How to Shop for Affordable Luxury Gifts Online

Did you know that the world’s top 100 luxury goods companies earned $305 billion in 2021? That’s a staggering $53 billion more than their previous year’s revenues!

Those figures are solid indications of how expensive luxury products are. Despite that, many Americans across all income brackets gobble them up. Indeed, 27% of U.S. households with an income of under $50,000 are regular buyers of luxury goods.

If you have loved ones in that group, you may think getting them a gift would be harsh on your wallet. Luckily, it won’t, as affordable luxury gifts exist.

We’ve shared tips and tricks on finding and shopping for such goodies online, so keep reading.

Set Expectations

While rare, some of the most exclusive luxury brands (think Chanel and Hermes) offer deals. However, these are almost always offered in-store and not online. They also occur just twice, at most, each year.

So if those are the gifts you want to buy new and directly from a brand, don’t expect to find them discounted online. Such designer brands rarely or don’t offer discounts to maintain their “exclusivity.”

Check the Site’s Authentication Process

If you aren’t buying directly from a brand, you must ensure a luxury good’s authenticity. Otherwise, you risk spending money on counterfeit items. Counterfeiting is a massive problem that costs the U.S. economy $1.7 billion.

Fortunately, some online luxury good marketplaces have reliable authentication protocols.

An example is StockX, which has a multi-step verification process for all items that go through it. Its expert authenticating team first confirms each product is 100% authentic. Only after this does the site ship the luxury item to the customer.

Another example is The RealReal, an online luxury consignment shop. It has experts that evaluate and authenticate every item sold on the site.

Look for Deals and Promos

Fortunately, the practice of exclusivity doesn’t apply to all other luxury brands. For example, you can find those sold in outlets or by retailers offered at discounted prices. Examples are Valentino, Ralph Lauren, Burberry, and Roberto Cavalli, to name a few.

Most outlets and online retailers require subscriptions, though. Still, signing up only takes a few minutes. You only need to give your email address, name, delivery address, and phone number.

Subscribing may also give you exclusive member discounts when shopping online. Use these to your advantage to make buying gifts from luxury brands even more affordable.

Go With Used

If you want a high-end designer gift for a friend or loved one, consider buying a used item. For example, online retailers offer pre-owned but discounted Prada, Burberry, and Gucci items. They also sometimes sell refurbished products from these luxury brands.

You can also check out sellers on online marketplaces. These include eBay, Facebook, Poshmark, Mercari, ThredUp, and Vestiaire Collection.

Buy High-Quality Rather Than Luxury

Here’s the truth: Luxury brands aren’t always better in quality than non-luxury brands. According to https://krazytrend.com/, you can buy high-quality items at affordable prices.

For example, you can find durable handbags for only $100. Their high-quality materials may feel just as luxurious as designer ones. The only difference is that they don’t carry the same exclusive air as luxury brands.

Don’t Forget Warranties and Returns

As expensive as luxury goods are, they should only come with warranties. This applies even to used designer items, many of which have transferable warranties.

So before buying luxury gifts online, whether new or used, check their warranty terms. Likewise, confirm the brand’s, retailer’s, or private seller’s returns policy. They should accept returns at the very least, but even better if they allow refunds.

However, you must also abide by the seller’s T&Cs if you want to return an item or get a refund. For example, you may have to return purchases in the original packaging and the tags intact. You may also need to send them back within a specified period, usually 30 to 120 days.

Confirm Website Legitimacy and Security

As convenient as online shopping is, it has paved the way for more cybercrimes. It doesn’t help that over 8 in 10 retailers are vulnerable to attacks.

If you’re not cautious when shopping online, you can become a victim of cybercrime. So before sharing your payment details, confirm you’re on a site with SSL (secure sockets layer). You are if the site’s URL (address) has a lock icon, followed by HTTPS (and not HTTP!).

You should also double-check the site URL’s spelling. Be wary of misspellings and a different top-level domain (e.g., .net or .biz instead of the usual .com).

If you’re buying from a website for the first time, run a background check on it first. You can do this by conducting an online query with the site’s name (e.g., “Is ABC company legit?”). Review the results to confirm if it’s legitimate or a scam.

Use the Right Payment Method

If you’re like the average American, you likely have at least three credit cards. If so, you should use the one that offers the best deal for online shopping.

For example, some credit cards allow you to earn a percentage back on your online spending. Also known as cashback, this reward system can give you back anywhere from 2.5% to 5%. So if you spend $1,000, you can get a cashback of $25 to $50.

That cashback reduces the amount you owe on your card by its value. So if you get a $50 cashback and redeem it against a $1,000 amount due, you’d only need to pay $950.

If you don’t have a cashback card, use one that lets you convert purchases into installments at 0%. This deal is often available for new credit card accounts. They also typically run within the first 12 to 15 months from the account’s start date.

Shop for Affordable Luxury Gifts Now

Affordable luxury gifts aren’t cheap per se, but their prices can still be easier to fit into your budget. However, you must do your due diligence in researching each seller you buy from. This includes ensuring they’re a legitimate, secure site that sells authentic luxury pieces.

Are you ready for even more online shopping tips? Then check out our practical tips for using coupon codes and how to get the most out of them!