In its 2021 Resale Report, ThredUp projects the $36 billion secondhand market will double in the next five years, reaching $77 billion. The study, which surveyed 3,500 American adults between March and April 2021, found 36.2 million customers sold pre-owned apparel online for the first time in 2020. More 118.8 million customers plan to sell pre-owned clothes over the course of the year.

As per a Fashion Law report, online thrifting became a new pandemic habit in 2020 as consumers not only sold off apparel online but also 33 million of them bought secondhand apparels online for the first time in 2020. Resale company, ThredUp expects consumption of secondhand apparel will increase as more first-time buyers plan to increase their spending on secondhand in the next five years.

ThredUp points out, as of 2020 secondhand apparel was already growing faster in terms of amassing market share than its fast fashion counterparts. The segment is slated to grow to 18 per cent by 2030, double of fast fashion market. Meanwhile, off-price retailers such as Marshalls and TJ Maxx are expected to take 19 per cent of the apparel market by 2030 while subscription apparel services, direct-to-consumer brands, and Amazon’s fashion division are also expected to advance over that same period of time.

As per the ThredUp report, Gen-Z consumers are 165 per cent more likely than their Baby Boomer counterparts to consider resale value of clothing before buying it They are also 83 per cent more likely to view apparel ownership as temporary, thus, subject to multiple ownership turnovers in furtherance of the larger sharing economy.

The report states that over the next 5 years, consumers are slated to prioritize secondhand apparel over new clothing. Around 42 percent of consumers plan to spend more on secondhand clothing versus the 26 percent that plan to spend more on new ‘sustainable’ wares, as well as those marketed as ‘inclusive’ and ‘transparent,’ which is 40 percent fewer than 2019. The company proposes removing sales tax for consumers or providing tax credit on secondhand purchases, giving tax deductions for brands with certified resale programs, requiring clothing to be discarded responsibly by consumers, and requiring retailers to reuse returns.