Anvita Mehra, 26, had a thing for designer goods, handbags in particular. She was studying finance at the University of Nottingham, when, during a trip to London, she saw a Louis Vuitton handbag that caught her fancy. But it was too expensive to buy. A few months later, she found the same handbag—a used piece, but as good as new—at half the price on a Web portal. Passion, studies and inspiration all fell into place. Upon graduating, Mehra founded Confidential Couture, an online portal for buying and selling pre-owned designer goods. Her friend and classmate Jharna Gianchandani, joined in as a Co-founder. “Too many people aspire for luxury but cannot afford it. A platform that allows people to buy luxe goods at discounted rates was much needed in India,” says Mehra.

Founded in June 2014, Confidential Couture offers a range of products from virtually all leading luxury brands—Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Hermés, Fendi, Prada, Jimmy Choo, Gucci, among others. Before the goods are listed on the website, they are examined for authenticity, undergo bio-cleansing, if required, and then priced on the basis of their condition. “Thorough checks ensure people get authentic designer goods, supported by our guarantee, at a great price,” says Mehra. The items are broadly categorized as ‘Never been Used’, ‘Gently Used’, and ‘Fairly Used’, to indicate their condition. Each category is explained to give a clear indication of what it offers in terms of product quality. “The idea is to give buyers an actual impression of the product making the process absolutely transparent,” says Mehra. Based out of Delhi, Confidential Coutre started out with just selling handbags and has now expanded to a host of goods including, among other things, shoes, sunglasses, jewellery and watches. It currently has 350-400 sellers and receives 15,000 unique visitors per month. The founders, who put in Rs 18 lakh—savings and family loans—to start the business, say getting the concept accepted in the Indian market was their biggest hurdle. “People did not understand that there could be a curated marketplace for buyers and sellers in the luxury designer segment. Secondhand luxury came with a stigma,” says Mehra.

The startup’s gross revenue of over Rs 2 crore in 2015-16 shows consumers— especially the youngsters, says Mehra—are opening up to the idea of buying pre-owned luxury products. “When we started out, we were creating a used luxe goods market and it was difficult to play upon the perception of the consumers. But, over time, this market has gained acceptability,” says Mehra. One of things that has helped drive customers, reveal the founders, is confidentiality. The startup broke even in May 2015 and the founders expect to double its gross revenue to Rs 4 crore in 2015-16. “People aspire to get their fashion fix at a bargain and we give them that thrill of luxury with the assurance of complete confidentiality. It is very important to our customer,” says Mehra. The founders’ current challenge lies in fending off sellers of fake goods. The startup, which has run ‘Say no to fake’ campaigns, and receives between 25-30 queries per day from sellers, is taking steps to screen sellers of fake goods. Early stage screening is aimed at cutting logistic spends. “A large number of people try to list fake products. This often increases our logistics cost. It is a waste of resources if the product that we pick is a fake,” says Mehra. The grey market, where luxe products are sold at cheaper prices, also poses a challenge. “Consumers, at times, prefer to go to the grey market, but there is always the chance of getting cheated. The guarantee of authenticity that we provide will eventually help build greater traction for our business,” claims Mehra