Exploring Second-Hand Dynamics in Personal Luxury Goods

Sustainability is now a key focus across industries, with companies striving to preserve the environment, ensure ethical working conditions, and bolster economic resilience. This trend has garnered significant interest from consumers, especially the younger demographic, investors, and luxury sector entities. Luxury products inherently embody sustainability due to their premium materials and craftsmanship, resulting in enduring appeal and extended lifecycles. The rise of the second-hand market further highlights sustainability efforts, with the luxury resale market estimated at $100-$120 billion, growing annually by 20–30%. This work aims to describe major luxury brands' strategies in the second-hand market, categorizing them into clusters. After reviewing literature on luxury and sustainability, the study explores the second-hand market. The main research question is the following: what is the brand’s approach to second-hand market in personal luxury goods? The methodology involves literature reviews, considering academic studies, consulting reports, news articles, and brand websites. The focus is on personal luxury goods, analyzing industry trends and brands' engagement with the second-hand market. Digital Platforms such as Vestiaire Collective are studied, along with luxury brands' strategies, categorized into clusters based on sales channels and partnerships. The study reveals the dual nature of the second-hand market, posing both opportunities and threats for luxury brands. Motivations driving second-hand purchases include economic, hedonistic-recreational, and critical-value factors, while barriers include concerns about status, quality, style, and time. Luxury brands are classified into clusters based on their second-hand strategies, with some fully embracing the market while others remain cautious. The luxury fashion resale market is witnessing significant growth driven by sustainability concerns and digital platforms. Partnership with third-party platforms remains a popular strategy, allowing brands to test the market without significant investments. From a value chain perspective, today second-hand markets present differ strategies resulting in an opportunity for future scientific research.