Dive Brief:
- Despite stubborn inflation, higher retail prices and waning consumer confidence, interest in luxury resale fashions are still high this year, according to a new report from Fashionphile.
- The Ultra-Luxury Resale Report tracks data from Fashionphile, an online retailer for pre-owned luxury accessories, between July 2022 and June 2023.
- Quietly understated classic brands sparked interest during the period, as did loud patterns and styles of luxury designer handbags. Consumers have a strong interest in both quiet and loud fashion styles in searches for designer handbags, the report found.
Dive Insight:
Searches for classic brands like Loewe, Celine and Bottega Veneta, which the report refers to as “quiet luxury,” grew by 34%. Similarly for its classic appeal, searches for Tiffany & Co. surged by 150%.
Despite the quiet luxury trend, loud, striking patterns such as bold prints like polka dots, saw a higher jump in searches on the site, with a 71% increase.
Among bold accessories, customers drove up searches for pins and brooches by 30%, with Gucci and Chanel as the most popular. Sales of items from Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama jumped 51%.
Not surprisingly, the ongoing fascination with Barbie-inspired pink hues saw a 294% increase in searches for magenta on the Fashionphile website. Bright colors on classic investment bags gained significant interest as well, specifically in heavy metallics, fiery red and blue.
In a nod to Rom-Com Core – a resurgence of beauty and fashion trends from the 1990s and 2000s – the site saw a 30% increase in sales for raffia and woven bags and a 77.5% sales jump for accessories made from denim.
The report also points out that Gen X and Millennial shoppers hold greater influence when it comes to shopping for luxury items at favorable prices. These age groups rank the highest for visiting any discounted shopping page on the brand’s website this year.
The overall resale market continues to climb, according to a report from ThredUp, although projections have been modified. The U.S. market is expected to reach $70 billion by 2027 and $350 billion globally that same year. That marks a significant increase from last year’s numbers of $39 billion in the U.S. and $177 billion globally.
One area of luxury accessories that is seeing the effects of a slowing global economy is luxury watches. Overall resale demand for the category has dropped, per a report from Insider. Higher interest rates and inflation were cited as the main reasons many luxury watch brands adjusted their prices upwards.
Despite economic headwinds that may result in a global recession, executives at Fashionphile are optimistic that the luxury sector will hold its own.
“While it’s true that consumer spending confidence levels and CPI have decreased across all industries, we’re confident that luxury resale will continue to grow due to its value proposition set in sustainability, accessibility, affordability, and investment value,” said Sophia Tsao, chief marketing officer of Fashionphile in an email to Fashion Dive.
A market report earlier this year from Bain & Company projected a year of continued growth in the luxury market.
“Our Fashionphile historical data shows sales, customer demand and engagement has been relatively stable in maintaining growth,” said Tsao.
