Secondhand Retail Market Is Still Growing: Report

The U.S. secondhand retail market reached $43 billion in 2023 and will hit $73 billion by 2028, according to a report from ThredUp.

The secondhand market in the U.S. is growing seven times faster than the wider American apparel market – year over year, the secondhand market grew 11 percent in 2023. The report predicts that the market will reach $69 billion by 2027, which is down from the $70 billion predicted in ThredUp’s 2023 report. 

Worldwide, the secondhand retail market hit $197 billion in 2023 and is predicted to reach $350 billion by 2028. 

ThredUp also included a survey about shoppers’ motivations in buying secondhand retail. Fifty five percent said half of their budgets will be spent on secondhand clothing in 2024 if the economy doesn’t improve. The top answer for why they shop secondhand is to get a better price on items. 

“The global secondhand apparel market continues to burgeon—a testament to the intrinsic value shoppers find in the secondhand experience and proof of the seismic shift towards a more circular fashion ecosystem,” James Reinhart, CEO of ThredUp, said in the release of the report.