Fashion Resale and Vintage: Vinted, Vestiaire, RealReal — 2026-09-26

Top developments

Fleek report: resale is now a career, and Vinted is sellers' top platform

Research from AI-powered resale marketplace Fleek, published September 23, finds that 28% of resellers sell secondhand clothes full-time, with a further third actively working to turn their side hustle into a career. Vinted was named the most popular platform among these professional sellers. The report is compiled from millions of listings on its platform. A companion analysis in WWD notes that finding stock is the hard part — thrift shops alone may not supply the inventory professional sellers need.

Second-hand luxury goods market projected to nearly double by 2031

A market report released September 25 via GlobeNewswire forecasts the second-hand luxury goods market growing from $44.67B in 2023 to $98.29B by 2031. The report profiles The RealReal, Vestiaire Collective, Fashionphile and Rebag, and highlights AI authentication, brand-run programs and omnichannel as key opportunity areas, driven by sustainability, affordability and Gen Z demand.

H&M's Sellpy can't turn a profit despite fast growth

Bloomberg reported on September 25 that H&M's used-clothing unit Sellpy is growing quickly but still cannot reach profitability on secondhand clothing. It's a cautionary datapoint for brand-run resale: scale doesn't automatically translate into margin, even for a fast-fashion giant with built-in supply.

Fleek trends report flags Y2K mall brands as A/W 2026's resale winners

New resale data from Fleek, covered September 24 by Mamabella, identifies the Y2K brands set to dominate autumn/winter 2026 — from Hollister and Abercrombie to American Eagle — based on millions of trend signals. The irony noted in coverage: the shoppers who grew up with these brands are now officially "vintage" themselves.

Resale arbitrage on fast fashion hits the mainstream press

Spanish outlet Mujer Hoy reported September 23 on the growing business of identifying viral Zara pieces and reselling them on Vinted at up to five times the original price — a phenomenon that marks much of the current resale era.

Local view

French-language business press is tracking the same professionalization trend: RetailDetail BE reported (September 24) that Vinted sellers are becoming genuine competitors to retail, spreading listings across multiple platforms and sourcing stock increasingly professionally. German trade title Textilwirtschaft (September 24) examines how stationary fashion retailers can profit from the secondhand boom, with vintage acting as a growth driver for sales and customer loyalty.

Context & numbers

• Vinted's most recent reported full-year results (published April 2026): GMV grew 47% YoY to €10.8bn, with €1.1bn annual revenue and €62m net profit
• The RealReal Q2 2026: GMV of $617M (+22%), revenue of $192.6M, with a raised 2026 outlook; stock traded around $9.42 (September 18), market cap ~$1.16B, with net losses persisting
• Broader re-commerce market projected at $448B by 2029 (July 2026 WWD/Sourcing Journal forecast, for context)

On the radar

• Watch whether H&M responds to Sellpy's profitability struggles with restructuring or divestment, per the Bloomberg report.
• Fleek's trend-data pipeline (Y2K report this week, full-time seller report last week) is becoming a regular signal source for resale demand — expect further data drops.
• Watch for any Q3 2026 The RealReal guidance updates after its raised outlook in August (rumor-free watch item).