Fashionphile sells handbags with brand names like Hermes, Gucci, and Christian Dior, shoes with names like Prada, Jimmy Chou and Chanel; jewelry from Cartier and Tiffany, Rolex watches, hats, scarves, sunglasses and much, much more. Do you think your dog deserves a collar from Hermes? They’ve got it.
But how is this sustainable? Because these ultra high-end, ultra-expensive bags and shoes and accessories are pre-owned; purchased from an owner who no longer fancies them and resold to someone who does. According to their website one "preloved" Birkin handbag saves 914.8 lbs of CO2 and 2040 gallons of water over one that is purchased new. A "pre-loved" Rolex Datejust saves 931 lbs of CO2 and 317 gallons of water. With
an inventory of tens of thousands it is easy to see how this adds up.
For its customers Fashionphile’s number one promise is authenticity—something that is all important in an industry that produces so many knock-offs, so many fakes. Before any item is posted to its website or sold in their flagship stores, it is thoroughly gone over by two highly qualified authenticators specializing in specific brand names.
So go ahead and treat yourself—at least to a look, as I did. Their website is here, but they also have a flagship store in San Diego and one in New York, and in San Francisco, Beverly Hills, Scottsdale and some other locations (check their website) there are “selling studios” where items can be sold.