Published on : 26 September 20193 min reading time

Today, it is the continuation of our “Fashion and Environment” series. In the previous article, we were interested in eco-responsible fashion brands, we are now continuing with what is increasingly becoming an alternative in terms of responsible consumption: buying second-hand clothes! While traditionally this offer was mainly aimed at students looking for cheap clothes and vintage look lovers, the enthusiasm for the occasion is such that according to an American study (carried out by the GlobalData research institute for the American site thredUP), the second-hand clothing market, which represented 21.2 billion euros in 2018, will represent 45 billion euros in 2023. Some analysts predict that it will overtake the luxury market by 2022 and the fast fashion market by 2028! Second-hand fashion is therefore really serious.

Second-hand fashion online

Of course, the Internet has taken hold of this phenomenon. One might even be tempted to say that it is thanks to him that second-hand buying has become more popular, as he is so full of sites specialized in the second hand. Visit https://us.vestiairecollective.com for more about second hand luxury websites. And on the Web, the competition is raging (well ok, it’s still less violent than a Game of Thrones episode). As is often the case on the Net, there is absolutely everything for everyone and for all budgets.

Physical shops for second-hand clothing

Historically, when you wanted to buy second-hand clothes, you would go to second-hand clothing stores and other sales depots. Before being considered as a high fashion place, they were used by the bourgeoisie as a place to get stuck in the 19th century. In the 1960s, their doors were opened to collect uniforms and divert their ports for protest purposes. Clearly, before becoming a real hype, this kind of service (which is not new) had a social purpose. Indeed, the movement had (and still has) as its action the fight against poverty and exclusion, by various and adapted means, the main ones being the recovery and reuse of objects of all kinds.

But today, second-hand clothing stores have evolved and adapted to a very particular demand: that of consuming differently, that of consuming more intelligently. Although they have been part of the urban landscape for decades, second-hand clothing stores have been modernized, taking care of the presentation of clothing to bring them closer to the standards of fashion boutiques. This is a fact that is mainly observed in the Nordic countries, from Belgium to Sweden, with the example of this shop in Stockholm. However, there is no shortage of good addresses in Paris and we offer you some below.

Brands enter the second-hand market

Of course, this enthusiasm for second-hand clothing is forcing brands to reconsider the way they offer clothing. Collections, repairs of worn parts, up-cycling or recycling programs, each use different shapes of channels to (re)bring certain parts to life. Let’s look at these different operating modes.