Emma Roberts Is Obsessed With Shopping Used Bags

Emma Roberts loves secondhand fashion. In her spare time, the actress can be found scrolling through secondhand luxury platforms, like Fashionphile, trying to find the perfect balance of condition and price to add to her collection. “I am always on the hunt for the perfect purse and that hardly ever means what's new and trendy,” she says. 

After years of perusing Fashionphile, Roberts is now partnering with the platform as an ambassador for its 25th anniversary, turning her scavenging passion into a curated selection of designer goods, including a Lady Dior bag, a Louis Vuitton Pochette Métis bag, and a Fendi Zucca Baguette bag.

With flagship and pop-up locations nationwide, Fashionphile’s assortment features a wide variety of designer scores that range from entry-level offerings like $200 Louis Vuitton wallets and $300 Hermès silk scarves to rare items like a $54,000 diamond-encrusted Chopard watch and a $39,000 18k gold Rolex timepiece. Items are certified by Fashionphile’s team of authentication experts, who receive pieces via in-store and online consignment, as well as the platform’s selling studios and service desks at Neiman Marcus. 

It was the vast selection of goodies that first drew Roberts to Fashionphile.  “I have always loved to shop vintage and secondhand, so to discover a platform that has such a huge selection in excellent condition was a dream,” she says. 

The 33-year-old actress, known for her roles in the American Horror Story series and 2000s teen classics like Aquamarine and Nancy Drew, also taps into her vintage vein in real life. “Whenever I go to a new city, the first thing I do is look up vintage and estate sales,” she says. But it’s on Fashionphile where she’s found many of her most treasured designer finds. Roberts snatched her first-ever black Hermès Birkin bag on the platform, as well as a black Chanel Hobo bag, which she bought for her sister. “She cried when I gave it to her!” Roberts recalls. 

Roberts’ partnership with Fashionphile comes at a time of increased demand in the secondhand and vintage luxury markets, which now topple $50 billion in sales, according to a report by Bain & Company. But for Roberts, it’s all about collecting stories—not just investments—through her wardrobe. “Shopping secondhand is just so much more fun! It becomes like treasure hunting,” she says. When she was 16, for example, the actress bought a leather jacket in London, which she still owns over 15 years later. “Just seeing it hanging in my closet brings back memories,” she says. 

Lately, her Fashionphile scrolls have been dedicated to finding some special pieces, including a Louis Vuitton train case, a Chanel belt bag, and the iconic coat worn by Penny Lane in the ‘90s film Almost Famous. In her pursuit, she’s trying to take her own advice to hopeful secondhand luxury shoppers: "Don't get discouraged!"