As pre-loved luxury increases in popularity, among the influential Gen Z consumer in particular, Luxe Collective co-founder and chief executive Ben Gallagher talks to Retail Week about what makes the resale platform unique, the importance of social media to fuel growth and his aim for the business to make £1m revenue in a day on TikTok Shop
Luxe Collective hit the headlines earlier this year after appearing on Dragons’ Den as it won over entrepreneur Steven Bartlett and gained £100,000 in investment.
A disruptor in luxury resale, Luxe Collective set out on a mission to sell 100% authentic secondhand luxury products at “the best value” on the market.
A proud northern brand with its HQ located in the North West, the business was founded by brothers Ben and Joe Gallagher who were inspired to sell pre-loved designer fashion after their sister wanted a pair of £400 trainers for Christmas and they saw an opportunity.
The business has now reached 1.6 million followers on TikTok as well as a further 648,000 on Instagram. As the business continues to garner attention and sales, co-founder and CEO Ben Gallagher speaks to Retail Week about the journey so far and what’s to come.
What differentiates Luxe Collective from other pre-loved platforms?
“I think one main thing that goes unspoken about is that we’re two brothers from Liverpool who sell women’s luxury goods. That’s a hook in itself. That’s why we grew so quickly because when we were posting content on TikTok, people would come across us and think it wasn’t right.
“As people began to understand what the company was, they began to trust us. That’s what makes us different; just being authentic and transparent was why we grew so much because they are the key attributes to growing organically.”
How important has social media been to the growth journey?
“Without social media, we wouldn’t be where we are today. It’s had a major impact on us and it’s why we are able to sell the amount of product that we do, make the money and hire the people we do.
“Because we started out with social media, we really understand it. I don’t feel envious of people who didn’t start with it because you have to do it for such a long time to really understand it.
“No one in our industry understands social media like we do, so it’s not a secret weapon because everyone can see it, but it’s definitely a weapon that [other brands] don’t understand, for sure. As soon as you really nail how to engage with your audience, you just grow and grow.
“I think there’s still a stigma with millennials and Gen X, but our audience on TikTok is so diverse. It’s cool and uncool for us because we don’t have a niche or that one person we target when working on campaigns because it’s so broad. But on the other hand, we’re inclusive and diverse across socials.”
What’s the biggest challenge facing the luxury market?
“It’s challenging at the moment, especially in luxury fashion. I think it’s because contemporary fashion is just so good. I’m not wearing anything luxury right now, it’s all contemporary. It’s not cheap but not super expensive or unattainable.
“I’d say the challenge for us is how can the brands that we sell keep themselves hot constantly when there are brands like Represent and Aimé Leon Dore that are just killing it? I think the answer to keeping luxury brands relevant when there’s as good or even better alternatives out there is by becoming more accessible and tapping into the Gen Z market more.
“YSL reduced their prices recently on a few core items because it understands that if it keeps raising their prices then nobody is going to buy. That [high-end] pricing strategy only works for brands like Hermès and Chanel.
”For us, because we sell brands that are a little bit cheaper and they resell a lot cheaper, we just need to convince people why they should trust us to buy. We don’t need to sell our products, they sell themselves through their own marketing. The hard thing is convincing people why they should buy pre-loved rather than knew, that’s where our challenge is.”
What’s next for Luxe Collective?
“Made by Mitchell [UK beauty brand] did $1m live on TikTok Shop. I think it would be really cool if we could do that and earn £1m revenue in a day on TikTok Shop. It’s an aim rather than a dream.
“We want to do more events and build our in-person community. I’ve been trying to figure out for ages how you build a community that’s connected because with buy and sell, we’re essentially the middle man. I found that hard because if I build a community, what’s stopping those people from just buying and selling between themselves?
“But it’s the same sort of concept as Airbnb because you’ve got the trust if something goes wrong and that customer service element is so important. We’ve got a WhatsApp community of loyal customers now who are attending our events and getting ready together beforehand but they don’t even know each other. It’s crazy to me.”
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