fashion

Poshmark Tops 100 Million Orders


Anyone still skeptical about the power of the used-clothing trend won’t be for long. Poshmark, the leading social resale company, says it has passed the 100-million orders milestone.

Its new research finds that the circular economy has become so important to the company’s 60 million members, that 76% of users consider an item’s resale value before buying.

That news comes just days after the Gap announced its partnership with thredUP, encouraging customers to turn in used clothes in exchange for credits, which they can redeem at Gap, Banana Republic, Athleta or Janie and Jack.

Retailers like Macy’s and J.C. Penney are already selling thredUP items in small shops-within-shops at some stores. But Gap claims this makes it the largest clean-out participant so far in thredUP’s Resale-as-a-Service program, an online platform designed to support the circular fashion economy.

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Brand awareness for Poshmark and other resellers is surging, according to new research from Raymond James. It finds that 18% of internet users are already active in the resale market, and another 17% say they are very likely to dive in soon.

In terms of brand awareness, 58% know about Poshmark, 35% about thredUp and 20% about the RealReal, which focuses on luxury resale.

The more a person shops, the more likely they are to pursue resale: Among people who shop for clothing weekly, 53% buy resale.

The Raymond James research, based on about 465 people, also shows that the stigma about used clothing is falling, with the percentage of people who say they aren’t likely to use such sites slipping to 38%, compared with 45% of respondents in last year’s survey.

Poshmark claims its peer-to-peer connection is what’s powering its growth. Its new report, based on 8,000 shoppers, says that people are increasingly at ease not just with used clothes, but with buying from strangers. Some 58% percent of consumers are comfortable buying on social media rather than a company’s website, and 75% don’t mind buying items directly from people online.

About 35% of its sellers live in the South, and most live outside major urban areas, with 40% in small-to-medium-sized cities and 34% in either suburban or rural areas.

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