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Farfetch is throwing its full weight behind cryptocurrencies, after a successful trial in Off-White and Browns stores earlier this year.
Customers shopping on the luxury marketplace will be able to scan a QR code to access their crypto wallet and purchase goods using one of seven cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Binance Coin, Farfetch says.
The pilot, which will start in five stores later this month, is a significant step toward Gucci blending its Web3 and physical communities.
Crypto payments will be accepted from its top-tier “private clients” in the coming months, ahead of a wider rollout to all customers in the US, UK and Europe at the end of the year. Other countries will follow in 2023.
Farfetch says its payment provider will accept the crypto from the customer (on behalf of Farfetch) and exchange it for fiat currency. Returns that have been accepted by Farfetch or one of its partner boutiques, will be processed in the original cryptocurrency at the current exchange rate, according to the marketplace.
Farfetch has also partnered with cryptocurrency platform Lunu to enable brands and boutiques to accept crypto payments in their own retail stores. Luxury brands that use Farfetch Platform Solutions white-label technology will be able to accept cryptocurrencies in early 2023.
It follows the successful launch of crypto in Farfetch-owned Off-White’s flagship stores in Paris, London and Milan, as well as London-based luxury retailer Browns. “This was a crucial step to test and learn, and we are excited to [now] share our technical and service know-how with our community,” says Farfetch founder, CEO and chairman José Neves. Crypto payments will also be accepted at Farfetch-owned Palm Angels’s flagship in Milan “imminently”, the company says.
“As a platform company, we are continually innovating to serve as the bridge for the luxury industry to new technologies and environments where the luxury customer is today, and where they’ll be tomorrow,” adds Neves. “With this move, we look forward to empowering our incredible boutique and brand partners to embrace cryptocurrency.”
Last month, Gucci announced that it will accept crypto payments in some US stores, and plans to extend the pilot to all of its directly operated US stores this summer. The move was seen as a major validation for the currency from a leading luxury brand.
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