Influencers and Resellers Are Turning Empty Boxes Into Big Cash
As the appetite for “authenticity” grows online, content creators are buying up empty boxes for luxury goods—and resellers are cashing in for “crazy prices.”
Modern influencers and resellers are discovering a lucrative market in empty boxes, turning them into valuable assets on online marketplaces. High-end luxury items like Bottega Stardust Sparkling Rosé ($8,105), an 1980s Rolex Explorer 1016 ($3,850), Hermes Bolide ($3,450) and Suntory Hibiki ($3,000) are all sold with their original packaging, as buyers are willing to pay significant sums for the collectible with its original box. This practice often boosts resale prices, as original packaging adds perceived value to the item.
The demand for empty boxes extends beyond luxury items; even affordable products like the Dyson Airwrap or Nintendo Switch can benefit from purchasing the original packaging. On eBay and eBay UK, over 160,000 and 140,000 empty box listings, respectively, illustrate the market's size. WIRED attempted to obtain sales statistics from eBay, Vinted, and Poshmark, but received no response from the latter two platforms.
The illicit side of this business involves counterfeiters who utilize authentic boxes to ship fake products, hoping to deceive buyers about the legitimacy of their purchases. Additionally, sellers sometimes ship empty boxes filled with nothing as part of an "empty box scam." To combat this, some sellers like wildswhim on Vinted deliberately avoid listing empty packaging to deter counterfeiters and provide descriptions that imply it is intended for props, staging, or storage.
Influencers and video producers are among the primary buyers of empty boxes, using them to decorate film sets or stage Instagram posts and TikTok videos. There are over 1,500 listings on eBay specifically for "empty box decor," and prices for luxury items like an Abercrombie & Fitch PR box or a Fenty Beauty influencer PR box range from $50 to $245.
Vinted seller tonym528 and York-based seller MattyHornby have also capitalized on this trend, selling empty packaging from brands like Supreme, Gucci, Balenciaga, and Prada for prices under £30.
The practice of using empty boxes for staging or decoration serves to signal success and affluence to potential followers. Social media researcher Tama Leaver notes that influencers use these boxes as a way to project an aspirational lifestyle, particularly in images of PR hauls or "PR mountains." This trend has even caught the attention of "fake life" packages offered by companies like Rent Now NG in Nigeria for a price of 6.5 million naira ($4,800).
Despite the prevalence of such practices, established creators warn against the shortcuts of faking PR stacks and advise followers to be cautious about perceived success in the influencer world.
Written by urgent.news from Wired's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
