As the resale industry has boomed in recent years, resale companies, including Treet and Archive, have assured brands that resale does not “cannibalize” sales of new products. But there are no such assurances in ThredUp’s 14th annual Resale Report, which paints a picture of resale enjoying new merchandise’s liver with fava beans and a nice Chianti. The secondhand clothing market in the US is “taking a measurable share from new retail,” the report states. Resale grew to $30 billion in 2025, a 13% YoY increase and nearly four times faster than the new apparel market, which grew 3.6%, per ThredUp. Today, 34% of consumers’ clothing budget goes toward secondhand purchases. Before buying new, 46% of consumers browse resale; among Gen Z, it’s 58% and among millennials, it’s 55%. “We’re learning from the data that it does appear to demonstrate cannibalization is happening,” Alon Rotem, chief strategy officer at ThredUp, told Retail Brew. But Rotem said this should not strike fear in brands, but rather encourage them to launch their own resale programs, resale’s version of “if you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu,” though Rotem didn’t put it so starkly. “This is happening with you or without you,” is what Rotem said is his message to brands on the fence about resale. Keep reading here.—AAN | 
