July 16, 2024
JAKARTA – Afew weeks ago while looking for a new fit, the need to splurge pointed me to a selection of luxury designer fashion items at a pop-up bazaar in South Jakarta. Immaculate jackets, posh handbags and stacks and stacks of chic shoes all presented neatly, all by prestigious names such as Prada, Burberry and Comme des Garçons to name a few.
Here’s the catch: all of them were secondhand.
PHOTO: HUNTSTREET/THE JAKARTA POST
Like treasure hunting, thrifting for pre-loved clothes often feels like discovering a rarity sought after by many who aren’t as lucky or determined as you. This I know to be true because my editor, who seemingly sports a new-to-him handbag every time the 25th rolls around, regularly justifies his habit to prying eyes by assuring them that it’s cheaper than buying new.
This thrill of the chase is apparently increasingly felt by millions worldwide, with a 2022 study by resale platform ThredUp and GlobalData projecting that the secondhand market is set to grow 127 percent by 2026. The study found that around 62 percent of Millennials and Gen Z actively look for secondhand alternatives before purchasing a new clothing item, and attributed the exponential rise to sustainability concerns, economic factors and increased accessibility provided by the online pre-loved market.
This same trend is seen locally, with the rise of several online marketplaces and platforms like HuntStreet, Tinkerlust and The VV, making it convenient for consumers to both buy and sell secondhand items.
PHOTO: VV/THE JAKARTA POST
From stigma to sustainability
About a decade ago, buying and selling pre-owned items was still largely associated with signs of financial trouble, according to Sabrina Joseph, who cofounded the luxury marketplace platform HuntStreet in 2015 because she needed a trustworthy platform to list and sell things from her closet she fell out of love with.
“Back then there was a stigma against buying pre-owned clothing, but over time Indonesian consumers started to understand the value of a circular lifestyle. This shift really spurred our growth into what we are today and propelled the pre-owned industry as a whole too,” she explained.
These days, she said, the changing mindset meant customers now gravitate toward sustainable alternatives.
“We noticed that our buyers love to score a deal that is not just affordable, but also environmentally friendly,” she said, adding that HuntStreet’s most loyal users are also sellers on the platform.
Jocelindynata Gunawan, cofounder of the local consignment marketplace The VV, also noted that the younger generation are very much conscious of being eco-friendly, including in their sartorial picks.
When they first started in 2022, she recalled, some customers were iffy about buying the luxury pieces in their catalog, but soon realized that pre-loved does not mean compromising on quality.
“We carefully curate our catalog, and from there we see more and more new people being interested in thrifting with us.”
Read also: Five questions for modest fashion influencer Mega Iskanti
PHOTO: VV/THE JAKARTA POST
Circular fashion
Even if you’re not in the market for a floral Givenchy satchel, going the pre-loved route means extending the life of the item instead of relegating it to the landfill.
According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, the fashion industry, particularly the fast fashion segment, is responsible for producing 20 percent of global wastewater and 10 percent of global carbon emissions, totaling more than the combined emissions of all international flights and maritime shipping.
Thrifting helps mitigate this, with data from ThredUp and GlobalData’s 2023 Resale Report stating: “If every consumer this year purchased just one pre-owned item instead of a new one, it would lower CO2 emissions by more than 2 billion pounds, which roughly translates to taking 76 million cars off the road for a day, saving 23 billion gallons of water, and 4 billion kilowatt-hours of energy”.
HuntStreet acknowledges the link between environmental impact with fashion and puts sustainability as a core component of its business, having just launched its sustainable fashion initiative collaboration with Bumiterra, titled HuntStreet For Earth, earlier this year.
“Circular fashion thrives on creating a closed-loop system that eradicates waste, and we practice circularity by giving pre-loved luxury items a second chance. Our platform allows both the sellers to prolong the usage of their fashion items and buyers to access a more sustainable option for their fashion choices,” Sabrina added.
Through HuntStreet for Earth, the platform transparently shares its carbon emissions with a constant effort to reduce it, while at the same time actively assisting in reforestation efforts of over 1 hectare of degraded land in Kalimantan, reinforcing the belief that fashion and sustainability should not be exclusive of one another.
For my colleague Sheena, the cyclical nature of fashion is one of the main reasons she has developed a preference toward purchasing from pre-loved marketplaces.
“With all the information that comes out about fast fashion, I think it’s important to know that there is a solution and pre-loved items are the solution. And the benefits are amazing too: lower prices, less guilt about spending and more one-of-a-kind items,” she said.
On the last point, she was referring to the fact that thrift stores are oftentimes the only places offering vintage items.
“There are pieces from the 1980s or 1970s that are coming back in style, and pieces from another age that I think fit more with my everyday style.”
PHOTO: VV/THE JAKARTA POST
Growing community
With changing mindsets toward secondhand items, online thrift stores have even found it difficult to keep up with the growing demand.
“It was definitely a huge challenge for us at the beginning, but along the way we’ve developed good relationships with both our clients who regularly supply us with their batch of pre-loved items and our own customers who occasionally sell their items through our platforms,” Jocelindynata said.
The same goes for HuntStreet’s marketplace, which Sabrina says is “made up of a strong community of thousands of users” who regularly list a wide range of categories, from bags, jewelry, watches and even clothing from hundreds of designer brands.
Of course, not everyone is in it primarily for the sustainability aspect. To them, that’s just icing on the affordable cake.
“To some consumers it is important – buying pre-owned is appealing because it’s a less wasteful alternative. Others may be motivated by reasons such as the affordability of pre-owned goods – they get more value out of their money and are getting high quality goods for a lesser price,” Sabrina added.
My editor Josa, who is eyeing a Phillip Lim satchel to replace a similar one he just sold, said the main appeal for him still remains the economic accessibility, but agreed that it’s a good way of giving new life to things you might not use or like anymore.
“I’m really into the idea of mending rather than buying new, so a bit of leather conditioner here, a new color perhaps, and sometimes a bit of DIY saddle stitching can go a long way,” he explained, his fingers hovering dangerously close to the add-to-cart button.
Despite mostly buying older pieces, Josa insisted that the pre-loved items he procured over the years are generally more durable due to the careful curation of offerings provided by current thrifting marketplaces.
”I do see more pre-loved items even with brands that I didn’t think of, which should be the case if it’s truly about sustainability rather than cut-price luxury. You could go online and find people selling their old stuff that’s still perfectly usable, and you can quickly understand the saying about one man’s trash.”
Meanwhile, The VV founder Vania Jasmine said she hoped to be able to open up its own physical store that curates vintage luxury pre-loved items.
“We want to really emphasize that treasure hunting aspect of thrifting and welcome even more people to both contribute or join the circular lifestyle.”
Though I didn’t end up finding anything I particularly liked at the bazaar, that just means my treasure hunt continues.
Read also: The ever-evolving identity of Indonesia’s streetwear scene
PHOTO: VV/THE JAKARTA POST
A guide to buying pre-loved fashion
Whether you’re looking to channel some Y2K boho-chic with a now-vintage Chloé Silverado, turn heads with archival Dries Van Noten or simply find a gently used pair of cut-price Tod’s loafers for work, buying pre-loved can be daunting for both newcomers and veterans alike. Here are some of our top tips before you pull up your mobile banking app in the pursuit of rarities:
1. Manage your expectations
As is the nature of secondhand goods, these items have previously been loved by their former owners before ending up in your hands, so you’ll have to keep in mind that pristine specimens will be the exception instead of the norm.
Whether restoration or customization, you can find dedicated services to nourish your find, but going the DIY route can also be an option. Still, you wouldn’t want to accidentally ruin a vintage ostrich Kelly, so we suggest practicing on more mundane, and perhaps cheaper examples first.
2. Do your research
Even if it’s not your first rodeo, due diligence is the name of the game when it comes to pre-loved. Whatever the platform, thoroughly research the sellers’ credentials before committing to a purchase, as going through a convoluted back-and-forth on returns will be the last thing you want in the case of a dispute.
With rare and/or designer items, counterfeits are becoming increasingly common and scarily accurate, so familiarize yourself with the item as much as possible. If you don’t have access to the real deal, there are dedicated forums and communities that can tell you incredibly specific details, such as the exact year Céline stopped using microfiber lining in favor of suede. Make sure you put your reading glasses on!
3. Ask questions
Information is key, and this is true for both online and offline settings. If you can’t see the item for yourself in person, ask for as many pictures as possible to check its overall condition, hidden elements such as serial numbers and date codes, or even additional inclusions like an authenticity certificate, product card or dustbag. If the seller refuses to disclose or provide these details, we suggest holding off if you’re not comfortable with the possibility of receiving a damaged and/or inauthentic item.
For fitted items such as ready-to-wear or shoes, it’s a good idea to memorize your measurements as sizes can vary wildly, like how a 39 in one brand can feel like a 40 in another. At the same time, be mindful of different sizing methods such as Italian vs French sizes, so be on the safe side and always ask for exact measurements in centimeters.
4. Be decisive
After scouring the internet and vintage stores for ages, you’ve finally found The One. Every detail checks out, and the only thing left to do is finish the transaction. But wait, you paused, what if you come across a seller who’s willing to haggle?
Chances are, the search will get harder the more specific the item, so snap up that Balenciaga City RH in Bleu Tropical from 2013 before someone else gets to it, lest you have to settle for a 2012 Velo G12 in Bleu Lagon. And trust us, settling can never replace The One.
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This article is part of The Weekender, which comes out on the Saturday edition of The Jakarta Post. It offers a variety of lifestyle and culture articles aimed at enriching your reading experience. Subscribe here to get access to the Saturday edition and all other premium content from the Post.