Who will be at the forefront of second-hand fashion in the future?

To buy second-hand fashion items online in 2024, French customers typically visit industry-leading apps like Vinted and Vestiaire Collective, those of specialized providers like Imparfaite, or click through the “second-hand” interfaces of established fashion brands and retailers. But what will this fragmented landscape look like in a few years? After all, companies are driving their goals forward, and as the business evolves, today’s players could look very different tomorrow.

Vinted and its competitors

The Vinted platform currently occupies a dominant position in the fashion resale market. But will it maintain this position? In terms of results, the company, which reached profitability for the first time in 2023 , is on the right track.

However, the road is far from over, as the company still has some weak points to address, particularly in terms of data management transparency. The company was fined €2.3 million in July 2024 for committing several violations against the platform’s users. On the other hand, competition is getting tougher, notably with the arrival of ultra-fast-fashion brand Shein in France on the second-hand market this year and the arrival of giant Zara in 2023. These new entrants may partly explain what has pushed Vinted to expand outside the fast-fashion segment.

The endless lists of clothing items for sale on Vinted mostly include low- and mid-priced items, but that may soon change as the Lithuanian company has recently started to enter the luxury space. In the spring, the company announced that Hermès’ Kelly bag, Rolex Datejust and a classic Chanel bag were among the most expensive items sold on the platform.

However, the French platform Vestiaire Collective has already established itself firmly in this field and will probably continue to dominate, not least because it counts the Kering and Conde Nast groups among its investors. In 2024, the company also expanded its collaboration with Mytheresa , an e-commerce website for luxury goods, and remains a leading partner for the big names in the luxury goods industry. CEO Maximilian Bittner’s office was also relocated to New York and a new team was formed on site.

Another player to be reckoned with is online giant Amazon. Earlier this year, the US company joined forces with British designer fashion retailer Hardly Ever Worn It, entering the second-hand sector on the European market.

However, to imagine the future players of the second-hand market in Europe, it is also necessary to look at the players that are flourishing abroad. In 2023, Poshmark, the leading platform for reselling second-hand clothing in the United States, was acquired by South Korea’s Naver Corp., which announced in a press release its intention to create “a global player in online fashion resale”. An imminent arrival on the French market is therefore very likely.

The business-to-business players who will get the ball rolling

For traditional brands such as Sandro, Bellerose and Aigle, second-hand is one of the main solutions to ensure the transition to a circular economy and, in particular, to reduce the carbon footprint. However, their entry into this market requires know-how that very often has to come from an external company. For this reason, in recent years there has been a growing number of start-ups that are making inroads into the sector.

Reflaunt is one of those that has made its mark and will continue to be a force to be reckoned with in the future. The company handles the sale of second-hand products for brands such as Balenciaga and Cos, among others. Present in the startup’s LVMH incubator La Maison in Station F, the company will help accelerate second-hand fashion thanks to its recent partnership with the transport and logistics company DHL. By improving logistics capacities, this agreement could enable Reflaunt to handle more transactions, thus increasing the overall volume of used clothing on the market.

Also worth mentioning is Lizee, a French software provider specializing in rental and second-hand fashion, founded in 2019 and working with companies such as Maje and Decathlon, among others. As winner of the i-Nov France 2030 competition, the company also receives government support. In 2024, it acquired the second-hand system Freepry, which is focused on supporting physical stores, which should give it even more weight in the French market.

Another French company that has developed second-hand interfaces for brands, such as through the “Ami for ever” or “Fabienne Chapot relove” program, is Faume, which has excelled in supporting numerous retailers.

The “resale” interfaces created by startups in the brand ecosystem should become profitable within two to three years of their creation, according to Aymeric Déchin, co-founder of Faume, interviewed on the We Do Need To Talk podcast. For the manager, the idea is to replace the part of the sales volume that is usually generated by special offers with the brand’s used products. The increasing number of brands that have taken the step in this direction shows the financial credibility of the business model.

Faume, Reflaunt and Lizee are likely to expand their customer base in the coming years, as more brands are expected to enter the second-hand market.

This translated and edited article previously appeared on FashionUnited.FR.