For people who are obsessive about clothes, Sourcewhere is an app bound to be on par with your Google Maps – so essential once you have it, you can’t quite remember how you functioned without it.
Founder Erica Wright, who launched the app at the beginning of 2022, came up with the idea after years of working in communications for several luxury e-commerce companies. ‘Over the years, I noticed that stylists and editors were frequently looking for sold-out or past-season items that were no longer available,’ she says. ‘This made me realise that if industry insiders were struggling to access these items, how much harder must it be for the average customer?’
Sourcewhere: ‘We’re helping people find exactly what they’re looking for’
The Row is a high-ranking request from Sourcewhere’s users, like these leather ‘Almond’ shoes
(Image credit: Courtesy of Sourcewhere)
So Wright got to work building a network of acclaimed personal shoppers, archive collectors, and boutique sales advisors who could help her realise her vision: a platform where users can source luxury fashion in a manner once only available to people who could spend significant amounts each year on a personal shopper. Sourcewhere users can log into the app to shop from an extensive catalogue that includes sold-out contemporary items and rare vintage pieces. They can also put in a request for a specific item to be found by a member of the Sourcewhere network.
The platform is a perceptive response to shifts within the luxury retail industry, which is more frequently catering to an educated consumer base who know exactly what they are looking for. These customers are also willing to shop for luxury goods on digital platforms, and would rather invest in a few exceptional pieces they will enjoy over time rather than purchase items just because they are from the latest season.
The Sourcewhere interface, which allows users to ask the app’s experts to help find rare, vintage or limited-edition fashion, as well as to shop a curated online edit
(Image credit: Courtesy of Sourcewhere)
Wright created Sourcewhere in direct response to these new trends and hopes the app is the first step towards establishing sourcing as its own industry. ‘We’re already seeing a shift in how people engage with luxury,’ she says. ‘Rather than focusing on fleeting trends, there’s a growing desire to invest in items with personal significance – pieces that clients know they’ll keep and appreciate over time. Our goal is for sourcing to play a crucial role in this by extending the life of these luxury items, helping clients find exactly what they’re looking for, whether it’s something to keep, or re-sell in the future.’
When it comes to the brands people are looking for, The Row is consistently high-ranking, with people particularly interested in the ‘Bindle’ bags in mesh nylon, the ‘Margaux’ bag and ‘Mini Envelopes’ in leather. Limited-edition collaborations like Bode x Nike and Miu Miu x New Balance are also popular, along with Lemaire’s project with folk artist Joseph E Yoakum and Loewe’s A/W 2021 menswear collection, which featured the works of artist Joe Brainard. Customers also seem to prefer original vintage designs over re-editions, with the Prada 1995 zip-top patent bag, famously worn by Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, ranking highly among requests since March 2023, along with the previously discontinued Jean Paul Gaultier ‘shoulder Birkin’, created during his tenure at Hermès, which was reimagined as part of the house’s A/W 2024 collection.
A piece from Martin Margiela’s tenure at Hermès, which ran from 1997 to 2003. An A/W 1999 suit from the same era was tracked down by Sourcewhere in a process that took experts 18 months
(Image credit: Courtesy of Sourcewhere)
In regards to the most impressive rare finds Sourcewhere has made so far, Wright cites a Céline buttoned jumpsuit from Phoebe Philo’s A/W 2015 collection, ‘a piece that truly defines her era at the brand’, and an A/W 1999 Hermès black suit tracked down by one of Sourcewhere’s Margiela-era Hermès experts, fulfilling the request 18 months after it was first made.
Now that it is here, it’s hard to believe an app like Sourcewhere wasn’t created sooner. As Wright says: ‘In this digital age, it seemed almost unthinkable that customers still had to spend so much time scouring search engines, marketplaces, and even calling stores to find elusive items. We felt it was the right time to create a digital tool that made sourcing accessible for everyone.’
Sourcewhere is available from the Apple App store.
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