In An Effort To Reduce Fashion Waste, H&M Has Partnered With ThredUp To Launch A Resale Platform In The US

Hennes & Mauritz AB and ThredUp Inc. are partnering to launch a resale platform as global apparel companies try to reduce clothing waste and capitalize on a new revenue stream.

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H&M is launching its first resale platform in the US market, H&M Pre-Loved, on Tuesday with around 30,000 items of pre-loved women's and kids' clothing and accessories available on its website, hm.thredup.com. The Swedish apparel company, one of the biggest in the world, is the largest retailer to sell used clothing and accessories via ThredUp's resale platform for used clothing and accessories. The company is already working with over a dozen other brands and, at the beginning of this year, it launched a resale program with J. Crew. and Kate Spade, among others. 

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Abigail Kammerzell, head of sustainability at H&M North America, said in a statement: "We must take responsibility for the impact fashion has on the environment and climate. By using business models such as this, we can reduce and limit this negative impact while continuing to provide fashion and style to our customers.”

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In spite of the fact that reselling used clothing helps companies boost their green credentials and diverts some items from the landfill at least temporarily, it is not yet clear whether the programs will ultimately lead companies to produce less clothing due to a decline in demand for new products as a result of a decrease in demand for used clothing.

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Often, for companies like H&M, it is easier and less costly to use the existing technology and logistics of resale platforms powered by ThredUp and its competitors than it is to create their own service from scratch. "Resale-as-a-Service" is a revenue source that ThredUp uses in addition to what the company earns by selling used items on its own marketplace website. The amount of revenue that ThredUp generates from selling its business model is not disclosed by the company. 

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There is no information available about H&M's projection for the potential revenue it can expect from the sale of its used items. There have been a number of companies that have launched resale platforms recently and said that the initial revenue will likely be minimal, but that it will slowly increase over time as the market develops.

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