Around two-thirds (65%) of members of second-hand marketplace Vinted have a quarter or more of their wardrobes made up of second-hand items.
Research from the pre-loved platform reveals that second-hand has become “firmly embedded” in the consumption habits of its members.
The report is based on research speaking to over 100,000 Vinted members and combining the results with an independent analysis conducted by climate tech start-up Vaayu.
It found that over a third (37%) of Vinted members, second-hand already makes up half of their wardrobe or more. The UK, Germany, France and Poland were found to be leading the way, in the countries more than 40% of members reported that over half of their wardrobe consists of second-hand finds.
Vinted CEO Thomas Plantenga said: “Our Impact Report shows second-hand has the potential to become the first choice across Europe. Our members are already seeing the benefits in their daily lives.
“These findings encourage us to continue to invest in making second-hand easy and accessible to everyone in society. However, despite this positive trend, second-hand remains a very small part of the fashion market.”
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“Thus there is lots of work and potential ahead of us. We are motivated to make second-hand truly the first choice, as it will benefit the environment and at the same time bring billions of sales from our members directly back into the economy.”
“We are privileged to be in a position where we can both strengthen the financial position of our members while improving the impact they have on the environment at scale.”
According to the report, the main motivation for Vinted members choosing second-hand over new is because of its value for money: almost half (48%) chose to buy a second-hand item because the price was lower than new.
Meanwhile, the vast majority (84%) of Vinted buyers find the quality of second-hand items bought on Vinted to be as good or even better than new items.
Over a third (36%) of Vinted members tend to take better care of their clothes, because they can resell them later on, the research shows.
Figures published last year show social media posts about second-hand fashion brands increased by 72% since the start of the year to reach up to 5.5 million users.