How an iPhone, Instagram, and a story built a resale empire

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By Marcy Medina | for The SKUpe

Retail personality Christos Garkinos, founder of the live selling network Covet By Christos and author of a new memoir, Covet the Comeback, tells us how an Instagram DJ inspired him to go live, and why any SMB retailer with an iPhone and a story to tell should take a page out of his playbook. –Marcy Medina

What is Covet by Christos and what was your journey from brick-and-mortar retailer to live selling? 

Covet by Christos is an amalgam of my experience on HSN (Home Shopping Network) and Bravo, me being comfortable on camera and resale being back. In 2018, I began my trunk show business, reselling luxury goods in smaller markets without access. In February 2020 I had my biggest month yet, then the pandemic occurred. No one could travel. I saw DJNice on Instagram Live and thought, “This is how I’m going to do it.” It was March 23, 2020, and I had eight people watching me: two were family, two were friends and the rest were bots. But every night at 5 p.m. I would just show up. I started connecting with viewers, bringing on celebrity friends and it started growing. Friends with stores that had closed came on. When someone asked me in December 2020 what I charged to be on, I thought, “Oh my God—I am the network. I am the HSN of pre-loved luxury goods.” We now do 400 hours of programming a month, I do about 20% of that, and we just hit $125 million in sales since launching.

What should a retailer have in their live selling tool kit?

I still have an iPhone 12! All I need is a little tripod and my camera and some internet. Get a ring light on Amazon. And you want a background that is clear. No clutter. If you’re selling clothes, make sure you have a model. If you’re selling single things, measurements are so important to put in the listing.

What should they do once they’re ready to go live?

As a retailer, you are putting on a show every day. You gotta be entertaining. Think Watch What Happens Live meets HSN. If you’re not comfortable on camera, find someone who is. Themes are always great. Give them exclusive content; if you get new stock in on Monday, Tuesday they will see it live before anyone else does. Early adopters will be your biggest ambassadors. And you just need the right people watching, you don’t need a ton. Our sweet spot is 200-300 viewers.

What’s next for you?

We have meetups with customers all over the world called ChristosCon, and our next one is in Dubai. We’re looking at expanding on WhatNot and TikTok and developing our own app. I’d love to do more public speaking, and my book is laying the groundwork for that. It’s all about how you pivot.

Above: Christos Garkinos. (Courtesy of Rutvik Katuri)

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The SKUpe is curated and written  by Marcy Medina and edited by Bianca Prieto