The Right Way To Shop Pre-Loved Luxury Handbags
Gucci, Fendi, Prada, Louis Vuitton. I’ve always loved the beautiful designs that these luxury brands create, specifically ones from older eras. Between the outrageous prices of a new luxury bag and my appreciation for sustainable fashion, purchasing a vintage (or ”pre-loved”) handbag just made sense for me. Since this would be my first ever luxury bag purchase, I spent a considerable amount of time researching best price and authenticity guarantee. I thought I’d share some advice from my own experience to make yours a little easier! In case you’re curious, this post is not in collaboration with any of the below mentioned brands; I did not receive any payment or gifted items from the following brands.
Pick A Retailer
My first piece of advice would be to decide which retailer works best for you. At first, I was considering the following four options; Tradesy, The Purse Ladies, The Real Real, and The Vintage Bar. I finally narrowed it down to Tradesy and The Purse Ladies. I felt that these two retailers provided a larger selection of well-cared for bags in my price rage (which was $200-$350) than the others did. Ultimately, I decided to go with Tradesy because they offered free return shipping and were more likely to offer a discount code. Tradesy is a little different than the other three retailers because it’s platform allows individuals to sell luxury handbags right from their own closets (similar to Poshmark). And while this might seem risky, the Tradesy Authenticity Promise was enough to make me feel confident with my purchase. Tradesy has an algorithm that recognizes fakes with a 99.7% accuracy. Plus, if you receive the bag in the mail and you have any reservations about it being authentic, then Tradesy will pay for round trip shipping to their headquarters to have the bag inspected by an expert. While Tradesy was the best option for me, I would suggest that you check out various websites and decide which works best for you based on budget, authenticity guarantee, and potential desire to return.
2. Familiarize Yourself with Real vs. Fake
Regardless of a retailer’s authenticity guarantee, you should still have some knowledge on spotting a real vs. a fake. Whichever brand you’re looking to purchase, make sure to google “how to spot real vs. fake brand X handbag.” Inspect the photos in the listing and try to discern if there are any potential red flags. For example, after reading this article, I inspected the photos in the Tradesy listing to verify that the logos, serial number, and Controllato card all appeared to be authentic. I did the same thing once the bag arrived in the mail.
3. Take Your Time
Don’t rush into things! Make sure you’ve looked through Instagram or Pinterest for inspiration. This will help you decide which brand or design you really want to go with. Don’t be afraid to wait for a price-drop or a discount code to come out. I used the Tradesy “favorites” tool to keep track of which bags I liked most. I received emails anytime there was a price drop for one of the bags I had favorited. I gave it a week or two before making my purchase. By waiting, I saved an extra $50 because the listing price dropped and Tradesy was offering a $25 discount at the time! The beautiful Gucci bag featured in the photos above came out to a whopping $207 after tax!
When the bag came in the mail I was really happy with my purchase! Even though the bag I purchased was listed as “in like new condition,” when I inspected it in person there were actually some stains and stuffs on it that the seller had failed to mention. Because I got the bag at such a great price, I didn’t mind. But it’s important to remember that you’re buying a bag that was previously owned by someone else. So you have to be prepared for the bag to be in a used condition regardless of how well it was cared for. I hope the tips from today’s post will help you find a great buy that you’ll be happy with!
Photographer #1:
Bill McGuiness
Stylist, Model, Photographer #2, and Writer:
Yours,