Hundreds of posh packages from Rolex, Hermès and Louis Vuitton are up for grabs on Vinted, eBay and Facebook Marketplace. Wannabe high rollers are spending huge sums on it
Online real-life Del Boys are making a packet flogging empty designer boxes for up to £400-a-pop. Hundreds of posh packages from Rolex, Hermès and Louis Vuitton are up for grabs on Vinted, eBay and Facebook Marketplace.
And wannabe high rollers are splashing serious cash on what is basically fancy cardboard – without the pricey watches, handbags and designer goodies that once came inside.
The trade lets shoppers flash the luxury look without forking out thousands for the real deal. Some use the boxes as home decorations or props to give their social media snaps a designer makeover. TikTok user Charlotte Deville previously posted about making cash from empty luxury boxes and carrier bags.
One clip shows her holding up some empty carrier bags from Christian Dior. She says: “These empty bags and boxes are actually the most valuable thing you receive when you make a luxury purchase. Let me tell you why. You buy a Chanel perfume, Gucci earrings. This packaging costs you nothing, but it’s worth something.”
But experts warn it could also be a gift to counterfeit crooks. Genuine boxes, bags, ribbons and dust covers can be teamed with knock-off gear to make dodgy designer goods look like the real thing.
The Fashion Law Institute said the trade in empty luxury packaging is “something that the anti-counterfeiting community has paid attention to for a long time”.
Experts warned authentic packaging gives fake goods “an additional detail of legitimacy” when they are flogged to unsuspecting punters online.
Social media has helped turn elaborate designer packaging into a status symbol in its own right. But bargain hunters have been warned not to be fooled and real packaging is no guarantee the second hand expensive gear inside is genuine.