Fashion for the second: will retail become the future of the fashion industry
In 2026, a thing with someone else's story is no longer perceived as a compromise. Buying used clothes is no longer a hipster experiment or an environmental statement, it is becoming a common way to assemble a wardrobe. Second-hand and retail are changing the rules of the fashion game. People are increasingly looking not only for a favorable price, but also for quality, rare models and things with character. Why the secondary segment is growing rapidly in Russia and whether it will be able to change the usual clothing market is in the Izvestia article.
How second-hand becomes part of the market
A few years ago, buying clothes by hand was more often perceived as a way to save money with a limited budget. Today, attitudes towards second-hand goods have changed markedly. Things with a history are becoming part of the modern fashion industry, and retail is turning into an independent consumption model.
According to the ThredUp Resale Report 2024, prepared in collaboration with GlobalData, the global resale segment is growing about three times faster than traditional fashion retail. According to the forecast, by 2028, its volume may reach $350 billion.
The Russian industry is developing in the same direction. According to Alexey Gavlich, director of Avito's Lifestyle business line, the fashion retail turnover in the country today is about 250 billion rubles, and in the coming years the growth rate may exceed global figures.
According to the platform, almost every second buyer starts searching for the right product on resale services. At the same time, a large number of wardrobe items are stored in Russian homes that could receive a new owner. On average, each person has more than 20 items suitable for sale.
— The retail market in Russia is gradually following the path that the United States, Europe and the largest Asian countries have previously followed: retail is becoming not just an alternative to traditional shopping, but an independent consumption model, — says the source.
The growing interest in recycled clothing is linked to several factors at once. One of the main ones is the change in people's attitude to the quality of things. Customers are increasingly paying attention not only to the appearance of the product, but also to its durability.
According to Elena Ermakovishna, an art critic and lecturer of the Branding in the Fashion Industry course at the HSE School of Design, many turn to clothes from previous generations precisely because they are often of higher quality.
— The quality of things and materials from which they were made 15, 20 or 30 years ago is often higher than the quality of products today, — says the expert.
According to her, the modern clothing industry is largely based on the "planned obsolescence" model, an approach in which products lose relevance or fail faster. This system supports the constant updating of the wardrobe and encourages more frequent purchases. In response, some consumers are starting to look for alternatives to mass fashion.
However, the interest in resale is not only due to the desire to purchase better products. The culture of attitudes towards clothes is changing: people are starting to pay more attention to what is already in their wardrobe, and more often they think about the service life of things.
According to Rimma Timofeeva, Associate Professor of the Department of History and Theory of Art at St. Petersburg State University of Industrial Technology and Design, changing the values of society plays an important role in this process.
— The secondary use of things allows you to reduce the cost of clothes, this practice has been widespread before, especially with regard to children's items. But today, a value factor has been added to the economic factor — the concept of reasonable consumption," the expert notes.
According to her, items with a history have long been of interest to collectors, researchers of the history of fashion houses and fans of vintage clothing. Now this approach goes beyond individual communities and is gradually becoming part of popular culture.
How has resale changed a person's life?
The growth of the secondary segment affects not only the clothing industry, but also people's daily habits. According to Avito, about 65% of users under the age of 30 actively turn to resale platforms.
As Alexey Gavlich clarifies, the development of this area gives people new opportunities to manage their family budget.
— The sale of unused items becomes a source of additional funds, and buying on the secondary market is a way to update the wardrobe and gain access to a more diverse assortment without a sharp increase in expenses. Resale allows people to afford higher—quality or status items at an affordable price than purchases of the same level in a new segment would allow them," the expert notes.
Thus, the very logic of the attitude towards the wardrobe is changing. An item is no longer perceived as an item with a single owner and a limited service life. What one person no longer needs can become a valuable asset for another.
At the same time, the impact of the resale goes beyond the financial benefits. Along with the growing interest in secondary consumption, a more attentive attitude to the wardrobe is being formed. People try to save things, repair them and extend the period of operation.
Elena Ermakovishna notes that the demand for the restoration of clothing is also increasing.
— People are thinking about how to take care of things and take care of them, so the demand for repairs is growing. We see an increasing number of ateliers and workshops where clothes can be restored, as people are tired of buying low-quality items. Therefore, there is an increasing desire to maximize the life of clothing," she says.
According to Rimma Timofeeva, the secondary segment is gradually changing not only the structure of consumption, but also people's perception of style.
— This practice has a long-term perspective: It allows you to shift the focus from the priority of consumption to the ability to create your own unique style using vintage wardrobe items," the expert believes.
The opportunity to create an individual image, rather than just following mass trends, is becoming one of the reasons for the popularity of the retailer among young people. On specialized sites, you can find models from past collections, rare items, and wardrobe items with a specific history that are difficult to find in regular stores.
In addition, the development of this area is gradually forming a more responsible attitude towards things. People are starting to take into account not only the cost of the purchase, but also the future fate of the item: whether it is possible to keep it longer, restore it, or transfer it to another owner.
Europe vs. Superfast fashion
In recent years, European countries have been increasingly discussing measures aimed at combating ultra-fast fashion, a production model based on the production of large quantities of inexpensive clothing with a short service life.
The main goals of these initiatives are to reduce textile waste, increase producer responsibility, and transition to a closed—loop economy in which products have a longer service life.
Although such measures are currently being implemented mainly in Europe, experts believe that their impact may spread to the global industry. The changes are related not only to legislative decisions, but also to the transformation of the very approach to the production and consumption of clothing.
According to Alexey Gavlich, the limitations of ultrafast fashion are part of a larger global shift.
"The logic of reuse and intelligent use of things is becoming an increasingly natural part of consumer culture, and brands around the world are increasingly integrating retail into their own business models," he notes.
Previously, the secondary segment developed mainly due to independent platforms, but today it actively includes manufacturers themselves. Many brands launch their own product resale, repair, and restoration programs in an effort to extend their service life and preserve the value of their products after the first owner.
In this regard, retail is gradually ceasing to be a separate area and becoming part of the overall strategy of the modern fashion industry. For companies, this is not only a way to respond to changing consumer behavior, but also an opportunity to build a longer-term model of customer interaction.
At the same time, experts note that the impact of legislative restrictions should not be overestimated. Elena Ermakovishna believes that such initiatives can support the development of the secondary segment, but much will depend on how they are implemented.
— On the one hand, I support this initiative, on the other hand, it may be inconvenient for small brands, since it is still unclear exactly how this measure will be implemented. However, in an ideal scenario, it can become an additional incentive for the development of the retail market," says the expert.
According to Rimma Timofeeva, public policy primarily reinforces the changes that are already taking place in society.
— Most likely, these measures only support the already formed social trend. It all starts with a person, with a small group of people, and then spreads, including through government policy," she notes.
What will happen next
If retail has already become a significant part of the fashion industry today, then in the next 10-15 years this direction may change even more. According to experts, the main growth factor will be not only economic reasons and the environmental agenda, but also technologies that will make the search, evaluation and transfer of things between users easier and safer.
According to Avito's forecasts, by 2030, more than half of the ads for the sale of clothes and shoes on the platform can be created using artificial intelligence.
The company is already testing the "Let's take apart the Wardrobe" service, which automatically determines the characteristics of a thing from a photo, forms a description and helps prepare an ad. During early testing, users posted more than 100,000 publications using it, and in about half of the cases they did not change the text proposed by the system.
One of the key tasks for the further growth of the resale remains to increase trust between the parties to the transactions, especially when working with expensive brands. Digital authentication tools help solve this problem.
— We have allocated a separate Premium section for luxury and luxury brands. You can access it only after passing authentication. Professional experts analyze the product based on photographs of seams, tags and fittings, after which the "Original" icon is assigned to the ad. Additionally, buyers can use authentication services with the involvement of an international network of independent experts and artificial intelligence technologies," says Alexey Gavlich.
Elena Ermakovishna adds that the development of such technologies will be an important condition for building confidence in the secondary segment.
— There are already applications and experts who can remotely verify the authenticity of things. I hope that with the development of artificial intelligence, such services will become even more accurate and efficient. This will help people more confidently look for interesting and unique items on the retail market, without fear of fakes or low quality," the expert believes.
The process of choosing clothes will also change. According to Rimma Timofeeva, the development of the direction will be facilitated by virtual fitting rooms, online image consultants, artificial intelligence technologies and social networks. These tools will help you find suitable models faster and present product characteristics more accurately.
At the same time, the future of retail is connected not only with digital solutions. Elena Ermakovishna believes that swaps can become increasingly popular — events where people exchange clothes, books, plants and other items without buying new goods.
As an example, she cites the Swap Weekend project in Chelyabinsk, which has been bringing participants together for several years through an open set of applications and shows that exchange can be an alternative to habitual consumption.
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