When luxury brand Lacoste wanted to sell its sports and leisure apparel through e-commerce, it could not locate a suitable website that would fit its brand image in India. Now it has decided to launch its own global e-commerce site (lacoste.com) in India. The online store is already operational in Europe and the US, and is designed to give the right feel for its upmarket brand to consumers.

“We did have talks with luxury sites like elitify.com, but found that they were also selling other luxury brands without being authorised to do so. Lacoste needs a premium environment which is not possible through the regular marketplace sites, which tend to be discounted,” says Rajesh Jain, Managing Director & CEO, Lacoste. “The buying experience should be the same between online and offline stores. We should have our global e-commerce site by the end of this year.”

Similarly, Crystal brand Swarovski is also planning to bring its global e- commerce site by 2016 as it does not believe in selling through a third party in any market. “None of the luxury sites in India are authorised to sell our brand and we plan to launch an e-commerce site which will be owned by the company in India,” claims Sukanya Dutta Roy, Managing Director, Consumer Goods Business, Swarovski India.

Polo-based luxury brand La Martina is also keen to engage in e-commerce through its global offering. “With third party sites, there are issues like import duties and commissions, for which we are not ready. In fact, most luxury brands, including the likes of Gucci, are not doing e-commerce through other luxury sites in India,” says Eliana Koulas, Director, La Martina. The company plans to launch its online site this year for which products will be sourced out of India.

Existing luxury sites, meanwhile, continue to work like commission agents with their market place models at prices that are not decided by the seller. They do not source products directly from the luxury brands. Instead, they have a market place site where luxury boutiques sell products across luxury brands like D&G and Prada with the best possible prices. “We end up getting commissions which range between 20 to 30 per cent for every transaction,” explains Nakul Bajaj, Co-founder and CEO of luxury portal, Darveys.com.

The entry of global brands into the e-commerce space, however, will not stop the existing luxury sites from stocking and selling any of these high-end brands. As Jain of Lacoste observes, “There are still no rules for e-commerce and what is happening in consumer durables is also happening in the apparel and lifestyle segments. Sites can always buy from others and sell through their marketplaces without the company getting involved, as these are big brands which create pull for their e-commerce ventures.”

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