Real and fake Hermès handbags abound on eBay (EBAY) with listings galore, but one place you can't find either is Amazon (AMZN) -- the retailer has typically not been the place to score a luxury handbag.
Large fashion houses like Chanel, Hermès, and LVMH (LVMHF) have repeatedly resisted any partnership with the e-commerce giant and fought hard against any fake listings that pop up.
The reason is not hard to guess as most fashion houses retain both sales and reputation due to manufactured exclusivity. Limiting a product's reach to one's own brand also makes it easier to keep counterfeiters at bay.
That said, a number of high-end brands will soon still find their way to Amazon--the e-commerce platform is launching a new luxury resale store in partnership with storied consignment shop What Goes Around Comes Around.
Luxury Clothes and Handbags on Amazon
Launched in New York's SoHo neighborhood in 1993, the stylish shop soon developed a loyal following among fashionistas. While far from cheap for resale items, it has a reputation as the place to find rare pieces by everything from Gucci and Pierre Cardin to antique jewelry pieces from the 19th century.
What Goes Around Comes Around, which has since expanded to multiple stores across NYC and Beverly Hills, is also known to have one of the largest resale collections of Hermès bags in the country.
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Branded as Luxury Stores at Amazon, Amazon's new luxury resale platform launched Thursday. Prior to the that, there was a WGACA storefront selling pieces like a Louis Vuitton Monogram Roses Speedy bag for $3,700 to gold and faux pearl monogrammed 'CC' earrings for $1,650.
These items are all pre-owned--as the brands themselves do not partner with Amazon, new items from them are not available through the platform.
The new site already features over 500 bags and accessories from brands such as Hermès, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Dior (CHDRF) , and Kering (PPRUF) 's Yves Saint Laurent. It hopes to have hopes to have 2,000 items by the end of the year.
"Our customers, especially millennial and Gen-Z customers, have been sharing their interest in vintage and pre-loved luxury," Amazon Fashion President Muge Erdirik Dogan said in a statement. "We are excited to bring Amazon's joyful shopping experience, convenience, and fast shipping to pre-loved luxury product shopping."
Reselling Designer Handbags Is Good Business
While consignment has traditionally been a way to unload clothes one no longer wears, luxury brands, and more specifically some of their most popular models, can be a real investment.
The price of a Chanel 2.55 flap bag grew from $7,800 in 2020 to $8,880 in 2021.
Luxury watch company Chrono 24 found that Kering (PPRUF) 's Gucci was one of the most popular resale brands. In the 90 days leading up to the end of September, 23,939 used Gucci items were sold on eBay.
During the same time period, 18,071 second-hand Louis Vuitton items also sold on the platform. A blue and green monogrammed Taurillon Illusion Keepall Bandouliere 50 bag that sold for $6,435 was the most expensive.
Given the high resale value, consignment also opens up potential for both scalpers and counterfeiters. To prevent buy-outs and resales, Chanel's South Korea branch instituted new rules this spring that prevent a customer from buying from than one Timeless Classic flap bag and one Coco Handle bag every year.
"We have sometimes to limit the number of items a single client can buy,” Chanel CFO Philippe Blondiaux told Reuters in May.
