Vinted’s latest Impact Report has found that 65% of Vinted members say a quarter or more of the items in their wardrobes are second-hand.
The report is based on research with over 100.000 members combining an independent analysis conducted by climate tech start-up Vaayu, as well as Vinted’s research.
In Germany, France, Poland, and the UK, more than 40% of members reported that over half of their wardrobe consists of second-hand finds.
Vinted said that as well as converting their wardrobes to second-hand, members also reported a change in consumption more broadly.
72% of Vinted members said they are buying fewer or the same number of items and 31% of them said their purchases now consist of more second-hand instead of new items.
65% of Vinted buyers stated they prefer to buy fewer, more expensive, and lasting fashion items rather than higher volumes of cheap items.
Only 18% of members reported having bought something on Vinted because they were browsing and liked the item.
According to the report, the main motivation for Vinted members to choose second-hand over new is that it’s great value for money.
48% chose to buy a second-hand item because the price was lower than new and 84% of Vinted buyers found the quality of second-hand items bought on Vinted as good or even better than new items.
36% of Vinted members tend to take better care of their clothes because they can resell them later on Vinted.
Commenting on the report, Thomas Plantenga, CEO of Vinted Group, said: “Our Impact Report shows second-hand has the potential to become the first choice across Europe. Our members are already seeing the benefits in their daily lives.
“These findings encourage us to continue to invest in making second-hand easy and accessible to everyone in society. However, despite this positive trend, second-hand remains a very small part of the fashion market.
“We are motivated to make second-hand truly the first choice, as it will benefit the environment and at the same time bring billions of sales from our members directly back into the economy.”
Our Impact Report shows second-hand has the potential to become the first choice across Europe.
In terms of climate impact, the research from Vaayu showed that Vinted members reduced CO2e by 679 kilotonnes by buying second-hand instead of new in 2023. Vinted said that 40% of transactions on its platform avoided the purchase of a new item.
Vinted has also submitted Science-Based targets with the Science-Based Targets initiative. These targets help to meet the goals set out in the Paris Agreement: to reach net zero by 2050 and limit global warming to 1.5℃ above pre-industrial levels.
Marianne Gybels, Senior Director of Sustainability at Vinted, commented: “With this report, we’ve extended our focus beyond carbon emissions, to quantify our effect on members’ lives and their consumption habits.
“We are starting to see the wider impact resale has on people’s shopping habits, which is promising for the climate. These insights will help us to further develop our sustainability strategy and increase the positive impact of trading second-hand.
“At the same time, we’re working hard to reduce the emissions from our own operations. We believe these two things should go hand-in-hand.”
