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Vestiaire Collective opens new UK authentication centre to lower carbon footprint and counter Brexit-based cost hikes

Camilla Rydzek
12 January 2022

Global resale platform for luxury second-hand fashion Vestiaire Collective has officially opened a UK authentication and logistics centre to keep up with increasing consumer demand.

The centre was soft launched last November and joins three others located in France, the US and Hong Kong.

The company said authentication expertise had always been at the heart of its experience and that the new location would help deliver localised authentication while also offering speedier logistics and enhanced customer service.

The centre is also said to create 50 specialised jobs and ensure the authentication of up to 1,000 items per day that would otherwise have had to be shipped to France, significantly lowering the items' carbon footprint.

vestiaire collective UK authentication centre

Vestiaire said it had made the decision based on data that revealed UK consumer demand for second-hand fashion had been increasing, with one-third of UK fashion consumers having planned to buy or bought second-hand over the 2021 festive period, while nearly one in three started selling or selling more last year.

"The data goes so far as to show that nearly one in six of us now have wardrobes that contain at least 50% second-hand fashion," the company said.

Vestiaire also found that nearly one third of consumers found online shopping more expensive since Brexit and experienced longer lead times, while some categories were not available to be shipped across borders.

UKFT's Brexit Survey further revealed that 74% of fashion businesses had experienced setbacks due to Brexit-based cost hikes, which worsened when full customs declarations and controls were introduced on 1 January 2022.

Maximilian Bittner, CEO of Vestiaire Collective said: “Vestiaire Collective has already established that style shouldn’t come at the cost of the environment. But Brexit has hindered the UK’s drive for a sustainable future. British consumers have been unfairly penalised at a time when counterfeits are increasing and so the need for world-leading experts is more crucial than ever. Our new hub will make circular fashion more accessible, trusted and sustainable than ever before, so it can truly compete with and stem the tide of fast fashion’s impact on the planet.”

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