Secondhand E-Commerce in Europe 2021

Secondhand E-Commerce in Europe 2021

Secondhand E-Commerce accelerates in Europe, as consumers pay special attention to sustainability: new yStats.com report.

The latest publication from Germany-based market research firm yStats.com, “Secondhand E-Commerce in Europe 2021” offers a comprehensive overview of the current state and trends of secondhand commerce in major markets of the European region, as well as provides insights about the top local players and their activities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic together with consumer interest in sustainability increased demand for secondhand goods in Europe

The COVID-19 pandemic and general interest in circular economy practices were the key drivers of secondhand sales growth in 2020, and this is expected to be so in 2021 too. Moreover, in Europe, the recently introduced French regulations aiming to significantly reduce industrial waste is likely to spread to other nations and positively impact the whole secondhand industry, as detailed in the new publication by yStats.com.

On the country-level in Europe secondhand consumer profiles differ, but a general trend exists

In the developed markets of the European region, a share of consumers who has had an experience with purchasing secondhand clothing ranged from 20% to 75% during the pandemic. Apart from secondhand clothing, European consumers also increasingly purchased pre-owned furniture and books, and for some countries these were the most popular product categories, according to figures cited in the new yStats.com report. Furthermore, in Europe, the largest demand growth on average is likely to come from the younger generations in Europe and from online channels. With that, the ranking of E-Commerce market players differed on the country level in Europe. However, when aggregated, the following were among the top local ones: Lithuanian Vinted, UK-based Depop, Rebelle from Germany, as well as French Vestiaire Collective. Each of these had customer base well above 10 million across available markets.