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The secondhand market is outpacing traditional retail. Not by a little. By a lot.
In 2024, resale grew five times faster than new apparel. Projections for 2026 show the trend accelerating, not slowing down. If you operate a thrift store, this isn’t just industry noise. It’s a shift that directly impacts your donation volume, customer base, and revenue potential.
Here’s what’s driving the resale boom — and what it actually means for local, nonprofit, and community-driven thrift stores running on unpredictable inventory and volunteer labor.
What’s Fueling Resale Growth Right Now
The resale boom isn’t random. Specific forces are reshaping how people shop for secondhand products — and every one of them creates both opportunities and challenges for brick-and-mortar thrift stores. Understanding these trends helps you see where your store fits and what you need to compete.
Economic Pressure Is Changing Shopping Habits
Inflation and recession anxiety are encouraging buyers to stretch their budgets even further — by shopping at thrift stores. Secondhand shops offer immediate savings without sacrificing quality.
Resale has moved out of the “budget alternative” category and into mainstream shopping behavior. People who previously bought new are now checking thrift first — not out of necessity, but out of preference.
For thrift stores, this means a larger, more diverse customer base. But it also means competition is fiercer. Online resale platforms are targeting the same shoppers you are.
Sustainability Matters (but Only When It’s Convenient)
Consumers care about sustainability. They also care about convenience. The resale model hits both.
Buying secondhand reduces waste, extends product lifecycles, and aligns with values around conscious consumption. Gen Z and millennials, in particular, are vocal about these priorities.
They don’t sacrifice user experience for values, though. If your store is hard to navigate, poorly organized, or only open for limited hours, they shop elsewhere. Online resale platforms offer curated inventory, search filters, and home delivery. That’s the benchmark.
Related Read: Sustainability in Retail: 7 Ways Your Thrift Store Can Help
Gen Z Isn’t Shopping Like Millennials Did
Gen Z grew up with Depop, Poshmark, and Vinted. They don’t see secondhand as a compromise. They see it as discovery.
They’re hunting for unique pieces, not chasing mall brands. They’re looking for storytelling — where did this item come from? Who wore it before? What makes it special?
Thrift stores have an advantage here. You have the unique inventory and the local connection. But if your merchandising doesn’t highlight that, or if your pricing feels random, you’re missing the opportunity.
Social Commerce Is Driving Foot Traffic
TikTok haul videos. Instagram thrift flips. YouTube thrifting challenges. Social media has turned secondhand shopping into entertainment.
When someone posts a “$5 vintage jacket” from your store, you’re getting free marketing. But it cuts both ways. If your store looks cluttered or outdated in those videos, it reinforces old stereotypes about thrift shops being messy or low quality.
The stores winning on social media are the ones that look intentional: clean displays, clear pricing, and rotating inventory that gives people a reason to come back.
AI-Powered Discovery Tools Are Raising Expectations
Online resale platforms use AI for visual search, personalized recommendations, and dynamic pricing. Shoppers can upload a photo and find similar items instantly.
Brick-and-mortar thrift stores can’t compete on that level of tech, but you can compete on experience with personal recommendations from staff, in-store events, and community connection. Those still matter — but only if your baseline operations are solid.
These trends aren’t slowing down. The stores that capitalize on resale growth acknowledge the new expectations and modernize their operations to meet them. Growth doesn’t happen automatically just because the market is expanding — it happens only when you adapt.
What This Means for Your Thrift Store — and How To Capitalize
Resale growth creates opportunities, but not every thrift store benefits equally. Success comes from modernizing operations, tracking what works, and building systems that don’t overwhelm your staff. Here’s where to focus.
1. Manual Systems Leave Money on the Table
If your systems are still manual — handwritten price tags, gut-feel pricing, no category tracking — you’re making it harder for customers to find what they want. You’re also losing revenue you can capture with better processes.
The stores growing fastest treat unpredictable donation volume as a challenge to solve, not an excuse for disorganization.
How To Capitalize: Invest in a POS System Built for Thrift Stores
Manual pricing wastes time. So does handwritten inventory tracking and end-of-day sales reconciliation.
Generic retail point of sale (POS) systems don’t work for thrift stores. They’re designed for predictable inventory with SKUs, barcodes, and reorders. Thrift stores operate on donated goods with no manufacturer codes and wildly varying conditions.
A thrift store–specific POS system handles the chaos. It speeds up intake, automates pricing workflows, and tracks what’s selling by category without forcing you into a one-size-fits-all retail model.
The more time your team (especially volunteers) spends on admin tasks, the less time they have for customer service, merchandising, and donor engagement. Automation doesn’t mean replacing people. It means freeing them up to do the work that actually drives revenue and community impact.
2. Inventory Turnover Speed Matters More Than Ever
When customers visit your store and see the same items week after week, they stop coming back. Resale platforms refresh inventory constantly. Your store needs to do the same.
That means faster intake processes, better categorization, and smarter decisions about what hits the floor, what goes to bulk sales, and what gets recycled.
You can’t do this without data.
How To Capitalize: Use Category Reporting To Make Smarter Decisions
Not all inventory is created equal. Some categories turn fast. Others sit.
If you don’t track sales by category, you’re guessing. You’re over-ordering shelving for items that don’t sell. You’re under-pricing high-demand pieces. You’re missing trends.
Category reporting tells you what’s working. It helps you allocate floor space, adjust pricing, and communicate with donors about what you need more of. If vintage denim moves fast but modern athletic wear sits, adjust your floor space accordingly. If certain price points convert better, dial in your pricing strategy.
Related Read: What Is a Good Inventory Turnover Ratio for Thrift Stores? 4 Insights
3. Merchandising Can’t Be an Afterthought
Cluttered racks kill sales. So do poorly lit stores, confusing layouts, and inconsistent pricing.
Resale growth brings in new customers who’ve never shopped thrift before. Their first impression matters. If they walk in and feel overwhelmed, they leave.
Merchandising doesn’t have to be expensive — it has to be purposeful.
How To Capitalize: Make Your Store Look Intentional
The stores that treat merchandising as seriously as inventory management see higher transaction values and more repeat customers:
- Group similar items together.
- Rotate displays weekly.
- Use signage to guide shoppers.
- Price clearly and consistently.
- Improve lighting and fix confusing layouts.
4. Donation Volume Is Increasing, But So Is Donor Selectiveness
More people are donating because decluttering and conscious consumption are trending. That’s good news.
But donors are also getting smarter about where they give. They want to know their items will be valued, not tossed in a bin and forgotten. They want confirmation that their donation supports the mission.
Thrift stores that communicate impact — how many items were sold, how much revenue supported programs, and what happens to unsold inventory — build donor loyalty. Stores that don’t? They lose donors to competitors or online platforms that make it easier.
How To Capitalize: Make Donor Outreach Proactive, Not Reactive
Waiting for donations to walk in isn’t a strategy. Proactive outreach — community events, donation drives, partnerships with local businesses — builds a steady stream.
But outreach only works if you make the donation process easy:
- Clear dropoff hours
- Fast processing
- Communication about impact
If donors feel like they’re doing you a favor and getting nothing in return, they donate elsewhere.
Related Read: Thrift Store Donation Guidelines: 7 Examples
5. Mission-Based Marketing Still Works (When It’s Authentic)
Nonprofit thrift stores have a built-in advantage: mission. Customers feel good about supporting a cause while they shop.
But generic statements like “proceeds support our community” aren’t enough anymore. Shoppers want specifics: How much goes to the mission? What programs does it fund? What impact did last year’s sales create?
When customers understand the impact, they’re more likely to donate, shop, and spread the word.
How To Capitalize: Expand Your Reach Online
You don’t have to become an online-first retailer overnight, but having some online presence for higher-value or unique items expands your reach.
Customers who live outside your immediate area can shop. Donors can see their contributions sold. Revenue from online sales supports the mission just like in-store purchases.
The key is integration:
- Your online inventory needs to sync with your in-store system.
- You can’t manage two separate databases manually.
- Tell your mission story online just like you do in-store.
Grow Your Thrift Store Even Faster With ThriftCart
Resale is growing because it solves real problems: budget constraints, sustainability concerns, and the desire for unique products. Thrift stores are positioned to benefit — but only if they modernize operations.
The stores winning in this market aren’t the ones with the most inventory. They’re the ones with the best systems. Faster intake. Smarter pricing. Better merchandising. Clear mission communication.
If you’re still operating the way you did five years ago, you’re competing with one hand tied behind your back.
ThriftCart is a POS system built specifically for thrift stores. It helps you:
- Track inventory by category so you know which items need more floor space.
- Speed up pricing workflows so volunteers spend less time on admin.
- Integrate online sales to expand your reach.
- Pull real-time reports on what’s moving and what’s not so you can make smarter decisions.
- Capture impact data you can share with donors to build loyalty.
See how it works for your business and schedule a demo today.
