Anne D’Hynenzio, Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) – Stores selling second-hand clothing, shoes and accessories are poised to benefit from business around the world to avoid potential damage from President Donald Trump’s war president, according to industry experts.
Although American style has an international influence, almost all of the clothing sold domestically is made elsewhere. Last week, Yale University Budget Lab estimated short-term consumer prices rises of 65% and 87% of short-term consumer prices for clothing, pointing out that US tariffs “disproportionately” those products.
Such price hikes may drive cost-conscious shoppers to thrift stores looking for ways to turn their online reselling sites, commissioned boutiques, bargains, or wardrobes into cash. Used items cost less than their new equivalents and are subject to customs duties only if they come from abroad.
“I think reselling will grow in a declining market,” says Kristen Classi-Zummo, an apparel industry analyst at market research firm Circana. “What I think will continue to win in this chaotic environment is a channel that brings value.”
Nevertheless, there are some unknowns in second-hand fashion outlooks, such as whether presidential tariffs will remain long enough to pinch consumers and change behavior. It is also unclear whether second-hand providers will raise their prices in response to shopper demand, reflecting the overall market.
New audience courtesy of sticker shock
Retired fashion executive Jan Genovese sells unwanted designer clothing through the customer-to-customer market, including Mercari. If retail prices rise due to tariffs, we consider high-end second-hand sites.
“I can’t exclusively say I’m being pushed in another direction until I see it and really do that sticker shock,” Genovese, 75 said. “I think the tariffs part is definitely something you’re going to rethink things, and maybe I’ll start looking at alternative venues.”
The second-hand clothing market was already thriving, before the illusion of tariffs plagued the US fashion industry. Management consulting firm McKinsey and Co. predicted that by this year, shoppers are trying to save money or spend it in greener ways after the Covid-19 pandemic, they would grow 11 times faster than retail apparel sales.
While Millennials and Generation Z members were known as major buyers of second-hand clothing, data from the Sensor Tower, a market research firm, shows that their audience may be expanding.
The number of downloads for the nine resale marketplace mobile apps, eBay, Offerup, Poshmark, Mercari, Craigslist, Depop, Threedup, TherealReal and Vinted, rose 3% between January and the end of March.
The company estimates that downloads for eBay, Depop, Thredup and Realreal apps also skyrocketed compared to a year ago on March 31st.
Circana’s Classi-Zummo said that customers were looking for collectable or unusual vintage pieces to supplement their wardrobe, but found that more shoppers are relying on more shoppers to replace legitimate fashion items.
Despite the retailers offering discounts, “it’s still a cheaper option” than buying a new one, it’s still a cheaper option,” she said.
Tariff-free gold mines hiding in closets and warehouses
Poshmark, a digital platform where users buy and sell second-hand clothing, is ready to take advantage of the moment, although sales have not yet risen under the tariff schedule announced by Trump, CEO Manish Chandra said.
Companies running e-commerce marketplaces can upgrade their technology to make items easier to find. Chandra said the visual search tools and other improvements to the Poshmark experience will “pay a long dividend on disruptions that occur in the market.”
According to CEO Emily Gittins, Archive, a San Francisco-based technology company, builds and manages online and store reselling programs for brands such as Martens Dr. Martens, North Face and Lululemon, and programs for brands such as Brand Dr. Martens, North Face and Lululemon.
“We’re leveraging all the inventory that’s already sitting in the US in people’s closets or in an unused warehouse,” providing a revenue stream while the brand restricts or suspends orders from foreign manufacturers.
“There’s a huge amount of uncertainty,” Gittins said. “Everyone thinks this will cause a lot of damage to consumer goods brands sold in the US, so resale is basically everyone’s heads.”
Stock analysts predict that out-of-price retailers, such as TJ Maxx and Burlington stores, will be able to withstand tariffs more easily than regular apparel chains and department stores, as they carry the rest of the goods in the US.
Priced from a market that you previously owned
Still, resale vendors have not survived the tariff-inducing tumultuous turmoil, said Rachel Kibbe, founder and CEO of Circular Services Group, a company that advises brands and retailers to reduce the environmental impact of the fashion industry.
According to Kibbe, if Trump introduces “mutual” tariffs on most trading partners and eliminates the exception to import tax on parcels under $800, if Trump moves forward, US sellers import second-hand stocks from European Union countries must pay a 20% obligation.
The circular coalition, which she leads, is seeking tariff exemptions for used and recycled goods offered for resale, Kibw said. Trump has already ended the tax-free provisions for low-value parcels from China. This could benefit second-hand clothing sellers by making lower-priced Chinese fashion more expensive, she said.
James Reinhart, co-founder and CEO of online commissioned marketplace Threadup, said the removal of the “minimal” provisions and the 145% tariffs Trump placed on products made in China would benefit businesses like him. He doubts that creating resale channels will make a huge difference to individual brands.
“The brands explore this and they may do more, but I don’t think they’re making a big difference in their business,” Reinhart said. “I think they’ll come up with a way to survive, and I don’t think the resale will help you survive.”
According to CEO Charles Gorra, Rebag, an online market and retail chain that sells used designer handbags at prices ranging from $500 to tens of thousands of dollars, is selling prices in the tens of thousands of dollars, and expects tariffs to plan to open more physical stores.
Gorra said the company will analyze prices for the new luxury items and adjust Rebag’s fees accordingly. The two have historically risen in tandem, but Rebag couldn’t match Chanel’s 10% price rise last year due to lower demand for resale, Gorra said.
“It has nothing to do with tariffs,” he said. “Consumers feel they are priced.”
Nora Blotman, 22, a senior at the University of Minnesota, buys most of her clothes on eBay. She also rifts fashion at Goodwill Stores in the 1990s and early 2000s and resells them at Depot.
If tariffs overturn the economy of fast fashion and discourage heartless consumption, Blotman would count it as a plus.
“If this leads people in a different direction, I love it,” she said.
Original issue: April 21, 2025, 12:34pm EDT
