If you’re one of the five million people who tune into ITV2’s Love Island, you’ll already know the hottest trend this summer is pre-loved fashion from eBay.

Since eBay announced its collaboration with TV’s biggest guilty pleasure, searches on the marketplace for pre-loved fashion have increased by a staggering 700%.

Speaking to journalists about the dramatic increase in searches for pre-loved fashion, Jemma Tadd, Head of Fashion, eBay UK, said, “Searches for pre-loved are peaking and conversation around the fashion worn by the Islanders continues to grow. Through this partnership, we of course wanted to get people talking about pre-loved, but more importantly, we wanted to see people thinking and acting differently – and we’re delighted to see that change coming to life.”

The Circular Economy Is The Latest Fashion

eBay’s collaboration with Love Island is just the latest initiative for the marketplace that has always supported the circular economy. The move is not only popular with Gen Z and millennial audiences who are increasingly looking for more environmentally friendly shopping choices. It also provides an affordable option to help consumers better manage their finances during the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

eBay’s focus on pre-loved fashion also reflects the way the business world, in general, is adapting to changing consumer behaviour and new environmental policies. Recent high-profile changes include eBay banning the sale of single-use plastics like drinking straws and cutlery to comply with Scottish regulations. More recently, eBay announced that all sellers must comply with the German Packaging Act if they wish to continue selling in Germany.

The marketplace is committed to helping its sellers promote and sell more environmentally friendly fashions through eBay’s dedicated pre-loved fashion hub.

Initiatives include:

• Always on marketing campaigns across eBay’s social, influencer, radio, print, digital out of home, and partner network.
• A dedicated on-site trading calendar throughout the year focusing on specific sales opportunities and promoting regular flash sales.
• A dedicated “imperfects” category – described by eBay as the fashion equivalent of the supermarkets’ wonky veg initiative to reduce food waste.

eBay Fashion by Numbers

• 1 second: A pre-loved fashion item is sold on eBay every second of the day. A quick bit of maths will tell you that accounts for 86,400 pre-loved items sold daily on the marketplace. No matter how you look at that figure – that’s a hell of a lot of clothes being given a second chance of life and not going to landfill.
• 30% Year on Year Growth: It’s hard to argue with double-digit sales growth during a global cost-of-living crisis.
• 200+ Big Brand Retailers: eBay’s dedicated fashion categories are home to more than 200 big-name retailers, including brands like Superdry, Mountain Warehouse, and River Island. Big brands create a traffic-generating buzz from which smaller, independent retailers can benefit. While smaller businesses may not be able to compete on the high street, there is room for everyone on eBay.
• 6.5 million active customers: That’s roughly the equivalent population of major cities like Madrid or Toronto. eBay is a prime retail location if you are looking for footfall for your fashion business.

Are your eBay listings for pre-loved fashion on-trend? Speak with one of our design and optimisation experts to ensure your sales look great this season.