About |
Whether members are looking for a fresh look from head-to-toe or a different style of handbag, HauteTrader.com allows users to trade the designer items they already have for those they really want. Women who register with HauteTrader.com can trade their own gently used designer bags, clothes and shoes for other fashions they crave from the closets of other women throughout the nation. HauteTrader not only brings like-minded fashion lovers together but makes it easier to exchange items by facilitating trades and covering shipping costs for a small trade fee. Traders can find pieces they love by searching by size, style, designer or tier. The site is home to virtual closets filled with gorgeous clothing, shoes and handbags from top luxury brands like Gucci, Christian Dior and Diane Von Furstenberg.
What makes HauteTrader even more valuable is its one-of-a-kind currency model. After every successful trade, members receive rewards in the form of "Haute-Points," a bit coin-like site currency. The amount of Haute-Points traders receive increases with the value of the items traded. Traders can accumulate and use their Haute-Points to make future trades.
HauteTrader is the brainchild of founder Hope-Noelle Davenport, a former fashion designer and graduate of FIT. Davenport's inspiration stems from her experience trading favorite looks with girlfriends as a college student, coupled with her observations from time spent in numerous showrooms at New York Fashion Week. "When I was in college, my roommate and I would host trade parties with the rest of our dorm room floor, " Davenport says. "We'd all raid each other's closets for the best items. You're in college and poorer than ever but still want to look fabulous, right? So we wanted to make the most of what we had, together. The funny thing is, after I graduated and started working in the fashion industry, I noticed this was still the case with my colleagues. We were still accumulating our most coveted items in the designer showrooms at Fashion Week. So I thought, why not bring this idea to the internet? Why not create a safe, trusted place for fashion enthusiasts to increase the value of their most coveted items by getting other fabulous fashions for free?"
HauteTrader allows trades from 210 different designers and simplifies the trading process by dividing designer items into one of four tiers based on the prestige of each designer brand. Tier One includes approachable labels such as Catherine Malandrino, Diane Von Furstenberg, Elie Tahari and Alice and Olivia. Tier Two takes it up a notch with Marc by Marc Jacobs, Narciso Rodriguez and Ralph Lauren Collection. Tier Three includes Dolce & Gabbana, Escada and Herve Leger. Tier 4 includes top coveted labels such as Chloe, Chanel, Christian Louboutin and Gucci.