Target Re-Enters Resale With New thredUP Deal
Target is getting back into secondhand sales through a deal with resale company thredUP, reports CNBC. The big-box retailer confirmed Friday that it launched a page on thredUP’s website in late March that includes listings of women’s and kids’ apparel, along with accessories. Some items are from Target’s private labels, such as kids’ clothing brand Cat & Jack, or its limited-time designer collaborations, such as one with Lilly Pulitzer in 2015, and others are from luxury brands not typically sold by Target. All are curated by Target from thredUP’s inventory.
Total Retail's Take: As resale and other sustainable models continue to grow in importance among consumers, retailers are still figuring out how such efforts can work for their brands. This isn't the first time Target has teamed up with thredUP, an online consignment and thrift store. Target launched — and then shut down — an approximately six-month test in 2015. It allowed shoppers to get Target credit for gently used items that thredUP was willing to resell.
The thredUP partnership fits into Target’s broader sustainability initiatives, including Target Zero, a new label in stores and online that points out products or packaging designed to be refillable, reusable or compostable. For thredUP, partnering with big-box retailers like Target can expand its reach and tap into Target's customer base who may not have previously shopped for secondhand apparel on the platform. The resale market grew to an estimated $15 billion in 2021 and is expected to more than triple to $47 billion by 2025. With that in mind, it's understandable that Target is placing its bets in this growing arena.
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Kristina Stidham is the digital content director at Total Retail and sister brands Women in Retail Leadership Circle and Women Leading Travel & Hospitality at NAPCO Media. She is passionate about digital media and handles video, podcast and virtual event production for all brands. You can often find her at WIRLC, TR, WLT&H or industry events with her camera and podcasting equipment—or at home on Zoom—recording interviews with thought leaders and business executives.
Kristina holds a B.A. in Media Studies and Production from the Temple University Klein College of Media and Communication in Philadelphia. Go Owls! When she's not in the office, she loves to go on long walks, sing around the house, hangout with her family and two pet guinea pigs, and travel to new places.
