I think the bigger part is that a lot of luxury goods are very hard to select without seeing them in person. Clothes are an obvious one, since you wouldn't want to buy them without trying them on (and, at the higher end, getting them tailored). But the same goes for all sorts of fashion products - leather, handbags, jewelry... you don't know whether it's what you want until you can try it on, feel the material, and see the true color.