Resale Revolution: Resellers' Evolving Power in the Digital Age

This research project investigates the role of apparel resellers on online platforms in shaping modern fashion trends, with an emphasis on Generation Z consumer habits and the recommerce business model. This study explores the motivations behind Gen Z’s adoption of secondhand shopping, the rise of digital resale marketplaces, and the shift from traditional retail gatekeepers to individual sellers who curate and influence fashion consumption practices. The project aims to fill gaps in existing literature by analyzing how online resellers decide what products to list, set pricing strategies, and leverage digital tools such as social media and influencer marketing to shape accessibility and market trends to position themselves as the new fashion gatekeepers. Through examining both economic and social motivators, this study offers insights into how the behaviors of resellers and merchandise buyers interact to redefine fashion influence and sustainability in the digital age. The evolving dynamics between fashion trendsetting and online apparel resale marketplaces are best understood when looking at Depop, an online resale platform. Depop is examined as a case study for its unique social networking interface and its popularity among Generation Z. The platform has lowered barriers for aspiring resellers, allowing anyone to list items and build a following through peer-driven engagement. Depop’s emphasis on individuality and trend-driven shopping positions it as a cultural hub for contemporary youth fashion. Users influence trends and set prices, often independent of established fashion brands. This research aims to illuminate the mechanisms by which platforms like Depop, and their users, are reshaping fashion market trends, and redefining who consumers look to for fashion trend influences, therefore altering the distribution of influence within the fashion industry.

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Family and Consumer Sciences

Grantor

Texas State University

Year dc:date.issued

2025

Author dc:creator

• Thames, Summer

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Hustvedt, Gwendolyn

Committee member dc:contributor.committeemember

• Liang, Yuli

• online resale
• secondhand fashion
• thrifting
• resellers
• sustainability
• recommerce
• circular fashion
• depop

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10877/23650

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digital.library.txst.edu:10877/23650