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Cerritos College • Norwalk, Calif.

Talon Marks

Cerritos College • Norwalk, Calif.

Talon Marks

Cerritos College • Norwalk, Calif.

Talon Marks

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Resell culture is hurting our pockets

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Thrift stores have become more normalized which has caused them to have higher prices.

Resell culture is getting out of hand and people are over it.

In the early 2000s sneaker reselling was very popular and it was difficult to get your hands on new releases.

Resellers would use ‘Nike Talk’ or go to Sneakercon to sell sneakers or other luxury brand items. Recently, the resell market has tripled in size and it is a huge business now.

“The sneaker resale market continues to grow and is currently estimated to be a $2 Billion industry. Future projections estimate the industry to grow ~3x by 2025”

The resell market is no longer people selling sneakers from their collections, it has become greedy and resellers are taking advantage of people buying these items.

Resellers use websites like StockX, GOAT, Grailed and Stadium Goods to sell items.

In 2017 the resell market was going really well. You were still able to purchase items at a reasonable price.

“Goodwill Industries alone generated $5.9 billion in retail sales from more than 3,000 Not For Profit resale stores and online sales in 2017”

However, prices on resold items right now are so outrageous that people are buying fakes just to say that they have a certain item.

Buying fakes isn’t even the issue, the issue is that people are reselling items for hundreds of dollars more than the original price making people not be able to afford them.

How the to resell market works now is people have bots that are able to purchase several items on the first drop, and they use those items to resell.

For example, the Nike dunk low Pandas are set at a retail price of $100 and they are being resold for double the price.

Some people buy five pairs at a time just to resell them.

Another genre of the resell market that has gotten out of hand is Depop

Thrifting became huge in 2018 when influencers like Emma Chamberlain first began to make “come thrifting with me” videos.

Thrifting was fun and it still is but it is just very hard to find any good items when resellers are emptying out thrift stores and selling everything on Depop claiming that it’s vintage and super rare.

Like buying literal children’s tops and calling them “cute baby tees” on Depop when it literally is a baby tee and they sell them for $25 when they buy them for $5 at the thrift.

Thrifting and reselling on Depop became even more popular because of social media platforms like Tiktok.

We are all contributing to fashion trends because of TikTok and most of the time you will find these fashion trends at your local thrift store because they aren’t trendy anymore.

Making thrift hauls became trendy and everyone started to try and start their own Depop shop.

The concern is over how upper- and middle-class “haulers” — people who purchase massive amounts of secondhand clothing for resale purposes or personal wear — are contributing to the gentrification of thrift stores.

Thrift stores just aren’t how they used to be. The prices are higher and it’s difficult to find anything good.

Resell culture is boring and basic now, it is honestly better to use your money on new items instead of buying resell or buying overpriced used clothes.

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About the Contributor
Sophia Castillo, Opinion Editor
Sophia Castillo is the Opinion editor for Talon Marks. Sophia also enjoys thrifting and attending concerts. She hopes to transfer to Cal State Long Beach in the fall and hopes to work for Vogue Magazine.
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Resell culture is hurting our pockets