The RealReal and Gucci Partner for Online Consignment Shop
The RealReal announced yesterday that it has partnered with Gucci for an online consignment shop through the end of 2020. Gucci is the most in-demand men’s brand on The RealReal for a third consecutive year, and is the No. 2 brand on the luxury consignment marketplace behind Louis Vuitton. In addition, The RealReal reported that Gucci has seen demand from shoppers ages 18-to-34 soar on its platform. Julie Wainwright, The RealReal’s founder and CEO, described the partnership as being rooted in sustainability. The site’s biggest contribution to fashion has been elevating the concept of secondhand fashion and promoting it as a more sustainable way to shop, namely by giving clothes a “second life.”
Total Retail's Take: This is an interesting partnership, to say the least. Gucci is a world-known luxury brand, while The RealReal is a consignment and resale platform — exactly what the luxury fashion houses railed against for a number of years (and not so long ago). Their top complaint? That marketplaces such as The RealReal, thredUP, and others of that ilk were too frequently the purveyors of counterfeit goods, and in the process were damaging the hard-earned reputations of luxury brands such as Gucci. However, just as luxury fashion brands came around to the idea of selling their goods via direct-to-consumer e-commerce sites, so too have they warmed to unique partnerships that could increase their exposure, particularly online. Amidst a global pandemic and the steady decline of brick-and-mortar retail, growing your digital footprint makes sense for all brands, including those in the luxury space. Add in the environmental sustainability benefits that Gucci gets from teaming up with The RealReal (e.g., an outlet for excess and out-of-season merchandise), and this partnership doesn't sound so crazy after all.
