It’s high time to embrace circular fashion.
In this series, we look at what’s trending and notice what people are reaching their wallets for. We recommend which luxury products are worth trying and can satiate your retail therapy needs from fashion to beauty to food and tech.
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One (impactful) way we can live more eco-conscious lives is how we shop for fashion. Although many earth-friendly clothing brands have sprouted globally, a more sustainable way to shop is by buying resale and vintage.
READ ALSO: In With The Old: The Luxury Brands Dabbling In Reselling Pre-Loved Pieces From Past Collections
If you’ve never tried buying pre-loved pieces, now’s a great time to start. And not only for the environment but because of the booming second-hand fashion market. This means more options, safer transactions, and better chances of you finding a Balenciaga Motorcycle Bag in good condition.
According to Business of Fashion’s Insights Data, resale fashion will reach $57 billion by 2025. While the bulk of the market belongs to third-party online resale platforms, we rounded up the best sites for your foray into buying luxury vintage.
Here are four online consignment sites with a selection of designer goods, from handbags to jewelry and ready-to-wear to shoes, the items that are no longer in the brands’ stores.
Vestiaire Collective
“We are the Vestiaire Collective. And we really love fashion. Fashion is brilliant at creating desire, building extraordinary worlds,” writes the company on their website. However, they’re aware that the industry fuels overconsumption, overproduction, climate change, and poor work ethics.
In line with this, the platform was built for “those who don’t only take care of their styles for a season but for life.” Clients can either buy or sell used (or never worn) designer goods. The website offers tips on pricing items correctly based on seasonality, presentation, and encouraging transparency for sellers.
Popular searches on the platform include Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Gucci, Hermes, Bottega Veneta, and Dior.
You can shop here.
Fashionphile
Founded by its president Sarah Davis, Fashionphile was launched in 1999. Now, the website is one of the world’s largest pre-owned luxury brands and the exclusive “re-commerce” partner of luxury department store Neiman Marcus.
Fashionphile says their authentication process is “one of the most in-depth in the industry.” The company has in-house authenticators that specialize in specific brand names. Design features like a piece’s stamping, stitching, hardware, authenticity stamps, date codes, serial number (where applicable), and materials are reviewed.
The site’s new arrivals tab currently offers a Saint Laurent Calfskin Baby Sac De Jour in Fuchsia, an LV Monogram Utility Crossbody, and a red Lady Dior bag—all in “excellent condition.
You can shop here.
What Goes Around Comes Around
New York is a hotspot for sourcing rare vintage pieces, but that’d be quite the commute. With SoHo’s What Goes Around Comes Around, you can explore offerings from home thanks to their new online shop.
Your shopping experience may also be more effortless since all the items are curated before hitting the website. You can find vintage Chanel purses (we’ve spotted multiple Boy Bags), iterations of Rolex’s Datejust, and LV’s famous artist collaborations with Takashi Murakami and Stephen Sprouse.
You can shop here.
The Fifth Collection
Beyond their team of luxury goods authenticators, The Fifth Collection uses Entrupy, an artificial intelligence technology, for heightened accuracy. “Entrupy magnifies objects 260 times, so features invisible to the human eye become telltale signs,” said Bloomberg.
The Singapore-based company was voted the “Best Digital Start-Up” in 2016 by the readers of the publication Buro. Their offerings include everything from jewelry and watches to shoes and bags from brands like Fendi, Lanvin, Marni, Balenciaga, and Chanel.
You can shop here.
