Luxe.It.Fwd is Australia’s most trusted luxury re-commerce platform that buys and sells designer goods, at a discounted cost. Founder and CEO Miranda Gillepsie started the business after becoming frustrated at the lack of availability, value and often dubious authenticity of second-hand luxury handbags and accessories for sale online in Australia.
Tell us about Luxe.It.Fwd.
Luxe.It.Fwd brings attainability and sustainability to luxury. Our online platform enables buyers to purchase authenticated pre-owned luxury handbags, watches and accessories at up to 60% off the RRP from designers such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Rolex, Gucci, Hermes and Cartier, just to name a few. And for sellers who have unloved luxury items collecting dust at the back of their closet, Luxe.It.Fwd provides them with a seamless selling process for ‘luxing it forward’ while at the same time having the comfort of knowing they are reducing excess waste and helping build a sustainable and circular fashion economy.
What inspired you to start Luxe.It.Fwd?
I’m a handbag lover myself and the idea for Luxe.It.Fwd came when I personally was looking to buy a second hand Chanel bag but found there were really limited options in Australia in terms of great quality and accessible prices with most importantly, having the trust and comfort of a guarantee of authenticity. This experience sparked the lightbulb moment for me to really want to drive the emerging circular fashion movement by creating Luxe.It.Fwd as an accessible and sustainable platform that could meet the needs of customers like myself.
Tell us about your career and background.
I have quite an untypical career background in that I had never worked in fashion or had experience running a business prior to starting Luxe.It.Fwd. At the time of first coming up with the idea for Luxe.It.Fwd, I actually worked as a commercial lawyer, and so the two fields couldn’t be more different. But I felt really strongly about the potential for Luxe.It.Fwd and despite having no experience in that field, I launched Luxe.It.Fwd on the side while continuing to work full-time in law in order to fund the business. After more than two gruelling years juggling the two, Luxe.It.Fwd had grown to fantastic levels that I was able to step away from my career in law to focus exclusively on Luxe.It.Fwd.
Describe a typical workday for you.
I have two young kids so the start of the mornings are more hectic than I would like to get everyone ready and out the door to then get started on my work day. I have learned that I am by far the most mentally focused and effective in mornings so I try to spend the mornings focusing on any hard thinking type issues while my brain is still fresh. As a business owner, a lot of what I do is problem solving issues that arise or roadblocks to initiative we have in place, so those types of things are really my morning focus. In the afternoons I try to have my meetings then where possible and internal catch-ups, as well as also getting through the never-ending admin tasks towards the end of the day.
What advice do you have for those wanting to start a business?
While starting a business comes with it a lot of risk and stress, it’s also one of the most rewarding things you will ever do. So for those who are really passionate about an idea, I would suggest to not let the fear of failure or of the unknown hinder you from trying.
What’s next for you, and Luxe.It.Fwd?
We are so excited to be in a period of growth at Luxe.It.Fwd, having been very fortunate to have recently received a Federal Government Boosting Female Founders Grant in order to scale and supercharge Luxe.It.Fwd. So our current focus is really on reaching more people and in turn advancing the circular fashion economy in the luxury space in Australia.
For more info, please visit https://luxeitfwd.com.au/
