Table of Contents

Reseller Survey

*Created on Tableau

Reseller Defined:

Resellers on fashion e-commerce platforms turn their passion into a business by curating trendy collections from thrifted finds or discounted items. They transform these pieces into stylish outfits, giving clothes a new life while profiting from the fashion-forward community.

Research Focus Our goal is to understand the experiences and challenges of resellers across various platforms such as Depop, Mercari, Poshmark, eBay, and others. Key questions explore the duration of reselling, the platforms used, struggles faced while navigating these platforms, and sourcing methods for inventory. The ultimate goal is to simplify the reselling process by developing an intuitive algorithm that enhances sales and boosts visibility for resellers.

<aside> 📌 Survey Insights:

• Resellers use multiple platforms and often list their items on several of them.
• They struggle with an with unclear and consistently changing algorithms that’s frustrating for them to make consistent sales
• The shipping learning curve is the biggest barrier to entry for the resale market </aside>

I conducted at over 150 interviews with users who shop on second hand platforms 89% of which were also resellers who also regularly shopped second hand.

1:1 Customer Interviews with Depop Resellers & Users

• Click here for general interview script for Resellers

Our primary competitor is Depop, as we target the same audience and focus exclusively on clothing sales. While many resale platforms cater to a broader demographic, we have chosen to concentrate on Depop resellers, noting that many also engage with other platforms.

Generalized Insights

Age

Average Depop Reseller is between 16-24 years old

Many of the resellers I spoke to were between 20-32 year olds who started reselling 1 to 3 years ago.

Gender

Women > Men

Women are more prevalent than men and non-binary individuals on fashion based resale platforms.

Location

Geographic Location: USA

Everyone I interviewed lived in the United States, primarily California.

Reseller Specific Problem Areas

Question: As a reseller, what are some improvement that might make your workflow smoother?

• Shipping
  • Having to print and ship shipping labels requires time, a printer, and a scale
  • Once a seller ships an item, it is out of their control, yet buyers often leave negative ratings due to shipping delays that the sellers cannot influence.
  • Different policies on different apps make it hard to remember.
    • Click here to the shipping policies of different resale platforms
• Algorithm + Pressure
  • The consistently changing algorithm that caters to microtrends, making it hard to sell everyday essentials.
  • Top sellers face pressure to meet specific quotas, leading them to accept lower offers to fulfill minimum requirements.
  • 30% of resellers (~105 individuals) stated that at one point or another Depop deleted their listings for unsubstantial reasons.
    • Click here for more specific analysis