Do you shop for second-hand clothes? You’re most likely to be a lot more fashionable
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Not only is next-hand purchasing fantastic for the world and your wallet, our new research finds the a lot more design-mindful you are, the more likely you are to shop for second-hand dresses and extras.
In the 2020-21 economic 12 months, 72% of Australians ordered at least one merchandise of next-hand apparel – but we required to know extra about people today who have been procuring 2nd hand.
It is frequently assumed those people who shop for 2nd-hand clothes do so to save income or decrease their effect on the natural environment.
In our research, we located the increased folks charge on model-consciousness, the far more probably they are to store second hand. In actuality, type-consciousness was a greater predictor of next-hand purchasing than remaining frugal or ecologically-acutely aware.
Model-acutely aware purchasers are very different from vogue-mindful shoppers. Vogue is all about the “new”: style is a novelty and continuously evolving.
Design, on the other hand, is about expressing lengthy-time period specific id.
Study much more:
Secondhand clothes sales are booming – and may perhaps enable resolve the sustainability crisis in the trend market
The difficulty with trend
Trend consumers are utilised to a steady provide of new developments and “fast fashion” products and solutions. Quickly fashion works immediately to replicate an at any time shifting stream of vogue traits, creating massive volumes of reduced-high quality attire.
The effects of quick trend on the setting is important and nicely-documented. Globally, the speedy trend industry creates 92 million tonnes of squander per year and uses 79 trillion litres of drinking water. A lot less than 15% of garments are recycled or reused.
Improperly designed and lower-high-quality rapidly vogue goods are a sizeable challenge for charity suppliers, who are forced to send quick style products they simply cannot offer to landfill.
But, heading in opposition to this quickly fashion craze, developing quantities of people today are buying for second-hand clothing and components.
Read extra:
‘I can only do so much’: we questioned quickly-vogue consumers how ethical considerations form their choices
A escalating market place
It’s difficult to figure out the sizing of the next-hand market place due to the fact lots of revenue acquire location in casual settings this kind of as pre-loved marketplaces and on-line platforms like Facebook Market.
On the other hand, sales knowledge from on the internet platforms exhibits an explosion in development. James Reinhart, CEO of on line next-hand vogue retailer Thredup, has predicted the international second-hand sector will double in the up coming five a long time to US$77 billion (A$102 billion).
He also predicts the 2nd-hand sector will be double the size of rapid manner by 2030.
Youthful buyers are driving growth in level of popularity of next-hand purchasing, particularly by way of on the internet platforms.
Our research suggests a lot of this progress is owing to shoppers looking at by themselves to be fashion-aware.
What can make a second-hand shopper?
We surveyed 515 Australian feminine-identifying individuals searching at their “orientation” (the desire to behave in a specific way) when it arrives to browsing. Every participant was measured for their orientation toward frugality, how ecologically acutely aware they are, their amount of materialism, how vulnerable they are toward nostalgia, their trend-consciousness and their type-consciousness.
Although we uncovered there are frugal and ecologically-conscious next-hand consumers, our investigation discovered overwhelmingly that fashion-consciousness is the best predictor of 2nd-hand style purchasing.
Individuals who scored hugely on the model-consciousness scale were being a lot more probably to shop for 2nd-hand apparel than any of the other orientations.
A design and style-mindful particular person expresses by themselves by their dresses. These purchasers want clothing that complement their individual design and style and values. They seem for authentic and primary items and stay clear of mainstream tendencies and rapid style.
Fashion-conscious customers get higher-excellent, long lasting apparel and accessories. Whilst manner-mindful purchasers are constantly shopping for new clothes to preserve up with existing developments, design and style-mindful buyers obtain clothing that are timeless, effectively-crafted and allow them to express their particular person identification above the very long-term.
Regular thrift outlets run by charities are responding to buyer desire, reinventing their retailers with diligently picked, higher-good quality garments, enhanced merchandising and retail store layout, on the web product sales and improved electronic and social media promoting.
The range of independently owned, highly-curated “pre-loved” stores and on the web profits platforms is also escalating.
Social media influencers have pushed a lot of this development. Their accounts embrace 2nd-hand fashion, the circular financial state (which highlights reuse, repair service, repurpose and recycle) and market the notion of #secondhandfirst.
Serving to the planet…with design and style
We hope with escalating quantities of second-hand shops, markets and online platforms marketing a vary of quality, pre-beloved clothes at various cost factors for different budgets – coupled with the increasing acceptance of next-hand shopping – shoppers will take into consideration buying 2nd-hand more generally.
For these who previously embrace “not needing new”, not only are you aiding the earth – our exploration shows you are also most likely to be performing it with design.
