Dubai – that Middle Eastern shrine to luxury consumption – may not be the first place you’d expect second hand clothes to be catching on, but it’s a testament to how quickly the notion of the circular economy is taking hold.
One company which has helped spearhead significant growth in second-hand luxury is Reflaunt, a technology company that brings Resale-as-a-Service to fashion brands and retailers. With Reflaunt, fashion retailers can get their own customers to resell or recycle their past purchases remotely, directly on their ecommerce platform.
Fashion brands and retailers therefore use Reflaunt’s global operations and resale infrastructure to take back their customers’ luxury wardrobe, inspecting and valuing every item, before then selling it on a network of over 100 million second-hand shoppers. Reflaunt partners include BALENCIAGA, NET-A-PORTER, Harvey Nichols, Saks OFF 5th, GANNI, and more than 30 resale channels worldwide. The company is already active in the UK, US, France, Germany, Italy, Hong Kong and Singapore, adding the launch in the UAE in January 2023.
With heightened expectations for fashion brands to facilitate a second life for products they put on the market, it is therefore no surprise that Reflaunt is scaling up its global operations and partnerships with leading luxury brands.
Within this context, leading luxury retailer Level Shoes has chosen Reflaunt as a trusted partner to offer their customers the opportunity to resell the luxury pieces they no longer wear, and browse a curated, online selection of pre-loved luxury that is showcased on the same site as the new arrivals.
Once they submit a request, a Level Shoes courier comes to their home to pick up their items which are later inspected, photographed and digitized with Reflaunt technology. The curated listings can be found in the “Pre Loved” section on levelshoes.com to find each piece a new home. The Level Shoes Pre Loved Buyback powered by Reflaunt service is available in the UAE, and will soon expand to more countries in the region.
Reflaunt’s partnership with the Chalhoub Group marks a pivotal moment for the resale market in the Middle East, ushered by the combination of Reflaunt’s expertise in resale and Level Shoes’ deep relationship with local consumers and unrivaled service offering.
“We are proud to join forces with Chalhoub Group to accelerate the scale-up of the resale market in the Middle East. Luxury shoppers now have at their fingertips the opportunity to pass on the pieces they no longer wear and enrich their wardrobes with vintage and timeless styles.” – Stephanie Crespin, co-founder and CEO of Reflaunt