Secondhand clothing resale is transforming from a side hustle into a full-fledged career for many. A study released by AI-driven resale marketplace Fleek shows that 28% of secondhand sellers have made resale their full-time job, while about one-third are turning this side hustle into a formal profession.

The report combines real-time search and sales signals from the Fleek platform and surveyed 339 resale sellers across 22 countries. The data shows that the longer sellers stay in the industry, the more likely they are to commit full-time: only 14% of sellers with less than six months in the business operate full-time, compared with 53% of those with more than five years of experience. Nearly two-thirds of full-time sellers say resale income now accounts for the majority of their total earnings.

Motivations differ across generations. Millennial sellers are 81% more likely than average to choose resale for flexibility or childcare reasons, while Gen X sellers are more inclined to view resale as an alternative to traditional work.

Multi-channel strategies are widely seen as beneficial. Vinted is the most popular platform, with 65% of sellers saying they earn more there than on any other platform. But relying on resale as a primary income source comes with risks—account suspensions, bans, restrictions, and counterfeit allegations can directly hit earnings.

Live selling is becoming an important tool for professional sellers, with nearly half of full-time sellers having sold via livestream platforms. eBay is drawing sellers back with its newly launched live features, competing with livestream-first platforms like Whatnot and TikTok Shop. This trend matters because one-third of sellers say photographing and listing individual items is the hardest part of the job, and livestreaming can effectively compress that time.

On the product and brand side, Ralph Lauren holds the top spot as the most in-demand brand on Fleek with a perfect Heat score of 100; Under Armour demand rose 410% year-on-year, Coach 158%, Columbia 138%, and Adidas 133%; while former resale favorites Carhartt and Burberry have cooled, with demand falling 43% and 46% respectively.

In terms of categories, sweaters are the most in-demand category for Fall/Winter 2026, up 50% year-on-year, but going-out apparel and denim saw even sharper gains: flared jeans surged 238% year-on-year, and printed shirts rose 146%. Meanwhile, loungewear, which had been a bestseller since the pandemic, continues to recede, with hoodies down 50%, crewneck sweatshirts down 41%, and track jackets down one-third. The Y2K trend remains strong, with American Eagle searches soaring 1,588% year-on-year, followed by Hollister (1,172%), Aéropostale (1,150%), Bebe (1,106%), and Abercrombie (899%). Currently, 49% of sellers specialize in Y2K and early-2000s styles, rising to 60% among sellers aged 18 to 25.

Abhi Arora, co-founder and CEO of Fleek, said the strongest signal from the report is that "resale has matured": what started as a way to earn extra cash is now a serious business, and this has changed the skills sellers need—if you're running multiple platforms at once, livestreaming regularly, and paying bills through resale, you can no longer count on finding suitable inventory by chance at charity shops on weekends; you need reliable sourcing channels and a more accurate read on real demand.

For the secondhand clothing industry, these figures mean the participant structure and operating methods of secondhand resale are changing: the share of professional sellers is rising, livestream selling penetration is accelerating, and category hotspots are shifting from loungewear to denim and going-out apparel. Catching these signals will directly influence the direction of recycling and sorting, export product selection, and platform operations.

Source: Secondhand clothes selling becomes a full-time gig for many with Vinted the most popular platform — Retail Technology Innovation Hub · Originally published 2026-09-24