Luxury brands have a reason to celebrate the latest EU rules which has granted them more control over their luxury products and has put sales restrictions on products been sold directly online outlets like eBay or Amazon. Online retailers and buyers are growing everyday but these online sales remain largely unregulated. These new rules may resolve conflicts such as a recent one between between eBay and French brand LMVH but it will cast a shadow on e-commerce and online sales in general.
Does this mean luxury products will not be available online?Not really, the distributers and retailers who have real showrooms and outlets can sell the products through their store websites. But virtual retailers like eBay will not be able to sell them without getting into direct distribution and sales agreement with the brands. This is indeed a bad news for e-retailers or consumers for this means one will not be able to buy luxury brands sourced from elsewhere at discounted prices and offers.
The new EU rules will come into force from June and will be valid till 2022. It can be understood that in the difficult times luxury brands want to retain complete control over products and brand image but they will lose out online buyers. Instead of restrictions better regulation of online retailers and sales would have been better.
What happens to online retailers like net a porter? There are some genuine smaller websites too selling designer goods, what happens to them?? If they don’t have a shop they are out of business??