Practical Ecommerce Merchant

March 26, 2025

Ecom and the Secondhand Boom

Ecommerce and the Secondhand Boom

The online market for secondhand apparel should grow 13% annually in the U.S. through 2029, reaching $40 billion, according to a study from ThredUp, the resale platform. Other sources, including Credence Research, have released similar growth estimates.

The surge is creating ecommerce opportunities.

Culture, marketplaces, and economics contribute to consumer demand for used clothing.

Environmentalism and sustainability likely influence some buyers. Often female, younger, and engaged in popular culture, these shoppers are aware of the environmental impact of fast fashion, leading them to seek more sustainable alternatives.

Marketplaces such as ThredUp, Swap.com, eBay, and Facebook Marketplace have all made finding used, returned, or overstock clothing easier, as they surface items that would have otherwise sold from brick-and-mortar shops or yard sales. Buyers seek items that might be trendy, vintage, or just hard to get.

Economics is also influencing consumers. The ThredUp study noted that secondhand garment and shoe sales took off in 2021, perhaps owing to the dual economic impacts of Covid and the first set of U.S. trade tariffs against China in 2018-19.

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