A luxury handbag company taking a modern approach to retail has an eye on Atlanta.
Season 2 Consign, an authenticated pre-owned luxury handbag and accessories company, is seeking franchise partners to bring operations to the Peach State.
Sisters Monica Tapia-Mularski and Erika Tapia Schrieber founded the company in 2020. With several showrooms and an e-commerce platform, the brand facilitates the resale of luxury handbags from brands like Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Gucci, Fendi and more. (The company is not affiliated with the brands themselves.)
Atlanta was a natural fit for Season 2 Consign as they aim to expand via franchising, given the strong client base the company has in the major metropolitan area.
“Although we have a great client base in Atlanta, we haven’t found the right franchisees yet,” Monica told What Now Atlanta. “Atlanta’s such an amazing market. Someone would really thrive there with a Season 2 showroom.”
The proximity to Florida, where the founders are based, makes Georgia a good location as well.
“It’s majorly important to feel connected to our owners,” Erika said. “Hopping on a plane to Atlanta and being in the business with our franchise owners in Atlanta will be really easy for us.”
The global luxury resale industry has been booming in recent years, reaching an overall value of approximately $33 billion in 2021 and expected to reach a market size of $52 billion by 2026.
In addition to the by-appointment showrooms and offices, Season 2 Consign has really grown thanks to its focus on e-commerce, with partners selling live on Instagram and TikTok.
The sisters got the idea for a concept like Season 2 Consign when noticing a void in the secondhand retail space. There’s your mom-and-pop thrift stores, and there’s your massive online resale marketplaces (think The RealReal), but not much in between.
The sisters felt there was a way to marry both approaches: a down-to-earth resale concept where customers can feel connected to the owners, while also capitalizing on the potential of technology to take things to the next level, reach more people and streamline the selling and buying process.
“We created Season 2 out of what we felt was a necessity in our industry,” Erika said. “We were able to create an environment for our customers that felt like they had a relationship with us because we were exclusively online. We connect with our customers online on a live shopping show, on Instagram, on TikTok. That’s how our business has grown. It was really important to have technology power the business forward.”
They felt that opening up the brand to franchising was the way to grow.
“We knew the power of connecting with our customer online,” Erika said. “What that meant for us was we weren’t gonna open a warehouse. We probably could have, but we could lose the ethos and DNA of the brand. The way to expand was to franchise and share everything that we learned, our knowledge, our expertise, our technology, our operations, with other like-minded people.”
Now, they’re headquartered in West Palm Beach with five franchise locations: Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa, Las Vegas and Central New Jersey, with 10 more expected by the end of the year.
They feel confident that Atlanta can support several locations, hoping to have operations up and running in the state by the end of the year.
There’s a few core values they look for in franchise partners: commitment to integrity, spirit of excellence and a focus on people. A retail or sales background isn’t necessarily essential.
“We’re looking for people that have the ability to build human connection and be genuine in the process,” Monica said. “The experience with Season 2 should never feel like we’re selling at people. We want it to feel like we’re talking about handbags with our friends online.”
For more information about franchising with Season 2 Consign, click here.
