The gentrification of thrifting

The increasing popularity of thrifting is putting affordable clothing options out of reach

NewsFeatureJocelyn Gardner — Published December 2, 2024 5 minutes

Rising prices and curated vintage collections have turned these spaces into trendy spots, excluding many who once relied on them for affordable clothing. 

According to the 2024 Resale Report of online resale platform ThredUp, the global secondhand apparel market is predicted to reach US$350 billion by 2028. This means it is growing three times faster than the overall global apparel market as it becomes more mainstream. 

However, this surge in second-hand fashion popularity aligns with growing demand for clothing among vulnerable populations. 

Steel MacDonald, founder and executive director of Welfare Avenue, a student-led non-profit serving low-income and unhoused individuals in Montreal and Toronto, says the organization has noticed a significant rise in requests for clothing among those that use their services. 

“You definitely see this [rise] during winter when you need to be warm,” MacDonald said. “I could tell that the requests for clothing from our side are much higher, and it’s probably because they can’t get them at thrift stores.” 

MacDonald has also observed a decline in the volume of clothing donations. 

“It’s been pretty gradual,” he said, “but in the last year [we’ve received] a lot less than the year before that.”

The rising popularity of thrifting has come with widespread discourse about inflated prices. Value Village, for example, has faced criticism for their price markups, with customers finding Dollarama products for up to three times their original price sold at the store. 

MacDonald believes these price increases are directly impacting affordable clothing accessibility.

“I remember when I started thrifting in 2019, it was so cheap, so cheap. You could literally find pants for $5, jackets for $20, it was really inexpensive,” said Sara Khider, co-founder of Concordia University’s MODE Collective, which promotes sustainable fashion by using second-hand clothes and materials.

The surge in demand for thrifted clothing isn’t the only factor driving up prices. Shifts within the thrift market itself are also playing a role. 

“There are thrift stores popping up right, left and centre, and they have to compete with each other,” explained Aksel Koç-Gonzalez, Welfare Avenue’s club development coordinator. “[Thrift stores] have to increase the prices or [they’re] going to go out of business, and it’s reflected on us customers.”

A 2011 study in academic journal Family Relations found that lower and middle-income earners were more likely to depend on thrifting as a way to buy necessities. Their odds of purchasing second-hand items were up to four times higher than those of higher-income earners. 

Lucy Alexander, MODE Collective’s booking officer, notes that this reliance on thrift stores for necessities is now being challenged by a growing trend: reselling thrifted clothes for profit. She explains that the prospect of buying items cheaply and reselling them online at higher prices has significantly contributed to the popularization of second-hand shopping.

“It's cool to see that whole new business venture, but then at the same time it's like, how many resellers can there be?” Alexander said, noting that problems arise when people who rely on second-hand stores find themselves searching through almost-empty bins and cleared clothing racks.

"It's one thing if you’re going to a goodwill or value village and shopping for yourself and you find three things,” Alexander said, “but if you’re a reseller and you go and you clear everything out and then resell it on depop or as your own side-hustle business, then that’s concerning.” 

Although data on this emerging trend is limited, a 2021 study in the Journal of Student Research highlighted how thrift reselling—buying in bulk to sell at higher prices—has reduced clothing availability, leaving low-income shoppers with limited options.

Despite the challenges, some thrift stores prioritize affordability. Fringues, run by the YWCA, offers low-cost second-hand clothing while supporting women in need. The non-profit revitalizes donated clothes and accessories to sell them at an affordable price.

“We always try to make our costs really low,” Fringues store manager Gabrielle Dubé said. “The clothes that we get are second-hand mostly. Sometimes we get new clothes, and we try to make the price the most affordable possible for our clientele.” 

As a donation-based, non-profit store, Fringues on Crescent St. is able to maintain affordability despite the gentrification of thrifting.

“We break the fashion economy in a way,” Dubé said. “We can sometimes have the same clothes that are still in Zara to this day. People go through [fashion items] really fast.”

Similarly, Arthur et Juno on St. Denis St. offers customers a wide variety of second-hand products for infants, children and current or expecting parents. 

“The stuff we sell is in perfect condition because we hand-select and we hand-check everything,” said Nahia Machenaud, sales-associate at Arthur et Juno. “And because it’s second hand, it’s at much lower prices. It allows for people that have lower incomes to still have access to all these little things that you need when you have a young child or you're expecting to have a child.”

Arthur et Juno prioritizes maintaining affordable prices by using a set list of prices depending on the item, brand and material.

“Every shirt in this size, this brand, this design will always be $4, for example,” Machenaud said. And on top of having really set prices that don’t change, we always have a section in the store with items on sale, no matter the time of year.”

As thrifting has gained popularity over the years and the number of second-hand stores increases, Machenaud notes the shifting attitude towards second-hand shopping. 

“I feel like a couple years ago, second-hand shopping definitely had some bad stereotypes around it,” she said, “but now working in the store, I notice the demographic of people we have, it’s pretty much everyone. Yesterday while I was working, there was this lady decked up in Gucci that was buying a $5 T-shirt for her child.”

A 2024 Value Village survey revealed that 90 per cent of Canadians have engaged with thrift stores through shopping, buying or both, with nearly one in three people having thrifted in the past year. 

Whatever the reason for thrifting may be, MacDonald believes it’s important to remember that for some, browsing through rows of clothing racks is not about style but about survival. 

“Action needs to be taken by the thrift stores to get consumers to think about their impacts,” MacDonald said. “Everyone can buy clothes, they’re not going to be declined, but stores should encourage mindful shopping.”