Before making a purchase, I decided to read information on websites like Reddit and Trustpilot, but I couldn’t find reviews that fully answered all my questions: How good are the popular online luxury fashion retail platforms Farfetch and Cettire?
These retailers are a bit different from other third-party sites because they don’t actually own the items they sell. So, I decided to buy similar products on their websites and compare the prices, quality, delivery, and return process myself.
I ordered two bags from both Farfetch and Cettire. In the end, I will keep only one bag from each platform. Two bags will be returned. This will allow us to test the delivery and refund process simultaneously.
How Farfetch and Cettire Work
Both Cettire and Farfetch work directly with brands and designers. The sales process is as follows:
- You place an order on Cettire or Farfetch.
- They then pass your order directly to the brands and designers, such as Gucci and Tory Burch.
- The brands and designers then deliver the products directly from their stores and boutiques.
There’s no need to doubt the originality and authenticity of the products on Cettire and Farfetch. All items turned out to be genuine with a quality guarantee directly from the clothing manufacturers.
All products were delivered with authentic boxes, and the authenticity documents were directly in the bags.
I saw nothing to suggest that the bags received from Farfetch and Cettire were not authentic.
Prices
First, let’s compare the prices of the Tory Burch Mini Eleanor Tote Bag:
- Price on Cettire – $522
- Price on Farfetch – $792
Comparing the price of the Gucci 1955 Horsebit bag:
- Price on Cettire – $2837
- Price on Farfetch – $2980
My purchases were more expensive on Farfetch than on Cettire. The Tory Burch bag is cheaper on Cettire by $270 (34%). The elite Gucci 1955 Horsebit bag is actually more expensive on Farfetch by $143 (4.7%).
As you can see, I overpaid on Farfetch by a total of $413 for the same products compared to Cettire. The bags are absolutely identical. I don’t know why there is such a price difference.
I won’t make definitive conclusions, claiming that all products on Farfetch are more expensive than on Cettire. In my case, it just turned out that way. So, I recommend you take the time to compare prices before buying.
Interestingly, the Tory Burch bag costs more on the official website than even on Farfetch. The logic is unclear to me; I’m just stating the fact as it is.
Delivery
In my experience, products paid for on Farfetch were delivered directly from the Tory Burch and Gucci brands. The other two bags came directly from Cettire.
When shipping, Farfetch indicated an approximate delivery time of 7 days, but in fact, the bags were delivered to my home after 13 days, which is 6 days later than the specified period.
Delivery on Cettire ultimately took 2 weeks. In my case, neither retailer had an advantage in delivery services. One day, in my opinion, does not make a significant difference.
Keep in mind, as products from Farfetch are often delivered directly from designers, delivery times and conditions may differ from my experience. Just keep this in mind.
Both deliveries were free for me, presumably because the cost of my orders was substantial (over $3000).
All products were shipped by FedEx, and I had to be present to receive the parcels.
Return Process
In the end, I kept the Gucci bag from Farfetch and the Tory Burch from Cettire, simply because I saved more on these purchases.
The bag purchased on Farfetch was returned to the manufacturer’s address also using FedEx. I returned the product after 5 days from the purchase because Farfetch’s website states that you can return the product no later than 30 days from the purchase date. I didn’t want to risk waiting for the critical date.
The return process took 10 days, and the money was returned to my account after another 10 days. In total, I waited 20 days from the time of shipment until the money was back in my bank account.
With Cettire, I had to worry a bit. At first, I couldn’t confirm the return of the product with their support service. It took me 2 days of correspondence to resolve the issue with the order number. In the end, it took about 30 days to return the product and get my money back. I admit, when you’re returning a bag worth over $2000, it’s nerve-wracking.
In fact, I can make the following conclusion comparing Farfetch and Cettire:
- The legitimacy, quality, and authenticity of the products are not in doubt. Farfetch and Cettire are definitely not scams.
- The cost of goods on Cettire is cheaper by 5% to 35% than on Farfetch.
- The speed of delivery is almost the same, but the return process, in my experience, was better with Farfetch.