The younger generation is fed up with overpriced clothing purchased from international manufacturers that take part in morally unacceptable production tactics, and it wants out.
In recent times, there has been a resurgence in a shopping trend which is loosely referred to as “thrifting” – the buying of vintage clothing and merchandise from thrift stores and charity shops. It is one of the many fashion trends which have risen from the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic. A return to a reality in which a person’s attire below the head and shoulders is visible to others on a daily basis acted as the spark for a new wave of unique fashion trends, emphasizing a departure from the social norms present before lockdown. Moreover, social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok have played a critical role in the rapid increase in the popularity of thrifting, as influencers post their “thrift hauls” to encourage followers to buy from local charity shops. These stores, such as Goodwill and Savers, have noted a massive increase in daily customers. Online seller “ThredUP” calculated a 46% increase in secondhand purchases from Gen Z and Millennials, with one in three Gen Z shoppers buying secondhand.

Many see secondhand shopping as a respectable alternative to the “fast fashion” industry. Many popular brands in the modern clothing market, such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Nike, and
Shein, have recently been exposed for their unethical usage of virtual sweatshops for production in East Asia. Tragedies in these areas, such as the collapse of Rana Plaza in Dhaka, Bangladesh, have sparked international discourse on the ethics of following ephemeral fashion trends which force the buyer to purchase new clothes more often than necessary in order to stay up to date with modern fashion. The thrifting industry is predicated on the long-standing trendiness of vintage clothing, which follows trends which have long past, but continue to be appreciated in the modern market. In a sense, vintage clothing never goes out of style, as the popular trends of the 80s and 90s continue to hold a stake in the fashion industry of the present, as there is, and always will be, a sort of fascination with life in a distant time of the past. The entire sustainable clothing market is also in line with the newfound environmental concerns of Gen Z and Gen Y, as many buyers believe that reusing clothing will decrease the amount of resources being used to make new clothing, and the amount of factories needed to manufacture those clothes (though, it is important to note that there have been no noticeable changes in the profits of the large corporations outputting clothing caused by the rise of thrifting). Not to mention that, obviously, utilizing charity shops as opposed to buying new will save the buyer a great deal of money over time. For environmentally conscious buyers looking to dress in style on a budget, the popularity of thrifting has been a saving grace.

Although the rise of thrifting may seem to be an inherently positive development in the sustainable clothing industry, it has also been met with great controversy. Critics even relate the increased popularity of thrifting to the gentrification of charity shops. In this context, gentrification can be loosely defined as the process by which charity shops have been made inaccessible to poorer populations as the middle- and upper-class shoppers have exerted their influence. Thrifting seems to have led to a direct increase in charity shop prices which exceeds the influence of inflation. In a 2010 Goodwill, one would be able to buy a pair of jeans for a meager $6. By 2020, Goodwill valuation guides encourage managers to price jeans between $4 and $21 – and shoppers have noticed that this range tends to swing too low for reality. According to many accounts, this rapid pricing increase has forbidden poorer populations from using such shops, which were originally created to serve such demographics. Many stores even create separate sections with the most desirable pieces of clothing priced at unfathomable rates, to appeal to wealthier populations choosing to buy secondhand, instead of those who are not afforded this choice. This takes the most fairly-priced clothing out of the hands of those in need. Moreover, recent trends encouraging the purchase of deliberately oversized clothing have made it extremely difficult for the large obese population in America to find proper clothing. The American system is one in which the cheapest food is most often the unhealthiest food, so there is an unnatural overlap between the obese population and those living below the poverty line. Because of this, the obese population, in many instances, has relied on the cheap, plentiful supply of largely-sized pants and shirts at charity shops. Now, the supply is less abundant and more expensive.

Online influencers and reselling platforms have also contributed to many critiques of the thrifting industry. There is a great concern that thrifting has led to overconsumption in many cases, as lower prices make shoppers more inclined to purchase more clothes than will ever be worn. This tendency has not been assisted by social media platform “TikTok,” on which many
popular influencers share their extensive “thift hauls” by detailing the excessive amount of items they buy when they shop secondhand. Though there seems to be no scarcity of clothing being donated to charity shops on a daily basis, such trends encourage dangerous shopping habits that can negatively impact economically naïve children, which make up a sizeable part of the TikTok user base. Resale websites such as Depop and ThredUP have crafted a culture of vintage clothing resale which, according to many, has tarnished the integrity of thrifting. Sellers on such sites often buy clothing in bulk from Goodwill or other such charity shops, and turn around to resell each piece at a much higher price than that for which it was purchased. Vintage items intended for marginalized communities are purchased by resellers and placed on a market which is generally inaccessible to these same populations. In my own experience, I know several resellers that will fill shopping carts with unique, vintage clothing found at our local Goodwill, and sell each item at considerably higher prices to gain a pretty profit. Though the resale market is surely not a new concept, its infiltration of the secondhand clothing industry is causing a considerable limitation of the quality of clothing available for underprivileged communities.

Overall, one must remember that the morals upon which the thrifting industry is based are quite sound. The impact of shopping solely from secondhand stores most definitely contributes to the trend toward environmental consciousness in the younger generation by limiting resources used to produce new clothing. Moreover, the industry has allowed underprivileged communities to hold a larger stake in popular fashion trends by drastically dropping the budget needed to follow “fast fashion.” However, one must thrift responsibly. Remember that charity shops are intended as just that: charity for those in marginalized populations, who do not have equal access to clothing compared to upper- and middle-class communities. As long as you understand the positive and negative moral implications of buying secondhand, thift away.

Works Cited: Conard, Kristin. “The Real Reason Shoppers Aren’t Happy With Goodwill’s Prices.” The List, Mar. 2021, www.thelist.com/348555/the-real-reason- shoppers-arent-happy-with-goodwills-prices.The Learning Network. Lily, and Lily. “The Gentrification of Thrifting: Is Thrifting + Reselling Ethical?” Imperfect Idealist – Travel & Running Blog, May 2021, imperfectidealist.com/is-thrifting-and-reselling- ethical/#:~:text=Common%20Criticisms%20of%20Thrifting%20%28and%20Res elling%29%201.%20Prices,addressed%20this%20argument%20in%20the%20p