The hegemony of the new is no more.
In recent years, the general public has developed a passion for second-hand clothes.
According to Fashion Network, 29% of French people buy clothes that have already had an owner, compared to 16% in 2018. If demand is increasing, the availability of vintage pieces does not follow.
Inherited from another era, representing a skill that has disappeared or a style that is no longer produced, these pieces are inevitably rare.
In reality, the impact of the rush towards the old is already beginning to be felt on the vintage offer.
State of play.
Vintage wave and soaring prices
Passionate about fashion and collector, Marie Laboucarié entered the vintage market in 2017 under the name
Nina Gabbana Vintage
.
She unearths and offers for sale designer pieces from the end of the 1990s, with photos from catwalks in support.
Her niche articles meet an increasingly large audience of amateurs, but also of pros, such as Rihanna's stylist or Patricia Field, the famous stylist of the cult series
Sex and the city
and
Emily in Paris
.
Fripouille, Kouni Bouni Vintage, Safripsti Vintage… Like her, there are dozens of them selling their finds, often directly on Instagram.
Eric Rey, retail director of the DB INVEST group, second-hand wholesaler and owner of brands such as Kilo Shop and Kiliwatch, confirms this upward trend.
In recent years, the turnover of the group's wholesale activity has doubled, and, despite the very strong competition, the activity of the shops has increased by 30%.
Parts prices have also increased.
Thus, from the year following her debut, Marie Laboucarié observes a change in prices and faces growing scarcity.
An observation corroborated by the secondary market for luxury handbags, which is more profitable than ever.
After 5 years, her activity would even have, according to her, reached its limits.
“On the sites, the parts leave in two seconds.
Consignment sales have become unaffordable and even auctions are no longer interesting,” she laments.
To the point of no longer being able to feed its offer, nor create the margin necessary for the profitability of its activity.
"A simple story of supply and demand", according to Eric Rey.
Very high demand.
Fripe has become chic
It must be said that the image of the second hand has radically changed.
In the past, we turned to the purchase of a garment already worn for lack of means.
Today, in the minds of the greatest number, it is a virtuous act, associated with an ecological commitment, thanks in particular to the marketing campaigns of resale platforms.
A practice that also involves cunning, to find the right plan, and knowledge, to put your finger on the right part.
In short, it constitutes a source of pride, the antithesis of the phenomenon of the shame of buying associated with disposable fashion, for example.
Unprecedented, the stars are also at the maneuver of this vintage trend, drawing on the archives of fashion houses to shine on the red carpets.
Its climax being Kim Kardashian wearing Marilyn Monroe's dress at the Met Gala 2022. Democratization ends in stores, where vintage is now treated with deference, in spaces dedicated to the same codes as ready-to-wear, like the “Second Printemps” at the Printemps Haussmann in Paris.
“In department store corners, the
merchandising
is such that customers don't even realize that the items are second-hand,” laughs Eric Rey.
A change of image that causes a rush to the old, increased by social networks.
On Tiktok, the new temple of vintage, in Vinted “hauls”, a video review of the fruit of a shopping session, users praise their second-hand loot.
Influencers also encourage people to find certain brands or parts.
The Y2K
wave
(understand: return of the 2000s) is, for example, bringing out videos explaining the difference between a recent Jennyfer brand label and a vintage one (1990s/2000s), therefore “vintage”.
A craze far from being anecdotal.
With over a billion views just for videos grouped under the “Vinted” hashtag, the network is having a massive impact on coin availability.
"When a piece is mentioned on Tiktok, it's over," says Marie Laboucarié.
The coup de grace for a circular system in full mutation.
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The end of a system
“Consumers are more and more informed and therefore pay attention to what they give, what they throw away, explains Eric Rey.
Today, those who could have donated a Dior jacket don't give it anymore: they go to a consignment store.
It's the greed.
When we started thinking of vintage as gold, it transformed the market.”
An observation shared by the vintage saleswoman Marie Laboucarié: “People have the impression of having marvels.
For example, on resale platforms, an item from a secondary line like Just Cavalli now sells for the price of a piece from the main Roberto Cavalli line.”
she laments.
“When we started thinking of vintage as gold, it transformed the market.
»
Eric Rey, retail director of the second-hand clothing group DB INVEST
Added to these new practices is the inevitable effect of time.
“Parts from the 50s, 60s, are almost 70 years old now.
The longer it goes, the less they will be able to be worn.
“Emphasizes Eric Rey.
A key factor in this market for old parts, wear and tear inevitably leads to scarcity and rising prices.
The phenomenon tends to accelerate.
Low-cost fashion has flooded the market with pieces of incomparable quality to the old: "This merchandise will deteriorate faster and it will be more and more difficult to recover it", announces the retail director.
This decrease in available parts leaves some players on the side of the road.
On her scale, the vintage expert of the 2000s no longer finds herself there: “My customers can buy their pieces themselves online, they no longer need me now”.
A resignation that second-hand wholesaler Eric Rey does not share.
Another vintage is possible
His job ?
Bet on trends to invest today in the pieces that will be sought after tomorrow.
The company acquires stocks of clothing from the sorting centers that collect them, given to terminals for example, all over the world.
In its 20,000 m2 hangar in Rouen, the thrift store stores these clothes waiting for the change in fashion to take effect to have a new hour of glory.
Illustration with the Levi's 501 jeans: abandoned ten years ago, bought at that time by the thrift store, adored again today and therefore sold en masse, with a clear and net profit.
For Eric Rey, there is no reason to believe that this system is coming to an end, on the contrary.
If he admits to ease off on the side of commercial operations in his corners to limit the incentive to consume, the latter is not worried about the fate of vintage.
"Who tells you that in 20 years, a Sézane dress will not be worth four times its price?"
he throws at us.
Far from being pessimistic, the retail director of the DB INVEST group watches his ecosystem evolve with interest.
For him, from pieces by emerging designers to those from H&M's designer collaborations, everything that is coveted today is inclined to become rare, therefore vintage.
It doesn't matter if the quality isn't there.
“To overcome this, there is a new practice: upcycling”.
After “vintage”, “reconditioned”, will certainly be the next word that counts.
An action verb arguably more inclined to lead fashion to eternal life.