Fashion resale tech platform Reflaunt has formalised its supply chain partnership with DHL.
As the fashion resale company’s new contract logistics provider, DHL will help scale Reflaunt’s re-commerce capabilities using existing supply chain infrastructure rather than building it from scratch.
DHL will manage the logistics process on behalf of Reflaunt – from handling items received from customers’ homes, inspection, grading, photography, and digital entry into Reflaunt’s proprietary technology, to the core logistics functions of inventory management, storage, pick-and-pack, and outbound distribution.
DHL said the tie-up, which comes after a one-year pilot in Poland, will expand Reflaunt’s re-commerce capabilities and “further reshape the dynamics of fashion resale”.
Reflaunt – which already powers the fashion resale offering for retailers such as Harvey Nichols and Net-a-Porter – offers two services: Concierge, which is exclusively designed for luxury brands and retailers; and Takeback, which it says is suitable for any fashion brand with a strong focus on customer loyalty.
Both of these services are fully integrated into a European DHL Supply Chain warehouse operation. And with this newly strengthened logistics partnership, DHL says Reflaunt will be able to “maximise the sell-through of items, including returns, providing brands with a comprehensive solution that mitigates the complexities of the resale market”.
Massimo Degiorgi, who leads business development in e-commerce & retail at DHL Supply Chain for the EMEA region, said: ”We’ve been helping clients streamline their e-commerce operational game for years, tackling growing issues like returns, especially in the ever-demanding fashion industry.
“Our expertise in logistics and returns solutions, coupled with our logistics footprint, harmonises with Reflaunt’s technology, positioning this collaboration as a scalable resale option within the market and for our existing customers.”
Stephanie Crespin, CEO of Reflaunt, remarked: “For years, first and second-hands have been in separate corners.
“You buy an item from a brand, then sell it in a completely different experience. It’s been a headache for users and brands alike. Reflaunt’s been shaking things up, by tearing down the walls between first and second-hand, and e-commerce and re-commerce.”
She added: “Our cooperation with DHL opens the door to a seamless circular supply chain. Imagine one place handling first-hand fulfilment, returns, resale management, and other end-of-life solutions such as recycling.”
Essentially, the move means Reflaunt can offer brands a scalable, and economically viable resale solution that is integrated into their post-purchase services.
Writing for Forbes this week, Richard Kestenbaum, co-founder and partner at Triangle Capital, said: “While we are beginning to see signs of profitability in resale, the infrastructure to make the industry efficient is only now beginning to appear. Until not long ago, it was thought of as clothes for poor people. Now thinking is changing.”
He added: “That a company the size of DHL believes this is an opportunity is a significant change. Contrary to what investors thought when they put billions into big resale platforms like The RealReal and ThredUp, a lot of the infrastructure for resale doesn’t have to be purpose-built; it can be tacked on to existing operations and that’s what DHL is doing.”
[Image credit: Green Retail World]
