OP-ED: Online Resale Inadvertently Fuels Disposable Fashion

By Melissa Watt, ethical fashion journalist

Despite a looming economic crisis, the second-hand clothing market is thriving. According to ThredUP’s 2020 Resale Report– the first of its kind to consider the impacts of a global health crisis – online second-hand sales will increase by 69% between 2019 and 2021. Online resale, it would seem, is pandemic-proof.

The soaring popularity of online resale is surely positive, signalling that thrifting is as accessible as ever. This means that more pre-existing clothes will be re-homed and ultimately diverted from a life in landfill. In theory, buying second-hand also reduces the demand for brand new, curtailing the need to extract raw materials.

As more thrifters look to shop from the comfort of their own home, many are opting for Depop. Combining the best bits of a shopping app and a social media feed, Depop has captured the hearts of the ‘Instagram generation’. The popular resale app has enjoyed a 200% increase in traffic since April in the United States alone.

But the app hailed as an affordable, sustainable alternative may be inadvertently fuelling our desire for new. In many ways, Depop imitates the fast fashion cycle: users can buy cheap, trendy pieces and they frequently do. Depop buyers now have unlimited access to the latest ‘must-have’ items for a fraction of the retail price. Such a model depends on a constant flow of new arrivals, many of which are barely worn or have the sale tags still attached. Beyond the obvious appeal of buying preloved clothes in perfect condition, it is ever so easy to get caught up in a never-ending treadmill of trends. In other words, online resale can unintentionally fuel our throwaway relationship with clothes.

The truth is that the second-hand market does not exist separately to traditional retail. To be labelled as such, an item needs to have been bought brand new and then resold by somebody else. Online resale, therefore, is very much part of the fast fashion cycle, as shoppers can buy something new, wear it once or twice and then sell it on. Each sale makes room for a potential new garment, with the money made regularly going towards a brand new purchase.  

The taboo around outfit repeating might be to blame. In her Depop bio, Steph admits that “my friends call me a shopaholic but I call it retail therapy”. While decluttering her wardrobe during lockdown, Steph was confronted with the fact that much of her resale pile still had the tags on. While she loves to repeat her favourite outfits for work, Steph is “guilty of wearing an item of clothing once because it has already been showcased. Planning an outfit for an event is all part of the fun and nobody really wants to be seen in the same outfit as the last one.” 

Online influencer, Millie Fisher, is a self-confessed clothes hoarder and can expect to receive a new parcel of clothing every day. She wouldn’t consider herself an outfit repeater, stating that “if it’s a piece of clothing for a special occasion (a birthday perhaps) I would put it on Depop straight after I have worn it and taken a photo in it. If I'm selling on Depop, I usually put the money towards more outfits to update my wardrobe.” 

Steph and Millie are not alone. A survey commissioned by Barnardo's revealed that 25% of people would be embarrassed to wear an outfit to a special occasion more than once, rising to 37% for 16-24-year olds. A 2017 study by environmental charity Hubbub also found that 1 in 6 young people avoid re-wearing an outfit they’ve already been photographed in.

Fashion psychologist, researcher and practitioner, Dr Dion Terrelonge, believes that social media has only added to this pressure. “If you take pictures in an outfit you are wearing and it goes on social media, the number of eyes on you exponentially grows in size because it’s online. We then feel the need to present ourselves in different outfits, otherwise you’ll be seen to be not keeping up with the trends.”

With 21 Buttons and the Instagram swipe up feature, you can now replicate the outfits of your style icons in a few simple clicks. The psychological implications, however, can be dangerous. Dr Terrelonge explains that too often we base our “idealised self on a social media influencer who changes their outfit 3 times a day, is airbrushed to the Gods and is always on holiday. The reality is that social media star is being sent clothes and being sent on holiday, so you’re left trying to compare your real self to an unrealistic but idealised standard. We can chase this by similarly not repeating our outfits.” 

In this age of disposable fashion, Depop is quickly becoming a dumping ground for lightly worn clothes. It would take hours to scroll through the tens of thousands of listings described as ‘worn once’, while the search term ‘brand new with tags’ generates over 729,000 results. Among them are items that were bought as a one-off photo prop.

For others, Depop is a trusted back-up plan; consumers can shop reassured that anything that doesn’t fit or suit their style can be resold. The rise of online retailers is likely driving this trend, as shoppers are unable to try something on before committing to a purchase. Steph believes the main reason she hoards unworn clothes is because she can never find the time to take things back. This would change if brick and mortar stores introduced the option to return unwanted items via post. 

As of 2019, 40% of consumers now consider the resale value of an item before purchasing it, a figure that has almost doubled in the last 5 years. When shoppers are no longer buying with the intent to keep, Depop is a quick fix for buyer’s remorse. Olivia, an avid Depop user and seller, knows this too well. Her listings feature a mix of well-loved garments, brand new items she later changed her mind on and clothes that were originally bought on Depop but didn’t fit.

The rise of drop shipping has further blurred the lines between second-hand and brand new. Drop shippers are essentially middlemen who order from a foreign supplier but never handle the item directly. Instead, the mass-produced item is shipped straight to the buyer. These accounts often pose as individuals who trick buyers into thinking something brand new is vintage. The labouring conditions of these items is unknown, taking anywhere between 1 and 3 weeks to be shipped from a factory abroad. Drop shipping directly violates Depop’s rules and makes it ever harder to decipher whether something is genuinely second-hand.

Becky, otherwise known to her followers as @theniftythrifter_, was once caught out when purchasing a bag on Depop. Recalling the incident, “it was only when the bag arrived in a plastic film and had a label on it when I realised it was in fact a brand new bag.” Becky now messages the seller if she is ever unsure. She also checks to see if something is available in multiple sizes or colours, if shipping takes over 2 weeks and if the images used are stock photos – all tell-tale signs.

Commenting on the rise of boutique shops on Depop, Becky commends those that “put ethical and sustainable practices at the heart of their business. However, all too often I've seen boutiques follow a fast fashion business model which is concerning. There needs to be greater transparency from businesses utilising Depop about where the clothes are coming from and who is making them. Otherwise, normal people are being manipulated into buying clothing that is no good for people or the planet.”

A recent study commissioned by luxury retailer Farfetch found that 65% of second-hand clothing purchases in the US and UK prevented the purchase of something brand new. This figure declined to 41% in China. Clearly, second-hand purchases can reduce individual consumption. It also shows that excessive thrift hauls are not the sole fault of online resale platforms, but until the stigma around outfit repeating is broken, they remain the obvious destination for barely worn clothes.

Dr Terrelonge is hopeful that the tide is changing, pointing to the Bafta’s 2019 dress code and the likes of the Duchess of Cambridge rewearing their clothes. The impact of this should not be understated. “The moment we see influential people repeating outfits and reworking them proudly, young people are more likely to do the same thing”, says Dr Terrelonge.