Walmart may not be the first place most people think of when they're mulling picking up a high-end handbag, jewelry, or other luxury items, but starting this week, shoppers can head to the retailer's online portal for just that. Bloomberg reports that the retail giant has partnered with decade-old resale platform Rebag to offer wares from Chanel, Prada, Fendi, Louis Vuitton, and other posh brands, with all items sold under this arrangement certified by Rebag. Rebag CEO Charles Gorra said it's part of his company's efforts to draw more consumers (i.e., richer ones) and to grow its geographic reach. It's also part of Walmart's strategy to stay competitive against other big retailers like Amazon.
Modern Retail notes that a catalog of about 27,000 such items became available on Walmart.com as of Thursday, with some products, like Birkin bags, costing into the tens of thousands of dollars. Some third-party sellers had already hawked their luxury offerings at Walmart, but this partnership significantly increases the number. "A fashion enthusiast might have had their eye on a Saint Laurent bag that was out four or five years ago that they haven't been able to find," Walmart exec Michael Mosser says. "Now, we can bring that to customers as they come and shop with Walmart as really their destination for everything."
Over the summer, Walmart also launched Resold at Walmart, which bumped up the number of preowned items it sells across various categories. The retailer has seen 30% sales growth for its third-party marketplace over the last several quarters. Speaking of Birkin bags, Quartz reports that the Walmart-Rebag collaboration came about after the huge success of the "Wirkin," a knockoff of Hermes' famous handbag line. The news outlet also confirms that 100 luxury items in the new catalog will be sold exclusively to Walmart customers. (More Walmart stories.)
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