Xupes launch their first UK retail store

XUPES, have announced today that they will be opening their first retail store in the UK, by London’s Royal Exchange in the heart of the City. The store will be located in the City of London, between Cornhill street and is located adjacent to Hermès and Louis Vuitton.

The store will be focused on retailing Xupes’s pre-owned collection of watches, handbags, jewellery and artworks.
Xupes is a specialist online retailer of pre-owned items – their mission is to give clients opportunities to own, treasure and enjoy rare, beautiful and desirable pre-owned items that once belonged to someone else. With a carefully curated range of stock from brands such as Rolex, Hermès, Chanel and many more, Xupes offers a patient and friendly service, and is committed to helping their clients find that special item they’ve always wanted. All products are rigorously vetted for provenance and authenticity, then meticulously serviced and prepared in their manufacturer-accredited in-house workshop. Alongside their collection for sale, Xupes also purchase pre-loved items directly from customers, sell them on their behalf and offer an exchange service encouraging customers to recycle their items and reduce waste.

Xupes have appointed Formroom as their commercial design agency to transform the store and encompass as much of the digital experience as possible. “The aim is to create an interactive and immersive customer experience which showcases our online origins and encourages clients to transition from the world of digital to real-time whilst encapsulating our personal, unique service” comments co-founder Joseph McKenzie.

E-commerce has been the focus for the ten-year-old family owned business until recently. With over 50% of customers visiting their Hertfordshire based showroom before purchasing, Xupes have realised the importance of a physical presence when it comes to selling pre-owned. “It is the nature of the items we sell, and our aim is to offer service and quality, instilling confidence in our authentication and guarantees we offer. Once customers have found us online, and then visit us in person they really understand what we are trying to achieve” explains McKenzie.

Xupes was established in 2009 by entrepreneur Joseph McKenzie and his father Frank. With a clockmaker great-grandfather, Joe grew up fascinated by watches and spent his spare time buying and then restoring pre-owned watches. Frank, on the other hand, had a vast amount of business expertise, surviving several recessions with numerous successful start-up enterprises. Seeing a gap in the market, Joseph and Frank used his youthful vision and their joint creativity to strive to challenge the stereotype of second-hand. Graduating in 2008, and having proven the market potential, Joseph combined his expertise of timepieces with his father’s business knowledge and together they established the online retail platform Xupes.

“We are extremely excited to be launching our first retail space in the UK in such a prominent location and amongst some of the world’s most exclusive brands, which we actually stock ourselves. Buying pre-owned not only makes financial sense for customers, but also provides access to vintage and classic designs that aren’t available from retailers any more. Add in the sustainability factor and we think it’s a proposition that really resonates with a lot of people. We have a genuine love for the products we sell and understand the important roles they can play in people’s lives, whether that be marking a career milestone, a gift for a loved one, or becoming an heirloom to pass down the family. We want to help anyone who aspires to own one of these beautiful pieces of design and offer an enjoyable and trustworthy way of purchasing it, whether that be in one of our showrooms or via our website.”

Xupes’s first UK store follows closely from their recent retail expansion into the Dutch market. At the beginning of August, Xupes launched their first pop-up concession in de Bijenkorf’s flagship store on Dam Square, Amsterdam. The chain is owned by the Weston family, which also owns Britain’s Selfridges, Canada’s Holt Renfrew and Ireland’s Brown Thomas. This exciting launch followed opening their first office in mainland Europe just outside of the doorstep of the Vondelpark in Amsterdam’s wealthy “oud-zuid” district in July. Built in a traditional Dutch style, ‘the Red Castle’ is 1000 sq. ft. in size and acts as both a by-appointment retail space and an office for the expanding team.