New research reveals fashion recommerce on the rise

Right off the back of Afterpay Australian Fashion Week, Afterpay has released the Australian Fashion’s New Era report. The report looks at the progress made in the fashion industry since 2020 across diversity and inclusion and accessibility, as well as Aussie’s increasing focus on sustainability and gender-neutrality in fashion.

In particular, the research around ‘recommerce’, or clothing resale revealed some interesting insights into how Aussies are shopping for fashion. Over two-thirds, or 67 percent of shoppers say they’ve bought or sold second-hand clothing. 18 percent of shoppers surveyed resell unwanted items on platforms such as eBay, Depop or Facebook resale groups, and almost three-quarters, at 70 percent take garments to second-hand shops when they no longer want them.

While the fashion industry is one of the top global polluters, Aussie shoppers are looking to prioritise sustainable fashion. The report reveals 40 percent of shoppers say finding sustainably made items is important to them, but they are facing several barriers. The top consideration while shopping is price at 83 percent, and over 60 percent of shoppers say sustainable options are too expensive compared to fast fashion alternatives. 47 percent say it’s difficult to find sustainable brands and two-thirds suggest that there aren’t enough Australian sustainable brands.

Anthony Eisen, Co-Founder at Afterpay, said, “The ‘Australian Fashion’s New Era’ report reveals that Aussie shoppers are eager to see meaningful change across these areas from Australian fashion brands, and we have a responsibility to play our part in ensuring this evolution.”

In recent years Australia has seen an uptake in clothing resale platforms, from companies like Airrobe partnering with major retailers to facilitate the reselling of clothing items, to an increase in use of apps like Depop to independently resell clothes.

“At a time when the industry is facing inflationary pressures, combined with shortages of skilled workers and materials, we need to transform outdated business models to better support a thriving, resilient industry,” said Leila Naja Hibri, CEO at The Australian Fashion Council.

“Australia has long overlooked the economic power of its fashion and textile sector. Fashion contributes more than $27.2 billion to the national economy and employs over 489,000 people, 77 per cent of whom are women. This report reflects an exciting opportunity to achieve a socially, environmentally and economically prosperous industry that better serves our fashion workforce and the Aussie consumer.”

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