Shop Secondhand Fashion Online Like a Pro

Using Designer DNA, notes on your phone, plus what to look for this season

There has been no greater time in history to buy secondhand clothes. Online resale platforms are in an arms race to incentivise under-worn, good-quality clothing out of wardrobes and onto their platforms for you to peruse.

In my last newsletter I received questions about how to shop secondhand online, so here is my (rather long) answer. Might be worth saving this to refer back to when needed. If you have any further questions, leave a comment and I’ll answer them.

Choose your platform

There are four main types of resale platforms. Knowing how the platform works helps you know what to expect when purchasing.

Peer-to-peer: a marketplace where people can buy and sell to each other. The platform simply provides the tools to buy and sell, which may be “buy now” or auctions. eg. Depop, eBay, Poshmark, Etsy, Airrobe (Australia), Facebook Marketplace, also some brands are now facilitating peer-to-peer sales like H&M and Ganni. On these platforms, you are buying directly from another person, not a company, so there are no guarantees of authenticity or quality on most items.

Consignment: the platform acts as an intermediary by taking a seller’s items and selling them on their behalf, taking a cut of the sale. As a buyer, you get the reassurance of the authenticity and quality of the item from the platform. The items are still sold ‘as is’, they are not professionally washed. eg. The Real Real, Thredup, Vestiaire Collective, Reloop (Australia), Thrift Plus (UK).

Branded resale: increasingly brands are entering the secondhand market, taking items back from the original customer who no longer wants them. Shopping secondhand directly from brands ensures authenticity and quality, and the items are washed and repaired. Patagonia and Eileen Fisher lead this movement, Lululemon, Arc’teryx, Levi’s and others are now doing really well at this too. (This is what my startup enabled here in Australia, sadly Long Covid has put that on ice).

Charity: it is logistically and financially challenging for charity thrift stores and op shops to go online. However, some have, and although the experience may be a little clunky, it feels extra good to support a charity when buying secondhand. The Salvos are the furthest ahead in Australia, and Goodwill launched a new curated site last year in the U.S.

Get your measuring tape out

As a human who has purchased an item of clothing, you know that the size on the label does not consistently correspond to, well, anything.

It is essential that you know your body measurements to find items that fit well. Keep a note on your phone of your body measurements in inches and centimetres. On that note also keep the measurements of your favourite-fitting items of clothing, i.e. the waist size of your favourite jeans, the length of your favourite sweater. Having these measurements handy will save you guessing, being disappointed or wasting time measuring yourself every time you find something you like.

Be inspired by today to find items from yesterday

If you’ve ever walked into a thrift store and felt overwhelmed by the racks, unsure of where to start or what to look for, then secondhand shopping online can feel a bit similar. To help with this deer-in-the-headlights feeling, I look at the latest collections of the designers who suit my personal style, and then look for similar items from their past catalogue or other brands.

For example, this purple jersey dress from the current Tibi collection is cool. There’s no way I can currently fork out US$1,145 for it, but a similar Tibi dress is on The Real Real for AU$129.38. It is made of silk, not jersey, and has its graphic detail in the back, not the front, but I could wear a t-shirt under it and rock a similar vibe to the current collection. A brand’s DNA doesn’t change drastically over time, this method uses that to your advantage.

Another example is this knitted vest from the Australian brand Bassike. The star power of this item is the intricate and differing weave of the knit, but a similar look could be achieved with this Country Road knitted vest, brand new with tags (BNWT) on Facebook Marketplace. It has the same chunky collar and vibe, for $300 less than the original RRP of the Bassike piece.

Free People x Daisy Jones Collection, Vince Biker Jacket, Vintage 80s Motorcycle Jacket, Dorothy Perkins Jacket, Prouds Leather Jacket.

Designers are inspired by popular culture, and you can be too. Free People have created a Daisy Jones and the Six collection to coincide with the television show. Let’s put aside the fact that the show is set in the 70s and 80s and therefore lends itself perfectly to secondhand shopping, and consider the items they’re selling new. You will pay over AU$1000 to “get the Daisy look” with the leather jacket above. A quick Google Shopping search of “black moto jacket” with the “Condition” filter set to “Used Items” brings back an array of options ranging from $30 to $300 to emulate Daisy Jones more authentically.

Items to look for this season based on the most recent runways

If these fit into your personal style, then secondhand is a great way to add them to your wardrobe, as they’ve all been around before:

• Blazers are still having their moment, don’t forget the men’s section

• Column maxi skirts, particularly in denim

• Mary-Jane flats

• Anything with a rosette on it

Become a quality detective

Look closely at the photos provided by the seller and read the item description carefully to discern the quality of the garment. Check for any signs of wear and tear, stains, or holes. Look at the material type and quality. If the seller has provided a close-up image, check the seams, buttons, and zippers to ensure they are in good condition. Sometimes a small fault can lead to a great price, so don’t rule out slightly damaged items if you’re at all handy with a needle and thread. Ask for more photos if you’re unsure about something. Look at material composition carefully. “Silky” in the description could mean cheap polyester satin. It's also a good idea to stick to well-known brands with a quality reputation.

Pricing, persistence and opportunity

Each platform will have different pricing policies. Some peer-to-peer marketplaces allow offers to be sent, whereas consignment platforms have set prices, but with discount algorithms that kick in when an item has been on the platform for a set period of time.

With all secondhand shopping, where the items are one of one, you are weighing up the opportunity of the item being available today vs the chance to get a better price on it tomorrow. Watch out as this can lead to impulse purchases, something we want to avoid. But it can also lead to heartache (still grieving the Dries Van Noten shirt I slept on that someone else snapped up 😭).

The more you shop secondhand the better you’ll get at discerning real bargains and the “right” price for items. Secondhand shopping requires patience and persistence, as you may not find what you're looking for right away. Check back frequently as new items are added regularly.

Make the platforms work for you

Most online resale platforms offer filters and search tools that can help you find exactly what you're looking for. Use these tools to narrow down your search by designer, size, brand, colour, and price range. You can also save your favourite searches and set up alerts so you're notified when new items that match your criteria are added (particularly good if you’re looking for a specific designer or items that get listed in your size). This can save you time and help you find the best deals.

One way I like to do this is to keep a note of the aspirational brands I love on my phone. When I come across a brand I love the vibe of, I take note. I then add it to my saved searches on my favourite platforms so I can easily see when items come up for grabs in my price range.

What about returns?

Secondhand platforms rarely have a return option. This can feel off-putting at first, but I believe it’s a good thing. Around 30% of online fashion purchases are subsequently returned, much of which goes to landfill. In the US, 2.6m tonnes of returned goods end up in landfill every year, generating 15m tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually. Fast fashion is particularly notorious for driving this behaviour with low prices encouraging impulse purchases and cheap manufacturing resulting in quality and fit issues, both leading to returns.

It’s not on us consumers to fix the systemic issues at the heart of this, but by accepting that we are responsible for the items we purchase, and are stewards of that item’s lifecycle, we can reduce the return rate. By shopping secondhand, knowing our measurements, we can buy higher quality for less money, which will hopefully result in less fit issues. And if we do find that the item is not right for us, we can re-list it on the secondhand platform to prevent it ending up in landfill.