Did you know the used clothes market in the US of A is worth $64 Billion annually? And it is expected to grow at 39% CAGR between 2019-24. The main reason for Gen-Z to repurchase “second hand clothes” is being conscious of the environment and to reduce the carbon footprint of the apparel industry.
Etsy, a renowned online apparel company plans to acquire DePop, a pure play portal for buying and selling second hand merchandise doe USD 1.63 billion. Depop is among the top-10 most visited shoppin g sites in America and mostly has the Gen-Z and the Millenials as it core consumer base whose average age is said to be under 27 years..
In the Indian context, used clothes or second hand clothes are usually considered a taboo and even within one’s family or friends’ network, the circulation of clothes (paid as well as free) is rare to find, though the Gen-Z and Millenials with global outlook and network of friends across the globe are testing waters. Most of the unused or old clothes in India were sold off to “kabaddiwala” – a local merchant who would go door to door to collect clothes and exchange them for utensils in return.
Over time, online portals like OLX and Quikr became synonymous for used products, still clothes were hardly a popular item among the users. Over time, India could perhaps become the largest market in the world for used clothes.
