Fashion Deals on the Internet - Weekends with Whitney

Today, Lisa is at the studio taping a special Holiday Shopping episode of Weekends with Whitney. W3! is on NBC Chicago Nonstop every Saturday and Sunday at 12pm. Here are some of the tips that Lisa will be sharing with the show: 

There are many sites on the Internet that tout “Deals,” but finding the RIGHT ones can be difficult. You want to be sure to find the sites that not only have the product you want, but also have the assurance that the sellers are reputable, and provide customer service up front and after the sale. 

Here are some tips to help the financially fit Fashionista in finding those coveted Deals for the rare and unique items that fit your original style.

Know where to look - Membership sites such as Rue La La and Gilt.com are great, but a lot of product has been manufactured for mass sale - much the same strategy as Outlet Malls.  I personally prefer marketplaces such Amazon and eBay, with eBay being my favorite for variety of unique items of new and vintage. It has truly become the go-to-marketplace for finding the steals, deals, rare, unique, collectible and more. 

Know what to look for in a seller - Marketplace shopping can be tricky having both sophisticated sellers and novices so you should follow these few basic rules: 

• Only shop from reputable sellers. Look for how long they have been selling and the feedback they’ve accrued from previous shoppers. 
• Make sure to know their return policy in advance. Do they accept returns and how many days do they give you? Unless you’re 110% sure of your purchase, only shop from sellers that take returns.
• Look at the other items in their store. This can help you tell if they understand what they are selling. 

Know your brands and size in each - This helps you save time, money, and frustration. Look for items with classic brand equity, but also keep your mind open as some labels may just not be well known in America. Some of my most coveted items have labels you wouldn’t recognize. Research brands that you don’t recognize - I always check the almighty Google if I like the look of something but am unsure of the quality.

After shopping, don’t forget about the option of resale. Are you fashion fickle? Make a bad purchase? Shoes not as comfortable as they were in the store? Fund all your fancies by reselling your unwanted items. You’ll make money back and do your part to save the planet. Keep these tips in mind:

Buy the best you can afford in the beginning - Brands drive and often dictate values. Brands with high equity sell well, while others of equal “fashion appeal” may be hard to give away. Retail prices do not dictate resale prices.

A well edited closet is the gift of time – Save time each morning by knowing that all of your clothes fit well, feel good, and the style is truly YOU.

Don’t confuse memories with physical objects - We’ve all added emotional value to our items, but unfortunately emotional value doesn’t equate to secondhand market value. If you know you won’t wear it again, sell it BEFORE it goes out of fashion. (Think Prom Dress, Mother of the Bride etc…)

Philanthropically minded? – Sell unwanted items and donate the proceeds to your favorite charity. 

The episode will be airing on Saturday, November 19th, so be sure to tune in!

Tips for Item Resale

Last week, Luxe Life was featured on the Organizing With You guest blogger page with some tips for reselling your clothing, accessories and home furnishings. Here's the original post.

With many Americans both downsizing and tightening their household budgets, the resale and recycling of products like clothing and home furnishings has become a growing trend – both online and through consignment resale shops. But deciding what to keep, what to donate and what to throw away can be a daunting task. While cleaning out your space,   remember these tips for item resale:

 

·         Resale prices are driven by labels – When looking to resell used items, the best prices usually come from products with well-established designers or makers. For fashion and home goods, high-end names like Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Lalique and Baker Furniture always grab buyer’s interest. If your items don’t have a luxury label, be sure that the condition is good and that you give as much information as possible to the potential buyer. For online sales, sometimes creating batches or “lots” of similar items can persuade a buyer to spend the money for shipping and increase your chance of a sale.

·         Vintage doesn’t always mean classic – Just because something is old, doesn’t mean that it’s necessarily timeless. Fashion trends recycle, but matching your timing with the current style du jour can be difficult. The best selling items are usually classic basics by well-known designers.

·         Does your item have a story? – The more information you have on background of a product, the better. When was the item purchased? Where? If you did not make the initial purchase, who did?  Information and photos are essential with online sales, where a buyer cannot actually see or touch the product. And once you provide information, you must…

·         Be able to back-up your claims – Authenticity is one of the key factors in getting the best price for your recycled items. Buyers want to be sure that the item they’re purchasing is really what you claim it to be. Receipts can be great proof of original sale and high-end labels often include authenticity certificates with their products. Also, remember that eBay and other online marketplaces have serious fines associated with counterfeit and fraudulent product sales.  If you’re working with an auction house or resale company, most will only take items that have proof of authenticity.

·         Keep your pricing expectations reasonable – Remember that the second you walked out of a store with a purchased product, the value decreased significantly. With the rare exception of certain collectibles and vintage items, most used resale products will only sell for around 10% - 20% of retail value. Also, the people shopping for resale items are usually looking for a deal, so even items with the original store tags still attached will usually not have an equivalent resale value.

·         You can always ask for help – If you’re still stuck on how to estimate a product’s value, or if you just don’t have the time to put in all the effort, there are many companies with services to help you research, authenticate and sell your items. Appraisers often charge a one-time fee per item, while consignment companies usually take a percentage of the item’s sale.

Finally here ~ Luxe Life Dealer Direct

I'm back!  I have been diligently working on putting together a solid program for our B2B Selling Clients.  Our consignment sales services addresses a need for our individual sellers, but doesn't always make sense for our B2B partners which include Manufacturers, Dealers and Retailers.  

So happy to announce it is here.  You will see lots of changes to our website in the next few months as we prepare for our relaunch, but on the back-end, we have a solid partner providing advanced SEO for all our listed items on all our online marketplaces.  Our rare and unique collection of best-in-class personal and home luxury items will have a better chance of being found "out there".

Dealer Direct, is designed to provide selling, marketing and promotional support services for our businesses that either cannot support this themselves or those that want additional exposure that partnering with Luxe Life provides.   The end goal is to increase Brand awareness and   drive traffic to their locations.  Let's face it, if you do not have active representation online, and that is very hard to support if you are an Independent, it will be impossible to compete in the Global space let alone with competition in your own city.

There is more information on our Sell Page/Dealer Direct, but the basics are listed below.

• ·         $300 Set-up fee for >20 items
• ·         Dealers provide Copy and images (6-8 images required)
• ·         $250 per month thereafter to host on our site
• ·         NO commissions (unless you want us to negotiate sales on your behalf – then it’s 20%, that's it)
• ·         Can end active items at any time
• ·         Can switch out items to feature during the first week in the month

More information to come ~ stay tuned!

Lisa

Luxe Life Goes Abroad!

Luxe Life goes abroad!

Ciao!

For the next few weeks, Luxe will have a sneak peak of the hottest spring 2011 trends directly from the most famous fashion capitols of the world….Rome and Paris!  

As for my brief background, I began my fashion career in the bridal industry designing couture bridal gowns in California.  In 2002, I moved to New York to work for J. Mendel Paris, where I directed all retail merchandising efforts in addition to building and developing the bridal and couture division.  As Lisa mentioned, I am recently engaged and along for the ride while my fiancé finishes his MBA at Northwestern.  But most importantly, I love to shop, I love to travel and I am desperate for a little retail therapy pronto!!!

For spring 2011, the runways were filled with romantic ruffles, flounces, maxi skirts, vintage lace and exotic abstract prints…all to-die-for!  The overall Spring trend epitomized the classic but luxurious Bohemian lady that I imagine will be shopping  on Via Dei Condotti, home to Italy’s top designer stores such as Prada, Versace, Gucci and Dolce and Gabbana.  I have been told the shops located on Vie Dei Condotti used to charge you just for walking in….Thankfully this has changed!

I am incredibly honored to be working with Lisa as well as having the opportunity to play a small role in the success of Luxe Life.  

I look forward to sharing my fantastic Luxe new and vintage finds with you all…Arrivederci!

*Sarah Jade

"Be Bold, Be TZEN" - Beauty and state of mind ~

"Be Bold, Be TZEN"
 
We absolutely LOVE our newest Designer Direct addition!  Julie Liu of TZEN, designs limited editions of beautiful styles for women that do NOT want to look like everyone else.  She shares the sentiment of the Luxe Life customer (women and men alike) and others that have achieved a sense of style unique to them.  

John Fairchild says; "Style is an expression of individualism mixed with charisma.  Fashion comes after style".  I concur and follow that up with a quote from my personal style icon;

“Fashion fades, only style remains the same.” Coco Chanel  

And another great quote of mine coincidentally just showed up on the Facebook feed page of the talented Melissa Song, Luxe Life Partner and Fashion Photographer.  

"I never change, I simply become more myself."
Joyce Carol Oates

I believe these quotes are accurate in defining the Luxe Life customer.  Sophisticated people with a developed eye and taste-level derived from worldly travels, education, rich experiences and social-consciousness.   All have reached a level of self-discovery that precedes defining their personal style.  Whatever it may be, it is their unique expression.

Our mission at Luxe Life to bring the best of new and vintage pieces with an emphasis on timeless designs, quality materials and craftsmanship.  We hope you enjoy the selection and designs from TZEN as much as we do.

All our pieces are limited collection pieces that are never mass produced. One of a kind pieces are commonplace at TZEN and we hope that you will find a burst of freshness from our uniqueness. Please enjoy ..." 

                                                                            Julie Liu


On another note, Sarah Jade Brinckman whom I met at the Fashion Group International, Chicago "Career Day" last November has joined the Luxe Life Team and will be Guest Blogging for me.  

Sarah moved to Chicago last year to accompany her Fiance who is a business student at Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern and is finishing up his Masters of Business Administration.  No easy feat I assure you.  Sarah's lengthy career at J. Mendel in NY and at Neiman Marcus coupled with her passion for fashion and eloquent way with words promise to bring some fresh fashion perspective for us all.

Finally, Happy New Year!  Year of the Rabbit is known to be full of fun and opportunity.  After 2 long years in the trenches, I'm ready for a little more fun.

Lisa

Farewell 2010

Luxe Life 

New & Vintage

Luxe Life was founded in Spring 2009 shortly after I was laid-off from my full-time job.  Although it was in 2009 that was able to start the business, I had been contemplating this business model  for some time as the "smart behind art and design" has been my hobby for over 20 years.  My passion along with the changes in how people shop, global access opportunities and social consciousness made me convinced that;

• Full market value is rarely reached, for most product categories, in a one-day-selling model favored by traditional auction services.
• Buyers Premiums of +25% will go away.  People will refuse to pay them if they have options.
• Global Shoppers can price negotiate on line, on phone and in-person
• Consignment shopping and selling can be a sophisticated and professional experience and should be easy to understand and access.
• Traditional Consignment shops fees are too high and take to long to sell your items 
• 'Less is more' & 'Quality not Quantity' is a growing philosophy shared by many
• Access to secondary market offerings and sales services should be open and easy to understand.
• The realization that our planets resources ARE finite

I have worked for luxury product companies for the majority of my career.  My appreciation for luxury products and the industry was fueled by an ever evolving "eye" that comes with experience and knowledge.  That, coupled with the stories that surround these beautiful items, the provenance; history, passion, artistry and often, incredible sacrifice give these items deeper meaning.

Luxe Life has evolved quite a bit in the year we have been open.  Our efforts to always "strive to exceed expectations" in all we do has been the driving force behind Luxe Life since day 1.  We don't always succeed, but we always try.  And that, I believe that is a major differentiator between Luxe Life and similar businesses.  We really care.

Our pursuit of perfection comes with constant change and the inevitable growing pains that accompany.  2010 was full of them.  Our positioning was firmly planted, Expert Partner Network further developed, Shipping process improvements established and a myriad of endless operational policies and procedures were created to ensure that our standards are consistent from day to day.

Our conversion to our new website and selling platforms is  currently underway.   When completed, our Sellers (Individuals and Businesses) will be thrilled at their options and the presentation.  Our SEO support for each and every item will give comfort our Sellers that they will get market value for their items in the shortest amount of time.  Our Shopper/Buyers will have greater ease in finding their treasures.  

We have evolved much, but have stayed true to our commitment throughout;  to create a selling service and sales platform that is easy to understand and that has access to the most appropriate and the largest global  'Buying audience' possible.  We love new items and are committed to giving old things new life.  We strive to bring the best in design, from today and yesterday and value to our Sellers; the Dealers, the designing entrepreneurs and the "regular guy and gal" that need help. 

As we celebrate our 1 year we look forward to continued success and growth and celebrate and thank our friends;  Investors, Dealers, Artists, Designers, Craftsmen, Non-Profits, Entrepreneurs and Consignors.   

Farewell 2010 ~ Here's to 2011!

Lisa

Luxe Life ~ Designer Direct

Luxe Life

Designer Direct

Luxe Life launched it's new website this week along with our Designer Direct program.   Extending our selling services to Chicago Artists and Designers is a definite need that we are thrilled to meet.  Being an entrepreneur, I realize the value of smart-support-services and partnerships that make sense for all.  

I have met more than one passionate and gifted Designer in my day.  Sadly, it is hard for many to have the skills and time to be great marketers, promoters, PR specialists and sales fulfillment experts at the same time they are creating.  These are needed skills or services that take one from being "talented" to  being successful in their career.  We are thrilled to assist in getting the best of Chicago Designers and Artists more global access and freeing up time for them to create more beauty for us to enjoy. Lauren Lein and Tennille White are two of the best Designers Chicago has to offer.  Read their bios and their accomplishments, (link below) they are many and impressive.  To have survived and possibly thrived during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression is a monumental accomplishment in itself.  I know you will enjoy the initial collections, subsequent additions and the new talent being added monthly.

http://shopluxelife.com/index.php?p=1080 

Enjoy ~ Lisa 

Designs by Tennille White / Model:  Brittany Oliver

Designs by Lauren Lein "Global Fashionista Collection" / Model:  Alex Sabbag

Lauren Lein & Lisa Ackerman