The Resale Edit: Luxury's Chassé Into Resale: Canada Goose Generations

The secondhand luxury goods market grew 28% in 2022 to reach $45.21 billion, according to Bain & Company and Fondazione Altagamma. This is 1.3X higher than the growth rate for new luxury goods. For a related growth stat, eBay shared they saw a 24 percent increase in circular fashion businesses joining their site last year, and searches for pre-loved clothing on eBay UK have skyrocketed 1600 percent since last summer. This is likely why eBay recently participated in the $9 million capital raise round for Cudoni, a luxury resale platform based in London.

Kirsty Keoghan, eBay UK’s global fashion GM, shared her views on the two drivers of the growth in the City A.M. “The first is related to consumers’ growing awareness of their environmental footprint, and the second is related to their expectation of high-quality products at a great value, which is more important than ever as we grapple with the cost-of-living crisis.”

This week Canada Goose launched its branded resale program, Generations, powered by Trove’s Recommerce Operating System. More than a decade ago, when I discussed branded resale with retailers, brand execs, and VCs, Canada Goose was a go-to example of a brand that would massively benefit from its heritage and category –so kudos to the team. The resale program has all the elements we’ve expected these days, with a few notable callouts, such as combining a vintage section with periodic drops and an ‘always on’ ability to shop ‘certified’ Canada Goose.

Just Style reported on recent findings by EURIC, the confederation representing European recycling industries at the EU level. The study found a “massive” 3kg of CO2 saved for each reused piece of clothing, equating to a 70X lower footprint for secondhand fashion.

The industry needs to recognize the importance of secondhand as the new business model challenges the existing make-and-sell models. But awareness and change are too important to stay in the background, especially with social influencers. The South China Morning Post reported influencer Masego Morgan was shocked when a fast fashion giant offered her $1,000 for a single social media post to promote its brand. Sustainable fashion influencer Dr Brett Staniland provided close to $5,500 for a post. Both are fighting back against these fast fashion models. I don’t believe this is the