Why resale giant Depop is entering the Australian market

UK resale marketplace Depop has just launched its first campaign in Australia, targeting Generation Z and Millennial customers who are keen to embrace sustainable fashion and potentially find a second source of income. The new out-of-home campaign features four Australian sellers and will run across digital billboards at more than 100 university and tertiary campuses. “This campaign is one of our first major marketing investments in Australia and we really wanted to use it as an opportun

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to use it as an opportunity to champion and celebrate our community of creatives to show the rest of the world what they’re all about,” Australian country manager Aria Wigneswaran told Inside Retail.

“With this campaign, and the many supporting activations and tactics to come as we look towards 2021, we hope to show our current and future Depop community that we’re here to represent them.”

Depop is a peer-to-peer social shopping app focusing on secondhand products which was first launched in 2011 by entrepreneur Simon Beckerman. There are more than 20 million active users on Depop in 147 countries, but Australia is the third largest market for the business, which officially opened its local arm in November last year. Depop is headquartered in London and also has offices in Manchester, Los Angeles and New York.

Pandemic fuels growth of resale

In recent years, as people have become more aware of the environmental impact of fast fashion, the resale market has grown in popularity and more retailers have started looking for ways to cater to the market. According to figures from Statista, the global market value of secondhand and resale clothing is worth US$33 billion and estimated to grow to US$64 billion by 2024.

According to Wigneswaran, Gen Z and Millennials are embracing secondhand fashion two-and-a-half times faster than other age groups and since coronavirus hit, consumers are more interested than ever in adopting a more sustainable wardrobe.

“We’ve really seen Gen Z embrace resale as a way to use the time they’ve had at home as productively and creatively as possible,” said Wigneswaran. “What was usually considered a time consuming activity to many, has become easier as we’ve all had more time on our hands at home to clean out our closet, get creative with styling, shoot inventory, make some money in the process, and in most cases, build a secondary source of income.”

Wigneswaran added that since April, Depop has seen more than 100 per cent year-on-year growth in traffic and listings and in Australia, the retailer has seen “record-breaking growth with consecutive triple digit growth year-on-year and equal growth as it relates to new sign-ups and items sold.”

“The pandemic has shone a light on the values of community and sustainability more than ever, as well as introducing Gen Z to the possibility of building a fashion business from their bedroom and we believe these to deliver lasting change,” explained Wigneswaran.

“Our community are champions of the circular fashion movement and their expectation of consumers across the board is to be more mindful of the environment when shopping after this pandemic ends. Resale has definitely proven to be a viable business model prior to the pandemic, and will continue serving as a both desirable and thoughtful alternative to fast fashion.”

Tapping into Gen Z

With the majority of Depop’s customers being 15-29 year-olds, the marketplace has been using social media platforms to engage with their customer base. Recently, the retailer partnered with Snapchat to launch its latest collaboration with Vans on an augmented reality Snap-lens that allowed users to virtually try-on products.

“On Tiktok, on the other hand, we want to have a dialogue with our audience and launch authentic conversations about what it means or looks like to be on Depop,” explained Wigneswaran. “Whether that’s videos of users packing up their orders, or sellers showing snippets of their creative process to the final product – it’s a place where we can show a holistic, authentic view of our community that resonates with this audience.”

Depop is also focused on supporting their sellers to become entrepreneurs and build their online brands through various tools and resources, such as the dedicated global seller experience team that helps people manage their individual businesses. Meanwhile, the Level-Up educational program offers workshops and mentorships for high potential sellers to reach Top Seller Status.

“It is so inspiring to see many of our sellers being able to build real businesses on Depop at a really young age and become independent in the process by fulfilling a passion. In fact, just this past April, Depop seller Bella McFadden, hit $1 million in sales. Our sellers are truly role models of entrepreneurship.”