Despite the troubled economy — or perhaps because of it — Hollywood entrepreneur louis vuitton, Roberto Szerer, has found an unusual niche and a solid market for his new business: women on a tight budget who love designer handbags.
Last year, Szerer launched LuxeDH, an online boutique selling authentic secondhand luxury handbags for up to 50 percent off the retail price.
"A Louis Vuitton handbag that retails for $900, you can find it in our site for $500-$550," said Szerer.
Since September 2010, the online business has been selling major designer brands such as Hermes, Chanel, Yves St. Laurent, among many others. His chief supply source: Women willing to sell their gently-used handbags for a few bucks.
Sabina Jacobs, the company's chief buyer and authenticator, said the economic downturn has made room for the business because: "Women are not looking to spend so much money on designer handbags anymore."
Milton Pedraza, an expert in high-end consumer spending patterns, said buying used luxury items is becoming a quite popular trend — especially among consumers who are not wealthy, but seek to project an image of wealth.
A lot of young consumers who are either not earning as much after the recession or are unemployed or feel that there is a risk in their job still covet luxury goods," said Pedraza, founder of the Luxury Institute, a New York based research firm focused on high-end consumption.
The trend is reflected on LuxeDH's success. The company sells approximately 200 handbags weekly to buyers Jacobs has dubbed "recessionistas."
Maggie Payen, of North Miami, is one of them.
"I've always bought brand new bags," said Payen, who has already made two purchases from the company. "If I can find a secondhand that's in good shape, why not?"
Payen said she has her eye on a third bag.
Jacobs said all the bags she buys are 100 percent genuine designer products and not knockoffs."We've never sold a fake bag, ever," she said.
She buys from women around the world who want to either "clean up their closets" or put money on their bank account.
Prices range from $99 to $2,000, which are still steep. But for women like Payen, who are used to paying around $900 for a medium-size Louis Vuitton purse and find it on the site for $500, it's a good deal.
I am saving like $300-$400. It's worth it to me," said Payen.
LuxDH offers its customers interest-free payment plans of three or six months — depending on the bag.
And if a customer is not happy with the bag, she can return it within five days of receiving the merchandise to get a full refund or 30 days for an exchange.
My business is to make women happy," said Szerer. “We assure our customers that all our louis vuitton outlet handbags are 100 percent authentic.
MANILA, Philippines — Police slashed fake louis vuitton outlet bags and drove armored vehicles over Oakley sunglasses and pirated DVDs Thursday to mark World Anti-Counterfeit Day - a first step in destroying a five-month haul of counterfeit goods.
The symbolic destruction at police headquarters in Manila involved a portion of the items seized from January through May and the rest will be destroyed later, Intellectual Property Office Philippines head Ricardo Blancaflor said.
The entire haul would be worth $39.4 million if the items were authentic, he said. The street value of such fakes is far less.
"This is only the tip of the iceberg and we intend to do this regularly," Blancaflor said.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development estimated that international trade in counterfeit and pirated goods in 2007 may have amounted to as much as $250 billion, or around 2 percent of global merchandise trade.
The Philippines is on a U.S. list of intellectual property rights violators.
A similar amount of faked louis vuitton goods were destroyed in the Philippines in February.
Tuesday night's 9th Annual Samsung Hope for Children Gala at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.
Louis vuitton outlet dress and bag, Jimmy Choo heels, M.C.L. by Matthew Campbell Laurenza drop earrings, and Neil Lane ring
Last night Demi Moore joined Jennifer Lopez, Padma Lakshmi, Selita Ebanks, and former President Bill Clinton at Samsung’s Hope for Children Gala to help raise funds for the charity. Moore's black Louis Vuitton dress sashayed with glistening strands and feather accouterments lining the deep-V neckline. The 48-year old actress completed her sweeping outfit with strappy Jimmy Choos, and glimmering jewelry that's impossible not to notice (along with those toned arms).
A smash-and-grab break-in early this morning at the Magnificent Mile louis vuitton outlet store netted several purses and other leather goods from the tony high-end retailer.
Somebody shattered the front door window at the Louis Vuitton store, 919 N. Michigan Ave., at around 6 a.m., said Chicago Police News Affairs Officer John Mirabelli.
Several handbags, purses, wallets and various items like that were taken," Mirabelli said. Police had no estimate of the retail value of the stolen items, Mirabelli said Saturday morning. The Louis Vuitton Web site lists several handbags for sale for more than $3,000. It's unclear what the thief used to break the glass, Mirabelli said. Belmont Area detectives are investigating, he said. A man who answered the phone around noon at the number for the Michigan Avenue Louis Vuitton would not discuss the incident, but said the louis vuitton store was closed.
Last year at this time, Kathy Johnson and her husband traveled to London and Paris louis vuitton store, where she spent about $2,000 on a shiny, red Louis Vuitton shoulder bag and a matching charm without much thought.
This year Johnson, who runs a tech advisory firm with her husband in the San Francisco Bay area, is recycling older dresses to save money.
"I'm thinking 'Maybe I'll just sneak in last year's dress and nobody will notice,' and I'll just accessorize it a bit differently," said Johnson, who expects to attend several holiday parties this year.
"I try to make it a little more about what I need on an everyday basis, rather than spending a bunch of money on something I'll just wear once or twice," she said.
Johnson's logic is likely to be played out across the country this season as U.S. consumers cut spending amid the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.
That is terrible news to department stores, boutiques and apparel makers, who tend to get a boost when the fashion-conscious splurge on clothes for office holiday parties and New Year's festivities.
U.S. retail chains just posted the worst October sales results in more than three decades, prompting the International Council of Shopping Centers to pare its already grim forecast for holiday season sales. It now expects November-December sales to rise 1 percent, from a prior view of 1.7 percent.
What is more, a recent survey by executive search firm Battalia Winston Amrop found that one-fifth of U.S. businesses are not having 2008 holiday parties, effectively passing out pink slips to women's "little black dresses."
That could hurt department stores like Nordstrom Inc <JWN.N> and Macy's Inc <M.N>, already struggling with sharp monthly sales declines, as well as women's apparel stores like AnnTaylor Stores Corp <ANN.N>, Talbots Inc <TLB.N> and Chico's FAS Inc <CHS.N>, which owns the White House Black Market chain in addition to its namesake stores.
"I think (consumers) are going to be very loath to buy anything," said Wendy Liebmann, chief executive of consulting firm WSL Strategic Retail, which researches shopping trends.
As for herself, Liebmann guessed that she will feel the need to be festive during this gloomy holiday season.
"But I know there's a very wonderful corner of a very wonderful closet of mine, which has absolutely fabulous stuff in it that I haven't worn for some time. So I know I will be shopping in that corner."
"But if (people) do feel they need an affordable little treat ... there are a lot of places women feel very comfortable buying used, pre-owned or excess inventory products."
According to her most recent poll, about 51 percent of women had bought second-hand clothes, and Liebmann expects that to increase as times get tougher and more people realize that some used clothing stores sell vintage designer dresses.
TJX Cos Inc <TJX.N>, an off-price retailer that buys excess merchandise at below wholesale prices, has outperformed in recent months as shoppers look for bargains at its TJ Maxx and Marshalls stores.
"We often talk about the resiliency of our off-price business model, and we are seeing that resiliency benefiting us in this difficult consumer environment," said TJX CEO Carol Meyrowitz in a statement last week.
LIFE GOES ON
A spokeswoman for Goodwill Industries International, which operates more than 2,000 second-hand stores across the U.S., said sales have increased nearly 7 percent over the first nine months of the year. More specifically, she said store managers in New York City -- the epicenter of the Wall Street meltdown -- were noticing new faces in their shoppers' midst lately.
Another discount avenue that is growing in popularity is sample sales, where fashion companies aim to unload excess goods at deep discounts. They have traditionally been held in cities like New York or Los Angeles, but a number of companies have emerged that now do the same thing online.
Top Button is one such company, which said it is getting a boost as louis vuitton outlet fashionistas become more bargain-conscious and the credit crisis forces some fashion brands out of business.
"We haven't seen a decrease in shopping," said Top Button co-founder Michael Feldman. "If anything, it's been a lot more." The company's original site TopButton.com has information about actual sample sales while a newer site, TopSecret.com, holds virtual sample sales.
A recent event featured Andrew Marc coats at 65 percent off retail. Feldman said they sold 1,200 pieces in five hours.
"People still have to go to parties. They may change their shopping habits ... but life doesn't stop," Feldman said.
That sentiment is being shared by executives at Ann Taylor, which usually sells many special occasion items like dresses, cashmere sweaters and party tops during November and December.
"Even in these challenging times, we still believe there will be parties, although they may take on a slightly different tone," said spokeswoman Maria Sceppaguercio.
For Laurice Rahme, founder and chief executive of boutique perfume-maker Bond No. 9, there may be fewer party invitations this year, but no drop off in shopping, especially when it comes to her favorite designer, Marc Jacobs.
"It just happened that his louis vuitton outlet collection is terrific this year. I just have to have one (item from it)," Rahme said.
Source from: http://www.louisvuittonoutletoe.com/blog_show.php?id=14
LVMH Moet Hennessy louis vuitton outlet SA, the world's largest luxury-goods maker, said a plan to open a store in Tokyo's Ginza shopping district was derailed after it failed to reach an agreement with the building's developer.
Talks with Tokyo-based developer Hulic Co have finished, Yuri Matsueda, an LVMH spokeswoman who works for Burson-Marsteller, told Bloomberg News by telephone yesterday, declining to elaborate.
The Paris-based company's Japan unit agreed to abandon a lease contract with Hulic as sales for luxury goods in Japan are declining, the Nikkei newspaper reported yesterday, without citing anyone.
The 12-story building was slated for completion in 2010, the report said. Land prices in Ginza, home to Japan's most expensive real estate louis vuitton, rose 28 percent last year.
Source from: http://www.louisvuittonoutletoe.com/blog_show.php?id=13