The platform’s Luxury Resale Report 2019 revealed that the most searched brand over the course of the year was Gucci, followed by Louis Vuitton and Chanel in second and third place, with the former increasing its lead over the latter by 225% year over year. Prada and Hermès rounded out the top five. Overall, demand for Gucci increased 78% from the previous year, growing 2.3 times faster among 18-34-year-olds than in other demographics.

“Gucci has successfully created a brand that resonates by reflecting the values of its growing community,” explained Rati Levesque, COO of The RealReal. “It’s taken bold stances like going fur-free, driven civic action and supported gender equality. That, coupled with bold maximalism that continues to feel unique among a crowded field of luxury labels vying to win with millennials, has established Gucci as the luxury brand for a new generation.” The strongest annual growth, however, was actually seen at Balenciaga, demand for which increased 102%, helping it into its position as tenth most searched brand. Dior and Fendi, the seventh and sixth most searched brands, also saw strong progress, with demand increasing 95% and 94%, respectively. In terms of specific trends, The RealReal highlighted that macro-tendencies have multiplied into a plethora of micro-trends over the last year, with mini bags (searches up 544%), hair clips (+378%) and tie-dye (+364%) seeing the strongest growth, followed by neon, blazers and cardigans. Although it may be being phased out on the runway, streetwear is still on the up in resale, with demand seeing year-over-year growth of 281%. Here again, its younger consumers who are bolstering demand, with 38% of the demand for the category coming from 18-34-year-olds. Among streetwear brands, Yeezy is top of the class in terms of search volume, with Off-White and Nike snatching second and third place, followed by Supreme and Adidas, although the label experiencing the highest year-over-year growth was Palm Angels, which posted a massive 1720% increase in searches. Taking a closer look at streetwear trends, demand for bucket hats and cargo pants rose 365% and 111%, respectively, no doubt receiving a boost from the ongoing 90s revival. As always, sneakers also performed well, posting a 213% increase in demand. The biggest gains among sneakers brands were at Yeezy, which posted a 662% rise, Prada – up 437%, and Balenciaga, which saw demand rise 376%. Nike (+339%) and Golden Goose (+303%) also made significant progress. Elsewhere, logomania has apparently been conquering new territory this year, finding its way into shoppers’ homes. The RealReal has identified that the resale value for home items with logos consigned through its platform has grown 5.5 times more than that of those without logos over the last year. Top searched brands in the home category are Louis Vuitton, Hermès and Goyard, followed by Gucci and Chanel. Conversely, a trend that has apparently taken a hit in the last twelve months is smart watches. Despite strong growth (+132%) in demand for watches on the platform, searches for Apple Watches were down 94% year over year, suggesting that this kind of product is losing traction with resale shoppers. The RealReal’s report also offered some insights concerning the motivations behind consumers’ decisions to shop resale, highlighting growing concerns around questions of sustainability. Indeed, 82% of customers and 57% of consignors on the platform cite sustainability as the reason they use The RealReal, while 32% of shoppers said they use the website as a replacement for fast fashion. And the platform looks to be positioning itself at the cutting edge of this growing trend with its analytics capabilities. With increasing numbers of consumers turning towards resale as an alternative form of shopping for fashion, the insights about what does well at consignment will only become more valuable.