Navigating the used luxury pocket room has its challenges.
For privacy reasons, sellers often don't want to be seen selling their designer bags. You may also find it too time consuming to answer questions from interested buyers or to complete the transaction yourself.
At the other end of the spectrum, buyers are concerned about whether they are getting the real deal or a cheap discount with their hard-earned money.
For this reason, connoisseurs turn to the luxury supplier LuxLexicon, where they can sell and buy popular Hermès handbags without much fuss.
Meet S’pores largest luxury reseller for Hermès bags
LuxLexicon was founded by Florence Low in 2016 and, as Singapore's largest luxury reseller, advertises handbags from Hermès Birkin and Kelly.
The company was first launched on Instagram in 2012 under the Handle @luxlexicon, which has since had 55,900 followers (and counts).
Florence launched LuxLexicon after realizing the need for a "trusted platform" where shippers could leave their expensive handbags behind without having to worry about selling on their behalf.
She emphasized that her business places a lot of value on trust – in fact, they claim to be the only Hermès retailer to offer a money-back guarantee of authenticity.
LuxLexicon also prides itself on transparent pricing and attaches great importance to clearly indicating the pricing of all items. In this way, customers can expect how much they will have to pay if they notice anything.
"We are trying to resolve any doubts about how we handle the shipment and how much of the shipment's (the shipper's) proceeds come from the sale," said Florence.
Not every reseller is open to their prices, shared them, adding that some resellers prefer to "sample" potential customers and charge a fee based on how much they believe they can pay .
Four- and five-digit bags sold within minutes
The LuxLexicon Instagram page contains photos of designer items ranging from handbags and wallets to scarves and bracelets.
Their prices range from $ 300 for a silk scarf to $ 300,000 for a Birkin diamond bag. The average ticket price for 2019 is $ 14,000.
The Instagram page currently has over 1,000 posts – this excludes posts from items sold that are deleted immediately after a customer makes full payment.
Credit: LuxLexicon
According to Florence, LuxLexicon reduces the shipping price for all Birkin and Kelly bags by a flat rate of US $ 1,000, which serves as a “dealer fee”.
She acknowledges that each LuxLexicon post does not necessarily contain a large number of "likes" or comments, as buyers do not want to be publicly seen as expressing their interest.
Therefore, LuxLexicon mainly interacts with buyers via the messaging platform WhatsApp. Of the company's six full-time employees, three are responsible for processing sales via WhatsApp.
Florence added that her bags sell quickly. Some are sold within five minutes or a day of shipping, while the "most demanding" bags, like the larger ones, are sold within six months.
LuxLexicon store at Centrepoint / Photo credit: LuxLexicon
After two years of online transactions, she realized that "relying on pictures alone does no harm". This caused her to take the business offline and invest about $ 2 million to open a flagship LuxLexicon store in Centrepoint Mall in 2018.
Florence said that the purpose of the business is not so much to do window shopping as most of the walk-in customers have already decided what to buy.
Instead, the store acts as a safe place to close a sale. In addition to delivery on the doorstep, customers can choose to pick up at the store to touch and feel the item before proceeding to buy a large ticket.
Bag sales of $ 49.7 million in 2019
In 2019, LuxLexicon had record sales of $ 49.7 million, an increase of 46% over the previous year. These revenues were derived from 3,600 deals throughout the year, which corresponds to approximately 10 deals per day.
Credit: LuxLexicon
Florence reported on her success and said that getting a Birkin or Kelly bag from the original Hermès store was a "very political" game, as you first had to go through "profile building" for six months.
This means you have to spend tens of thousands of dollars on various Hermès peripherals such as shoes, accessories, small leather goods and clothing before you are considered "worthy" enough to buy a Birkin or Kelly.
Even then, you have no control over the size, style, or color of the bag you can buy.
"(Hermès) basically gives you what it wants to give you," Florence revealed.
So if you're part of the instant gratification set and want to own a Birkin or Kelly without all of that hassle, a Hermès reseller like LuxLexicon is a great option.
The high sales volume of LuxLexicon in the past year is proof of the profitability of the business.
Florence said that many were skeptical about the introduction of LuxLexicon. "Naysayers" expressed doubts as to whether customers would trust the authenticity of the bags or whether they were even willing to buy from a reseller. The shippers were also unsure whether their bags would be well cared for while waiting to be sold.
However, LuxLexicon has successfully converted not just one, but two customers – the shipper and the buyer – with each bag sold.
"People's trust has to be gained over time, one bag at a time," said Florence.
“If I sell your bag and pay you promptly, you will feel that this service is reliable. It delivers (…) and meets your expectations, so you will come back to me next time. "
The language of luxury
Locals make up about 70 percent of LuxLexicon's customer base, the rest are overseas customers.
Florence said that she even met customers from the United States who wanted to visit their store during their trip to Singapore.
"You must have read about us or heard about someone, or you could have bought something from us (before) – and you think it is worth visiting (our store)," she said.
"We are only very humble and privileged that (tourists) feel it is worth coming to the store even though they have a very limited time to go on vacation in Singapore."
For this purpose, LuxLexicon fans and customers can look forward to visiting a larger business in the future. Florence said she is actively looking for a larger retail space to increase the company's presence as the current store size "tightens her style".
However, if one thing does not change in the coming time, LuxLexicon endeavors to ensure consistency across all customer contact points.
For example, LuxLexicon has been publishing daily on its Instagram page for six to eight years. The key is to be "consistent (and) hardworking," she advised.
“Maintaining consistency gives people a sense of predictability and comfort when they know what to expect when they deal with us. Through our consistent and careful work, people have come to associate us with transparency (and) honesty. "
Selected image source: LuxLexicon
