Buying designer goods online is often a daunting experience, because you never really know whether you’re getting the real deal or not. And with Internet scams on the rise across e-marketplaces such as Carousell and eBay, it’s hard to really trust the seller on the other end.
Which is why we’re thanking our lucky stars that Vestiaire Collective is finally available in Singapore. Not only do they have a wide stock of designer goods that range from bags to shoes and clothing, everything sold on the site is verified and 100% authentic. No counterfeits, no surprise damages and no stress!
On the tail of their launch in Singapore, we caught up with co-founder Fanny Moizant, to learn more about Vestiaire Collective and get insider tips on how you can shop designer goods online or in real life without having to second-guess its authenticity.
Fanny Moizant
Hello Fanny! Firstly, what inspired your co-founders and you to start Vestiaire Collective?
Back in 2009, I noticed that people were selling past-season products on their blogs during the recession, but I was concerned that there wasn’t a trusted online site that could guarantee authenticity and give a fair price for the piece depending on its condition.
I searched my friend’s wardrobes and pulled out anything that they didn’t use that we could sell and, along with the other five co-founders, we launched Vestiaire Collective from our flats in Paris. That was eight years ago, we now have offices in six countries across three continents and over six million members on the site.
Can you explain how shopping on Vestiaire Collective differs from shopping on other e-commerce sites?
Vestiaire Collective is more than just a shopping site, but somewhere you can go to read interesting articles and watch videos with inspiring women. All with the added bonus of shopping from a tightly curated collection, that has been edited by our team of curators, quality control specialists and authenticity experts.
The site is a perfect mix of e-commerce and social networking. We focus on our community of over six million people and we encourage them to interact with each other so it’s not just a ‘buy-sell’ experience.
We use our social media channels as inspiration platforms, aligning ourselves with the best profiles and ambassadors, which in turn inspires their followers to find out more about us.
How does Vestiaire Collective authenticate everything that’s sold on the website?
Once an item has sold, the seller will send the item to either our offices in Paris, New York or the soon-to-open Hong Kong branch. Here, our quality control teams physically check every item ensuring that they meet the description set by the seller.
Our authenticity specialists ensure that each item is authentic. We have less than 0.5% of counterfeit items arriving in the hands of our experts, who have all come from fashion backgrounds and are trained to meet Vestiaire Collective standards.
In 2012 we signed the Fight Against Online Counterfeiting Charter initiated by the French government. The charter joins us to brands such as Chanel, Celine, Dior, Burberry, Givenchy and Louis Vuitton in order to collaborate in the fight against the sale of online counterfeits, which we are extremely passionate about.
Who are the designers that you are obsessed with at the moment?
Mark Cross for their stunning bags, Pallas and Blaze Milano for their incredible suits/jackets and The Vampire’s Wife for their velvet dresses.
Images: Vestiaire Collective
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