Boon for pre-loved luxury goods market
Pawnbroking chains giving costumers of second-hand products more options
The growing pre-loved luxury goods market in Singapore is getting another boost, with unlikely new players like pawnshops jumping on the bandwagon.
Local pawnbroking chain MoneyMax started the ball rolling by pioneering pawning, selling and trade-in services for pre-owned luxury bags in Singapore last April.
It launched its pre-loved luxury concept store Love Luxury in January at Raffles Place MRT and Hillion Mall, to appeal to younger consumers looking to purchase quality pieces at a steal.
MoneyMax currently offers more than 5,000pre-loved products in 10 stores islandwide, with approximately 50 per cent savings.
Its chief executive officer, Mr Peter Lim, told The New Paper: "We recognised the market opportunities present amid the rising demand, and are confident that branching out into the pre-loved luxury business will provide us with another avenue for growth.
"Amid the evolving needs of consumers today, it is critical for a company to stay relevant and constantly innovate and introduce new initiatives - and the growing competition since then also reflects that we are on the right track."
Hot on MoneyMax's heels is another local pawnbroking chain Maxi-Cash, which launched its pre-loved luxury retail line LuxeSTYLE last Wednesday. It will be distributed across 19 Maxi-Cash stores by May and to its remaining 22 stores by the end of the year.
Mr Ng Leok Cheng, chief executive officer of Maxi-Cash, told TNP: "We are seeing a new breed of savvy luxury shoppers who appreciate the prestige and quality of luxury goods, yet are prudent spenders who want the best value for their money."
Even before starting LuxeSTYLE, Maxi-Cash was already selling pre-loved bags and jewellery since last December, but wanted to cater to its increased customer demand as there was a shortage of bags within a month.
A few hundred more bags were then brought in for the launch.
Maxi-Cash currently boasts over 1,000 timepieces, 1,000 fine jewellery and 500 designer bags cutting across 24 international brands, reportedly costing at least 30 per cent less than their original retail prices.
The most expensive item in its arsenal is a $70,000 Rolex watch and the cheapest, a Tiffany silver necklace going for $65.
Mr Ng wants LuxeSTYLE to cater to families and improve their collective shopping experience by being a "one-stop shop"
Established sellers also welcome the "healthy competition" as it pushes the whole industry to improve and provides customers with more choices.
Mr Daniel Lim, co-founder of leading luxury e-retailer in South-east Asia, Reebonz, which was founded in 2009, said: "This allows us to continuously challenge ourselves and benchmark against the best in the industry."
Mrs Nejla Matam-Finn, co-founder of luxury vintage fashion recommerce platform The Fifth Collection which was set up in 2014, added: "We entered the market when there was a big player like Reebonz, but it didn't stop us and we are growing the business steadily, along with the market."
With Singapore being the regional hub for luxury goods, it has great potential to follow in the footsteps of Hong Kong and Japan and become the regional hub for second-hand designer bags, according to MoneyMax's Mr Lim.
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