF founder Brittany Sierra speaks with Sarah Davis about the future of luxury resale and how high-end brands can capitalize on the booming market by creating a comprehensive, data-driven strategy that brings meaningful value to the customer resale experience.

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Short on time? Here are a few timestamps to get straight to the goods:

• 12:02 How the pandemic has impacted luxury resale.
  
• 15:50 Why brands are reluctant to get into resale.
  
• 18:50 Why luxury brands shouldn’t be concerned with market cannibalization.
  
• 24:30 How Fashionphile uses tech to accurately authenticate products.
  
• 34:47 How luxury brands can get started with resale.
  
• 44:17 When does a Chanel bag ever end up in a landfill?
  
• 51:20 What’s needed to encourage customer participation in luxury resale
  
• 52:35 Today’s shopper buys investment pieces/what it means for a brand if your brand doesn’t do well in the resale market