Chanel purse purchased from Fashiophile, one of my oldest purchases from 2013
{May 2020 Update: I’ve written an updated post called Tips for Buying an Used Luxury Bag. It’s a bit different from this one so check it out if you’re interested.}
If you've been a long time reader or follow my Instagram, you know that I'm a huge fan of used/secondhand/preowned designer bags and watches (actually I'm a fan of used clothes too, but I already talked about that when I wrote up my guide to thrift shopping here). But today I'm focusing on purchasing preowned designer accessories.
Celine wallet purchased from Fashionphile
I've always loved designer accessories, especially handbags. I don't know why but ever since my first coach wristlet in high school, I can't get enough. My mother, who always views my expensive handbag purchases as a waste of money, can't understand it and thinks I'm just trying to show-off. But I really don't feel that way. I just love beautifully made handbags (they're like works of art!) and they are the perfect finishing touch on an otherwise simple outfit (the kind of outfits I like the most). Plus rather than buying a $100-$300 handbag that I wouldn't be able to resell for any kind of return, I buy $1000 handbags that I can resell for almost as much (and well if I buy it used, I usually pay less so that when I resell it, I rarely lose money). So if I'm being smart about it, I actually lose less money on a more expensive handbag and there is always someone willing to buy it from me. And on occasion I sometimes make money.
I'm sure not everyone shares my love of bags, but for those who do, my secret to my handbag "collection" is that it's predominately secondhand and it's always evolving so that the actual number of purses in my possession at any one time is manageable. And I'm always quick to sell a bag (usually on eBay) once I find that I'm not using it as much as my other bags.
Anyway here are the two ways I buy secondhand designer handbags:
1) eBay: my go-to place to sell and my former go-to place to buy. I no longer really buy from eBay anymore because there are just SO MANY fakes in the world these days. When I did buy from eBay, I made sure that A) the seller is legit {usually indicated by a massive amount of positive feedback and also you can sometimes find threads on the PurseForum of legit eBay sellers} , B) I always double-checked with the authenticators on the PurseForum {go to the specific brand you're buying and find the "Authenticate This" thread}. I used to buy Chanels on eBay and would use Etinceler Authentications to ensure those really high ticket items were legit. They cost money, but they know their Chanels and trust me, it's worth the peace of mind. (Another one I've heard of but have never personally used is called Authenticate4u.com). {update: I just used Bababebi.com to authenticate a pre-owned Hermes purchase and found her services to be quick and professional. Since it's not listed on her site, I'll let you know here that it's $65 for an email authentication and $80 for a certificate of authentication. She is the main authenticator on the Hermes thread so if you're ever in doubt about an Hermes purchase and can't get it authenticated on the Purse Forum (I've noticed they're kind of cracking down on authentication abuse), then it's very much worth it to get your expensive Hermes purchases authenticated with her.}
Balenciaga Work Bag from Fashionphile
2) Fashionphile: I know I've talked about this site already, but really I love their service and their commitment to authentic items. I also love the fact that every single bag in their inventory goes through a rigorous authentication process. Not to say Fashionphile sometimes doesn't get fooled by fakes, but their return policy is more than generous (free returns as long as the tag is still attached and up to 30 days). I once bought an Hermes wallet that seemed a little fishy to me, and since that was my first impression I just returned it. I mean if I don't feel like it's authentic (even if it might be real), I might as well return it. The return policy is also key when you realize that the purse is just too used for your liking (for the most part Fashionphile's descriptions are very accurate and many times I find the quality better than described, but sometimes you just don't realize how bad of a perfume odor is on a bag until you get it). Also Fashionphile has been around for a long time with a great clientele of sellers as well as buyers. Neiman Marcus also recently invested in them so you know they’re legit! On top of all that, if you buy a bag from them but realize in 6 months that the bag is not for you, they have a BuyBack program which will give you 70% of the item's purchase price. This is a great option for those who don't resell on other platforms. I've done this before with a couple of my purses, though to be honest I love most of the items I've purchased from them and thus didn't want to sell it back after just 6 months. Of course all of this good stuff does come with a price: Fashionphile's prices are higher than what you would find on eBay. But in return, you can count on getting authentic designer items that you will love (and you don't have to do all the legwork yourself to confirm authenticity). {Also I should note that when I bought my Cartier watch from Fashionphile, they were still using an outside authentication expert, WatchFacts, and they would be a good source to authenticate any expensive used watch you might buy elsewhere).
My latest purchase from Fashionphile, Hermes Lindy 30 and Hermes twilly
Oh and another thing about Fashionphile, you can keep track of your favorites by clicking on the heart icon. And sometimes when you miss out on a purse, but the buyer decides to sell it back to Fashionphile after 6 months, the bag automatically is included on your favorites list again. Also, for the most part I purchase my bags from fashionphile when it's 10%-30% off their already discounted prices by waiting for the markdowns (the date of which is conveniently shown to you once you favorite an item). And their last call section (which are items discounted more than 30%) has some really really good deals!
Anyways I know designer handbags are not for everyone, but for me I just can't seem to quit them. So I might as well buy them used, since not only is it good for the environment but also for my wallet.
{Update: And if you want to know what it’s like to sell with Fashionphile, you can read all about my experience here.}