LuxuryMonk – the best place to buy & sell branded seconds

Do you love branded goods, but worry about the pricing and authenticity of the product?

Well, here’s a good news for those who want to own a branded or a designer watch, bag or a fashion accessory including a fancy car at affordable prices because ladies and gents – LuxuryMonk is here.

The Lifestyle Portal caught up with the Founder and CEO Gokul Krishna from Hyderabad the man behind this glamorous online store called LuxuryMonk about his visions and dreams for his latest venture.

An MBA, MIS, Marketing from Oklahoma City University, Gokul takes pride in being a ‘serial entrepreneur’ and a patriot who has started projects in Retail, Construction, Design, eCommerce and IT.

He shares his story with The Lifestyle Portal on how he chanced upon the novel idea of LuxuryMonk and what it has to offer to the world of luxury good buyers and sellers in the country.

How did it all begin?

It all started when Gokul found a gap in the market for demand for the luxury products, which he was keen to fill it up. 

“There are branded products lying unused in some people’s shelves, while other people want to own luxury products, hence an open market place. A C2C, is a market where consumers can communicate with other consumers and buy or sell at affordable prices,” adds Gokul.

Investments & Branding

He started with an initial investment of Rs. 20 lakhs and now going up to a total investment of about 80 Lakhs; but Gokul also intends to raise funds to help LuxuryMonk grow virally.

We asked Gokul about this interesting brand name for his website and he shares, “The words ‘Luxury’ and ‘Monk’ both are worlds apart and I intended on building a common platform. My intention was to bring people who are hoarding luxury and people to aspire to own such luxurious brands to a common meeting place. I thought that LuxuryMonk was an apt name, yet different and catchy too (gets people wondering what the name means)”

He also shared with us that his team at LuxuryMonk have just started their marketing campaigns and are getting a really good response from people all over the world. They claim to find the concept really unique and are happy to finally have found a place to sell all their branded and designer products, and for people who are looking to buy high valued brands at affordable prices.

Challenges faced

Gokul admits that one of the challenges with any start-up is getting your concept to work. It takes a lot of struggle and time to get the right employees and drive the concept with online and offline marketing.

The platform is one of a kind, but the main challenge is to change or instigate change in the mind-set of the tradition Indian. It’s easier for the younger generation and global travellers to adapt to selling or using products that have been pre-loved /pre-owned.

Then there is always a ready market of buyers, but to get HNI’s and global travellers to sell their products is also sometimes a big challenge. So LuxuryMonk’s intention is to get them to see reasons to sell their pre-loved, unused and closet strangled products.

“In the age of Internet and e-commerce, winning the mindshare is yet another challenge. While getting customers is one part, we want to ensure the brand remains young, active and give a lot of competitive options to our customers,” adds Gokul.

LuxuryMonk clientele who buy & sell branded seconds

All the customers at LuxuryMonk are their clients, who both – Buy and Sell with them. As they provide a forum for everyone who want to sell their branded merchandise (NRI’s, Affluent Travellers, Expats, HNI’s) and people who want to buy brands at affordable prices (Brand Aspirants – College students, Working Professionals, Homemakers).

“We do have a Lamborghini is our Classified section posted by a representative of Yuvraj Singh. We also have a Soon to launch ‘Celebrity Merchandise’ section where we will be listing products by renowned celebrities,” smiles Gokul.

What makes LuxuryMonk so unique?

Gokul tells us, “LuxuryMonk, is India’s first platform to Buy & Sell anything Branded, High valued & Luxurious. Other than being the first in India, a few of our USP’s are most definitely that we authenticate all our products, our platform is vast and varied (from our product categories to our classified section to our soon to launch celebrity merchandise section), our client confidentiality, our price depreciation calculator (helps one calculate the selling price), our young, smart and very enthusiastic team (we believe a good team makes a good company great!!)”

So you know you’re getting the best deals when it comes to your favourite brands right here at LuxuryMonk.

How do clients get in touch with for selling a branded second at LuxuryMonk?

All their products are sold directly online through LuxuryMonk’s easy ‘Sell your Product’ section.

Gokul mentions that they encourage people to call them at 040 66588388 and drop them an email at contactus@luxurymonk.com, to guide them through the process and are open to other questions and suggestions.

In fact, LuxuryMonk also give tips on how to take that right picture and other details that would help their clients sell their product. As their office is in Hyderabad, the team also send their in-house photographers to help clients take the best possible pictures of the product they want to sell.

Stages of Verification & Authentication

LuxuryMonk receives all the merchandise at its warehouse, where their team sets to task to verify each and every product.

Gokul explains to us that LuxuryMonk has a three-stage verification and authentication process for the branded seconds which includes:

First stage: They start by making sure that the product matches the photos and description mentioned in their online post. If they feel that the seller has not included a few details or there is wear and tear of the product, they return the product to the seller.

Second stage: The LuxuryMonk team then reviews the hologram codes, brand tags, heat stamps and other accompaniments like receipts, product packaging, authenticity cards etc. It includes a detailed look into aspects like fabric, stitch and a few other hidden details not very visible to the naked eye.

“If we have ample proof that the product is authentic we send the product to the buyer who makes the final judgment on the arrival of the product. In case of returns we give all our clients 36 hours to notify us,” adds Gokul.

Third Stage for High valued products: High resolution pictures are then sent to the LuxuryMonk Authentication partners; they have a tie-up with Authenticate First (International authenticating agency based in USA) and also partnered with selected luxury brands and third party luxury retail stores, who certify that the product is authentic by issuing an authenticity certificate or letter, which accompanies the product when delivered to the buyer.

Pricing of the branded second

The selling price is solely decided by the seller, but the buyer has an option (product page) to negotiate on the price using the ‘Negotiate’ option.

Gokul further explains, “Currently we take a flat 10% commission on the price decided by the seller. This is inclusive of shipping, repackaging, authentication certificate, service tax etc. The price shown online is an all-inclusive price for the buyer.”

Presently, LuxuryMonk only operates as an online store and even though they don’t have a physical store yet, Gokul ensures that his website allows clients an easy access to view and understand the brand and the product, so that it makes them feel like they are physically present at a store.

So if you’re wondering what you can pick up or sell through LuxuryMonk – there are branded clothes from Gas, Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren and Gucci for men.

Women can pick up bags from Kenneth Cole, Fendi, Chloe or Coach all at discounted prices. Not to forget designer watches from Michael Kors and sandals from Chanel and Jimmy Choo.

Guess what, you can also buy high end luxury cars such the BMW, Mercedes Benz and Toyota to name a few.

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