According to a report by Global Data for the second-hand clothing resale site ThredUp, global second-hand clothing sales reached $211 billion in 2023, marking a 19% increase from the previous year. The market is expected to reach $350 billion by 2027. The report also projects that global second-hand sales will grow on average three times faster than the overall apparel market by 2027.
Estimates of the fashion industry's greenhouse gas footprint vary, ranging from 10% according to the World Bank’s 2019 global emissions analysis to 1.8% according to the Apparel Impact Institute's 2023 report.
By 2024, global sales of second-hand clothing are expected to account for 10% of global fashion industry sales. In recent years, concerns over price and sustainability, along with the growth of online retail, have driven a rapid increase in second-hand clothing sales.
Here are four innovations from World Economic Forum UpLink innovators aimed at promoting a circular economy and making the fast fashion industry more sustainable:
• Plant-based innovations in leather and textiles
A US-based start-up called Natural Fiber Welding turns plant-based materials into sustainable 'leather' and textile products. The company’s products meld plant matter into fibers that behave like synthetics, including a plant-based leather called MIRUM that contains no PVC or synthetic binding agents.
• Determining the circular economy of clothing
To help make fashion more sustainable, Eon Group has developed a method for giving garments digital identities, known as CircularID, which promotes a circular economy. This digital passport allows brands to sell and resell their garments as many times as they want, as each product can be tracked and traced throughout its entire lifecycle, from production to sale, resale, and recycling.
• Reducing excess inventory
Queen of Raw, a company fighting against clothing waste, offers an e-commerce software solution that enables businesses in the fashion industry to quickly manage and offload their excess inventory.
• Recycling old fashion
It is now possible to separate polycotton into its necessary components in just 15 minutes and transform the materials into new garments. Similarly, the German company Re-Fresh Global uses 'Smart Textile Waste Recycling Microfactories' to convert old clothes into perfumes, medicines, shoes, fabrics, automotive upholstery, and more.
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