How To Shop Pre-Loved Mulberry Bags Like A Pro

Good quality, designer handbags are expensive. Sometimes far too expensive, but for many that price tag is more than worth it. There is, of course, another tag that creates an expensive handbag - the label. In the world of designer bags, you are buying for the name of the brand alongside the individual design. From YSL, Dior, Chanel and Hermès, owning one of these bags is a status symbol and a show of wealth. Of course, many people cannot afford such bags and thus buy from the resale market, a market which is absolutely thriving at the moment. The problem is, however, that it can be difficult to verify that the bag you are purchasing is the real deal. Back in 2012, Hermès sued several websites for selling fake products and won $100million in damages. In that same year, the French police cracked down on counterfeit sellers which reportedly included Hermès employees. You have to be wary, but one brand making buying pre-loved easier is the luxury fashion company, Mulberry. 

Founded in the UK in 1971, Mulberry is known and loved internationally for its luxury leather goods, particularly handbags. Mulberry has managed to create an identity for itself that is luxury yet not out of reach. With handbag prices rarely rising over £2000, these bags are actually relatively affordable when you take other brands (ehem, Hermès) into account. In fact, at the time of writing, the cheapest bag in the women’s section goes for £295. Of course, these are bags far more expensive than anything on the general high street, but for the quality, they are often seen as worth the price. A quintessentially British brand, Mulberry is not flashy, instead, it is subtly designer. The whole money screams but wealth whispers idea is truly at play here. 

The brand has bought its approachability into a new light with the pre-loved section of their website, simplifying the secondhand buying process. 

“Much as we might like every customer who buys a bag from us to keep it for life and hand it down to the next generation, we also believe that a change or exchange can still be positive for everyone. That’s why we’ve established the Mulberry Exchange to match authenticated and beautifully restored classics with a new owner, ensuring that a humble bag can have many lives.” 

With lower price tags attached to these authenticated bags, buying pre-loved sounds like a good deal…and it is! Not only is Mulberry opening up its market to new buyers, but it is also helping to create a circular fashion economy. The circular fashion industry is defined as a regenerative system in which garments are circulated for as long as their maximum value is retained. While the resale market creates many jobs and generates a tonne of money, it can also be shady and you have to keep your wits about you when purchasing so it is lovely to see a brand taking control of their own pre-loved bags.