(light piano chords)
- [Announcer] The Real Real,
a luxury consignment company
with names like Hermes, Gucci,
and Stella reign supreme.
The recently publicly listed company
says it's revolutionizing
resale and expects
to sell nearly $1 billion
in luxury goods this year
in retail stores and online.
Anyone can consign by
shipping to the company,
dropping of at one of
their consignment offices,
or depending where you live
and how much you're
consigning, from your own home.
Gavin Waters is one of
the Real Real's so called
luxury managers tasked
with these home visits
before the items are
authenticated and listed for sale
on the site.
- Hi.
- Hello.
- So good to see you.
- [Announcer] On this day,
he's consulting with Erin Hazelton,
a writer who is one of the
Real Real's VIP consignors.
- You see anything here that
screams, get out of my closet?
This is a Chanel.
- Okay.
You know, I kind of love this.
- So what about this Victoria Beckham bag?
I hardly used it, but I love it.
- I think this half moon shape
is sort of on the decline
so I would do it now before
it's an even lower price.
- I don't like getting rid of Alaia,
but I think it's time.
- This is a hard one.
- So I feel like you know
that rule if you've had it
for two years and you haven't worn it.
- It's time to go.
- Yeah.
- So what I'm looking for when I'm going
through a consignor's pieces
is definitely the brand value.
I think if it's a brand
that's super hot right now
like Gucci, Balenciaga,
Dior, it definitely helps
to go onto our marketplace.
But I think cut also has
a big thing to do with it.
What's the story with this?
- So, last year when I finished
treatment for breast cancer,
this is the outfit I
wore to ring the bell.
I get to do the first one.
Ready?
(bell ringing)
It's all Xs, goodbye cancer.
- That's gonna be in the
collection forever, of course.
- But then there's a
pair of pants that I wore
the first day of chemo.
I don't know if I need to keep them.
- Not that that's memory.
- You know what, goodbye.
Goodbye.
- I'd rather not have these here.
I think when describing Erin's collection,
you see so much of her
personality and the fun pieces,
the serious pieces, the dramatic pieces.
It's really sophisticated.
The materials, the quality
are all incredible,
but there's a large sense of fun with her.
When you know Erin and
you see her dressing,
I think it just is such a
personification of who she is
and the life that she
brings to everything.
- It was really beautiful.
- Oh, I think it's true, no,
I think it's such a privilege.
- You're so nice.
Who knew I would get
emotional about clothes.
- That's a personal thing.
I mean, I think, you know.
- My other children.
- You go a lotta kids in here.
- Seriously.
I have been consigning for four years.
I consign a lot so I have
VIP status which means
I get 70% return on any
item that's over $200.
Sometimes I get 20 bucks,
sometimes I sell things
and I get a lot more than that.
These shoes for sure,
I'm ready to part with.
- (mumbles).
- Oh no, don't do that to me.
- I know, I always make you second guess.
- I was excited about doing
Ebay, but just the work
of like shooting it, dealing with people.
- I get to keep it.
- The Real Real takes a cut,
but you don't do anything.
Gavin comes here, takes the stuff, done.
- [Driver] Hello.
- The pieces I got from
Erin today as always
a great assortment.
She's a smaller size
which definitely helps.
We got some Alaia pieces.
Alaia sells really really
well on our platform.
It has a very strong almost
cult following for the cut
and the design.
Those pieces are fairly
close to retail and they sell
pretty consistently on our marketplace.
- [Announcer] The Real
Real has three brick
and mortar stores in
New York and Los Angeles
and 11 luxury consignment
offices across the United States.
Authentication is an essential part
of the company's strategy
with its 100% authenticity
guaranteed promise.
- I just left on of my VIPs.
I want to see if you have a
chance to look some stuff over.
- Sure, yeah, drop it off.
- Perfect.
- [Announcer] The Real
Real says it authenticates
thousands of items per day.
- Authentication is
paramount to our business
we're called the Real Real.
It's so important that we
put it in our name twice.
Guaranteeing that everything
we sell is the real deal,
the legit article is so important.
Authenticity is what
differentiates us from a lot
of other players in the market.
- [Announcer] But the Real
Real's authentication strategy
has ruffled some feathers.
French fashion house Chanel
has sued the Real Real
accusing the company of selling fakes.
Chanel's website states
that there is only one way
to ensure that articles are genuine,
purchase them only in Chanel boutiques
or from retailers authorized by Chanel.
The Real Real says it unequivocally
rejects Chanel's claims
and will continue to accept pieces
from all in demand luxury brands.
Wetzbarger inspects one
of Erin Hazelton's dresses, the Alaia.
- You wouldn't necessarily
think that a brand like Alaia
would be counterfeited,
but it absolutely is.
On an inferior counterfeit piece,
they would have fewer seams, fewer pieces,
to make it cheaper and faster.
Often times on counterfeits,
they'll use letter sizing,
small, medium, large, extra large.
But most French and Italian
brands will use European sizing,
38, 40, 42, et cetera.
So that's something to look out for.
I've been in luxury resale for a long time
and it started off as
everyone's dirty little secret.
Even consignors and customers
didn't want to talk about it.
But now people are proud
and they're sharing their success stories.
And brands are starting
to come around too.
They know that if there's
equity in their products
in the secondary market, then
their product is more popular
in the retail market.
You're not gonna buy a
car you can't resell,
you're not gonna buy a house
that depreciates in value.
It's the same way with fashion,
people are making savvy
investment decisions
in their wardrobe knowing
and thinking about the resale value.
(upbeat contemporary music)
- I think people are just
slowly becoming more conscious
about the environment.
Clothes don't break down
and you can donate them.
But if they don't sell,
they go into, you know,
an landfill somewhere
and sit there for years
and years and years.
Isn't that amazing?
- Wow.
I mean, (mumbles), that is amazing.
- It's better than just
sitting in somebody's closet.
At least somebody else gets to
wear it and feel good in it.
You know what I mean?
It has a second life.
It's like I guess, a piece of art.
