Consigning/buying with The Real Real TRR

[nicole0612]

It's true. They had exotic Birkin just sitting out on shelves. If I were a less reverent handbag lover who can only dream of one day owning a Birkin, I could've picked one up and played around with it, right after hundreds of other people did too. I definitely played around with an exotic Ricky. Plus the piles of handbags on the floor…

Hopefully the items don’t get damaged! Maybe that’s why things they sell sometimes come with undisclosed wear and tear.

 

[CaliCollector]

I thought I’d share some insight, I have both sold and purchased from TRR. First buying, I’ve purchased a Chanel Blazer (new w/ tags) , Christian Louboutins (new) Chanel Boots (new) and a pair of Manila Blhaniks out of all my purchased I would say they are all authentic pieces, I buy many of these items direct from the retailers so know the products well, and perhaps handbags are more frequently counterfeited so maybe have had good luck. I have also consigned with them and was totally disappointed, they sold a pair of my new Christian Louboutins for $230 at which I got 60%. A new Lanvib dress that was $3,800 they listed for $200. I wouldn’t consign with them again unless I didn’t care what I got for the items and I tried eBay or other means to sell the items. It’s actually why I started buying from them because I saw how low they will sell items. A brand new pair of Chanel Boots were $599 price tag on them is $1600. If you can have assurance it’s authentic it is a decent place to score goods at a discount. Reading your posts however I’ll steer clear of the bags.

 

[Monique1004]

I thought I’d share some insight, I have both sold and purchased from TRR. First buying, I’ve purchased a Chanel Blazer (new w/ tags) , Christian Louboutins (new) Chanel Boots (new) and a pair of Manila Blhaniks out of all my purchased I would say they are all authentic pieces, I buy many of these items direct from the retailers so know the products well, and perhaps handbags are more frequently counterfeited so maybe have had good luck. I have also consigned with them and was totally disappointed, they sold a pair of my new Christian Louboutins for $230 at which I got 60%. A new Lanvib dress that was $3,800 they listed for $200. I wouldn’t consign with them again unless I didn’t care what I got for the items and I tried eBay or other means to sell the items. It’s actually why I started buying from them because I saw how low they will sell items. A brand new pair of Chanel Boots were $599 price tag on them is $1600. If you can have assurance it’s authentic it is a decent place to score goods at a discount. Reading your posts however I’ll steer clear of the bags.

I totally agree. I scored some nice stuff with bargain prices but I would never send my stuff there. I send my items to AFF or just sell them myself on eBay.

 

[QuelleFromage]

I will only buy returnable items from TRR and I buy with major skepticism. The last handbag I was interested in (a Kelly) I requested additional photos and there was severe damage that was not visible even in the multiple listing photos. There is no way on earth they could have missed the damage (heavy scuffing with color loss on a $7K bag). When I contacted them about it, the response was "we listed this as very good condition and this is in our opinion very good condition". Makes me afraid of what "good" condition would be!
My last order, a pair of jeans sold as size 24 were clearly labeled size 26 and a jacket sold as size 0 was unlebeled but enormous. Another jacket sold as "pristine" had a big snag in the sleeve.

It is worthwhile to troll for deals because they do mark down so much, but you need to be ready to return a ton of things.

 

[Wamgurl]

I’ve noticed that sometimes they use the same photos for different listings!

 

[Cygne18]

I have consigned and purchased with TRR and have enjoyed my experience finding amazing deals vs. consigning. Just like @CaliCollector mentioned above, they really lowball the price for some items. That said, you can request to have the item sent back to you, I believe, but I would only consign with TRR if I have not had any movement of items I've listed elsewhere. I have resigned myself to simply lowering my prices to align with TRR prices. It's just so competitive!

As a buyer, I have had found amazing deals. My best find was a pair of black alligator Manolo's that I managed to get for $112. TRR customer service insisted that these were python (even after I emailed them to check again), but I took them to an alligator/crocodile specialist in NYC to get them checked out and they confirmed that they were genuine alligator. The listing on the mobile site linked to the black alligator Manolo's, but the desktop listing linked to photos of a green hair calf pump.

 

[Tykhe]

Do you know if your things have been posted online? Two weeks seems a little long, but they don't notify/email you right away when things are posted. I was told by my sis who was told by her rep they are growing like crazy and hiring more people so maybe that is why it is taking longer to post things. It takes a few days to evaluate, photograph and do the write ups. Their First Look and Platinum members also get to see things 24 hours ahead of the rest of us- so your item(s) may have sold in advance and are posted in the sold section.

Thanks for the help!! I found out it was a problem with my log in. I was in under the wrong account. Was able to fix everything.

 

[MyAwesomeFinds]

That's good to know, I'll try to call and ask tomorrow. I'm trying to stop myself from just buying it without getting a discount. But maybe that won't even happen. I'll ask.

Just as an update, I found out from CS that any Hermes, Chanel or LV handbag priced $955 or more is subject to price approval and will not be discounted no matter the length of time without consignor approval. So the chanel purse may not ever get discounted if the consignor wants to hold out.

 

[MyAwesomeFinds]

I will only buy returnable items from TRR and I buy with major skepticism. The last handbag I was interested in (a Kelly) I requested additional photos and there was severe damage that was not visible even in the multiple listing photos. There is no way on earth they could have missed the damage (heavy scuffing with color loss on a $7K bag). When I contacted them about it, the response was "we listed this as very good condition and this is in our opinion very good condition". Makes me afraid of what "good" condition would be!
My last order, a pair of jeans sold as size 24 were clearly labeled size 26 and a jacket sold as size 0 was unlebeled but enormous. Another jacket sold as "pristine" had a big snag in the sleeve.

It is worthwhile to troll for deals because they do mark down so much, but you need to be ready to return a ton of things.

Yes. I bought a YSL tote advertised as very good condition. When I got it there were major scuffs/color loss on the bottom of the bag, and of course there was no photo of the bottom of the bag. I called CS and was able to return it despite handbags being final sale. I also consigned a Rebecca Minkoff to them (not super valuable so I wasn't concerned about being lowballed), which they listed as NWT despite the fact that I had used it (albeit gently) and there were some small signs of wear. I called them to change the description because I didn't want someone to buy it and be really pissed about the bag description and then ask to return it!

I have also had to call them to change mismarked sizes on clothes I have consigned. I am on top of it, but I guess a lot of consignors don't really monitor their stuff. I just wanted to avoid returns because you lose your commission when items get returned.

 

[KittyKat65]

I will only buy returnable items from TRR and I buy with major skepticism. The last handbag I was interested in (a Kelly) I requested additional photos and there was severe damage that was not visible even in the multiple listing photos. There is no way on earth they could have missed the damage (heavy scuffing with color loss on a $7K bag). When I contacted them about it, the response was "we listed this as very good condition and this is in our opinion very good condition". Makes me afraid of what "good" condition would be!

THIS! There is absolutely no way I would purchase any bag from them, much less a Hermes bag with their "no return" policy and only 4 photos. Are they insane? Do they really expect people to fork over $8,000+ for a used bag with a no return policy?

 

[Monsieur Candie]

I think you did the right thing. After reading older posts on this company, I decided to give them a chance. Recently received the fendi mini Peekaboo and knew it was fake. Had It authenticated on the forum and third party authenticate as well and both says fake. Meanwhile the minute I received it, I filed a dispute with my CC and waited for RealReal to reply back for my refund. They got back to me a few days later (Today) and told me after reviewing the pictures I sent and pointed out the very obvious indications of it being fake, they still deemed it authentic but nicely let me have my money back and paid for shipping. I know from reading other posts that if it was in fact authentic to them, they would have given me a different response and reminded me it is ‘final sale’ it makes me question how thorough they really inspect the items to miss something so obvious. The bag was clearly not used as stated but new. The leather was not of quality, and like others have said, their description is terrible. They forget to mention that on one side it has the monster design, which I would have never gotten if I knew that and assuming it was real.

One of the possible reasons for such answer is because after your return they intend to sell it again. There are cases with TRR of returned fake Hermes bags listed again for sale. Even if the most of their bags are authentic such bad practices show they care more for short-term profits instead for their reputation.

 

[glamer]

I consigned a few items with therealreal but I will never use them again. I actually spoke with a rep who told me multiple times that my items would not be eligible for the 20% off coupon for the first 30 days. Unfortunately, this was not true - the coupon was used and it cut down my payout by a great deal. I appreciate that other sites don’t always pass this on to the consignor. It was in the fine print of the contract that they cut down on payout due to coupons so I accept that and should have read more carefully but I found it dishonest that their employee was saying otherwise.

One of my items was not accepted and was sent back to me - no problem. However, it got lost in transit and they asked for the retail price of the item so they could make a determination of what to claim. As per their policy, they don’t reimburse the true cost, but what one would have received if they had consigned the item. Understood. They quoted a very low price and then said they would give me the percent commission of that low price. I had to search through their past sales to show that they had actually previously listed the same item for more than what they were quoting. They took a few weeks to respond and I had to reach out a couple times before they fixed this. When I knew the item was coming back to me, I submitted a buyout quote to another site, which quoted me about twice what therealreal was going to reimburse me. Needless to say, I’ve learned my lesson.

I did appreciate not having to deal with returns and buyers so I understand the value of this service. One of my items was purchased then returned and I noticed from the updated site photos that the item had been damaged. I worried that they accepted a damaged item return that could have diminished the value by no fault of mine.

Ultimately, there are better companies to transact with and I will choose to work with them instead.

 

[Love Of My Life]

As TRR is growing & they have grown in leaps & bounds, they don't seem to be hiring "listers" that
have knowledgeable backgrounds in high end designer merchandise as one can tell by their
descriptions & condition report. The scale between what is very good & good leaves much to be desired
IMO & usually the pictures are not detailed enough.

 

[QuelleFromage]

This company needs to get transparent about condition. It can be a bargainhunter's paradise but customers need to have some level of trust that issues are disclosed. Goodness knows they don't pay consignors much, so just mark condition honestly.

I will never consign with them after that Hermès scarf issue. Just not worth it unless it's literally items I would otherwise donate.

 

[ccbaggirl89]

This company needs to get transparent about condition. It can be a bargainhunter's paradise but customers need to have some level of trust that issues are disclosed. Goodness knows they don't pay consignors much, so just mark condition honestly.

I will never consign with them after that Hermès scarf issue. Just not worth it unless it's literally items I would otherwise donate.

I read someplace, perhaps here, that the percent they take from you drops the longer you are a consigner with them. I have also noticed that the amount you spend and how often you shop impacts how they handle returns, too. Although most of the high ticket items say "no returns," if you have a long history of expensive purchases it's easy to return non-returnable items for any reason. I think the no return policy is for single-purchase shoppers. It is heaven to shop there (price-wise) but OMG they have the worst pictures and good condition often means falling apart and all marked up inside and out. I often just take a chance and hope for the best, even with Chanel bags. I buy only handbags from them but I cannot even imagine the other categories and what clothing shoppers have to put up with.