A whopping 85% of clothing in 2018 piled up in landfills and incinerators, said the Environmental Protection Agency.Īlthough massive amounts of clothing have been discarded, clothing production has continued, especially in the fast fashion industry. Of used clothing in America, only 20% has been sold at secondhand stores, according to Fashionista. “The existence of thrifting and the amount of items that can be thrifted is a big sign of overproduction and overconsumption,” said senior Sam Liu, a communication studies major and founder of NU Thrift. But thrifting has been only one piece of the puzzle and can’t solve climate change on its own, Gamble said. How sustainable is the clothing industry?Ĭompared to buying new clothes, buying used had 82% less of a carbon footprint in 2021, according to ThredUP’s Resale Report. Over 15% of participants said thrift store pricing has become unaffordable, and 45% said they struggled to find clothing essentials. In a 2021 Journal of Student Research study surveying Los Angeles County’s low-income thrifters, half of participants said they noticed resellers shopping at secondhand stores. Reasons for price incline may have included “haulers” who accumulate large amounts of secondhand apparel to post on social media, and resellers who profit by selling their thrifted purchases at a higher price on apps like Depop or Poshmark. “This is literally not the reason that exist.” “It used to be super affordable for everyone, and now they’ll have stuff marked at $20 where it’s almost retail pricing,” said Mika Hartmann, Crossroads Trading salesperson. In the rise of the secondhand market, lower-income communities have faced thrift store gentrification, which means that customers in need cannot afford the increased prices. Here’s what to consider the next time you thrift. Rather than heaping up garments for the sake of their cheapness or trendiness, Gamble said shoppers need to think more critically about thrift shopping and shift their mindsets from quantity to quality purchases. “That leaves the folks that are shopping there out of necessity–not just because it’s a cool thing to do–out in the cold because they can no longer afford some of the prices.”
“As the demand increases, so do the prices,” said Melissa Gamble, assistant professor of the Fashion Studies Department at Columbia College Chicago.
As thrifting has become more trendy, people with higher incomes have flocked to thrift stores and purchased huge quantities of apparel, experts say. In one of her “thrift haul” videos, a bulge of thrifted clothes cascaded in popping colors and funky patterns over the arms of YouTuber “bestdressed,” whose channel has millions of subscribers.
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