ONCE’IT: NZ’s first online luxury fashion outlet

New Zealand shoppers now have their own discount luxury fashion outlet thanks to the new website ONCE’IT which is quickly becoming as successful as its overseas counterparts.

The website is a new concept to the country allowing designer clothing fans to do their shopping online and avoid having to fight-off hysterical fashionistas at traditional retail sales.

ONCE’IT offers coveted fashion brands at discounted prices, often up to 70 per cent, with at least three new sales starting each week. Sales have included fashion heavyweights such as WORLD and Stolen Girlfriends Club.

To keep an air of exclusivity access to clothing sales are by invitation only and the site has quickly grown in popularity.

Just over a year since its launch, ONCE’IT has over 26,000 members and many more people waiting for an invite.

Founder and managing director Jay Goodey has seen similar concepts work overseas and recognised it as a good project to bring to New Zealand.

He began researching and talking to web-developers while working full-time as a television editor and says the past year has been both crazy and exciting.

“I was working eight hours a day and then eight hours at night doing research.”

Canterbury University student Jordan Gunn is a big fan of ONCE’IT and is always checking up on their latest sale, she says.

“There are some really great sales. I got a Stolen Girlfriends Club dress that I normally couldn’t afford.”

Gunn heard about the site through a “shopaholic friend” and says most of her girlfriends are members.

Many of the designers were “very precious” about their brands at first but now prefer ONCE’IT than a designer garage sale, says founder Jay Goodey.

“Potentially, by the end of this year, we’ll have a couple of new websites running alongside ONCE’IT.”

Until then shoppers have many exciting sales on the website such as Neverland Jewellery, Misery Prints and Ricochet.