Dive Brief:
- Following its U.S. launch of TikTok Shop, TikTok has partnered with Real Authentication, a luxury goods verification service, to verify used handbags before they are sold on the social media platform, according to a Monday announcement.
- Merchants must submit the item for verification and become approved sellers on the platform. Real Authentication will verify the authenticity of the bags and use its proprietary Smart Database scan technology to identify potentially counterfeit handbags, per the press release.
- Once the bags are authenticated, sellers on TikTok can create a product listing, upload the authenticity certificate to the site and sell the item on TikTok Shop, the company said.
Dive Insight:
In addition to handbags, Real Authentication also authenticates clothing, jewelry, eyewear, watches and shoes, according to its website.
TikTok’s partnership with Real Authentication comes after the U.S. launch of TikTok Shop in September. With the e-commerce hub, TikTok merchants customize product collections on their profile pages and display their available merchandise to the platform's 150 million U.S.-based users.
“We are thrilled to partner with TikTok Shop in the U.S.,” Anastacia Black, founder and expert authenticator for Real Authentication, said in a statement. “As the demand for resale luxury increases, it is imperative that buyers and retailers have confidence that [the] merchandise they are purchasing and selling is genuine.”
As TikTok ventures into authenticated used merchandise, other major retailers have introduced their own verification services in recent years. Last year, Fashionphile, the luxury secondhand retailer, opened a 60,000-square-foot authentication center and showroom in New York City. EBay in a similar move unveiled its Certified by Brand program earlier this year, enabling brands to authenticate secondhand luxury items sold on the platform.
