Resale Sites Try a New Strategy: Sell Less Stuff

"Since its inception, online resale has been about the art of the hunt. For the last decade, shoppers on sites like The RealReal, Poshmark or Depop didn't mind scavenging endless feeds of pre-owned products if it meant potentially scoring a vintage Armani tuxedo blazer or a Tom Ford-era Gucci bag. The resellers, in turn, enabled this behaviour by continually flooding their marketplaces with treasures."

""There was definitely a period where the strategy was more and more," said James Reinhart, co-founder and chief executive of online resale site ThredUp. "The more stuff people put up there, even if it wasn't great, it could drive [gross merchandise volume] growth." But consumer expectations have changed. For one, TikTok's "For You" page and similar personalised algorithms have trained customers to expect digital experiences curated to their specific taste."

"Product curation, however, is vastly more complicated for resale platforms than it is for primary market retailers. Resale companies are constantly receiving new pieces, and listing thousands of individual items on their sites each day. The current boom has only increased inventory. Luxury-focused Fashionphile has seen its number of potential sellers more than double to 2,000 a day in the last five years."

Online resale began as an art of the hunt, with shoppers willing to scour lengthy feeds for standout vintage and luxury pieces while resellers flooded marketplaces with inventory. Growing consumer expectations for personalized, curated digital experiences and rising economic pressures have driven more shoppers to secondhand, increasing sector revenue growth. Curation challenges are significant because platforms receive thousands of unique items daily and inventory volumes have surged. Luxury-focused Fashionphile now sees about 2,000 potential sellers per day, and Grailed's new listings rose dramatically to 13 million in 2025. Companies are investing in AI tools to quickly identify items and improve curation.

Read at The Business of Fashion