What: Reports from The RealReal and Thredup suggest that customers crave constant newness and still overconsume resulting in consistent behaviour across resale, full-price and fast fashion.

Why it is important: Reports reveal consumers continue to overconsume and chase trends in the resale market, eliminating the supposed environmental benefits of secondhand.

Gen Z and millennials, who now represent 41% of the US-based luxury consignment website The RealReal’s user base, are growing: The RealReal reportedly attracted 5.3 million new users in the last year, bringing its total user base to 28 million. Its sales grew 44% in the last year as well.

Since the pandemic, re-consignment has grown, and many users are turning a profit on the site while maintaining a constant churn of clothes. Gen Z is flipping fashion faster than ever by using these platforms. Thredup reported its consumer base has also increased the rate at which it rotates clothes. In its latest report, 36% of Gen Z respondents said they now purchase apparel weekly or monthly which is the same rate at which they clear out or resell. The most popular resold items are from classic luxury brands.

The RealReal says it is trying to address the impact of this rotation increase by using more recycled and recyclable packaging, as well as creating carbon offsets. Thredup recently launched a hotline to curb overconsumption, particularly of fast fashion, but its hotline still promoted buying secondhand styles from the platform.

Consumers treat secondhand like fast fashion