The cost of living is driving a boom in the use-clothing industry, which results in a revenue boost for Go Thrift

FASHION

Go Thrift is a used-clothing retailer that announced an increase of 90% in its revenue in the past quarter.

The record sales for January were 38% more than expected revenue, and the 180% increase year-over-year is a result of these records.

New figures show that 57% of consumers want the fashion industry to become more sustainable but 61% of shoppers say they’re more concerned about the price of clothing as the current UK cost-of-living crisis continues.

These numbers, along with the fact that 62% Gen Z/Millennials now shop for second-hand clothes before buying new clothing, are no surprise. The second-hand apparel industry will be larger than fast fashion in 2030.

Go Thrift is focused on circular fashion and has revolutionized the fashion industry through changing consumer buying habits and purchasing quality, used clothing for men and women.

Since its launch in 2019, Go Thrift has re-circulated 200,000 items of quality, used, high-street clothes, with big brands listed on the retailer’s website including Levi’s, Adidas and Ralph Lauren.

CEO and Co-Founder Carl Walker said: “Go Thrift is going from strength to strength. We started as a completely bootstrapped company to turning over £1.2 million in the second year of trading.

“It’s a very exciting time for us. The investment we received in the beginning of this year has resulted in sales boomerang and 2022’s fourth quarter revenue increased by 90% over last year. Black Friday was the best week for us, with 160% increase over last year.

“The global second-hand fashion market is growing three times faster than the global fashion market overall. By 2030 the market is expected to be bigger than fast fashion, making this investment round an attractive opportunity for investors who want to be ahead of the game in this sector.”

Walker and his Co-Founders Sam Hunter, Sarah Dean & Katie Walker have set an ambitious yet achievable fundraising target of £1 million in this second round to rapidly scale-up in response to demand and to increase the amount of inventory listed online. The funding will also lay the foundations for expansion throughout Europe.”

Carl and his Co Founders will also grow Go Thrift’s team, employing 15 additional warehouse employees over the course of two years. Paul Stevens was the CMO of several billion-pound companies, including Apple and Coca Cola.

Walker continues: “We offer a more sustainable and affordable way of shopping for clothing online. Levi jeans, a prominent listing on our site, is an ongoing best-seller. We’ve sold over 60,000 pairs of Levi’s since launch, saving an estimated 456 million litres of water as each new pair of jeans bought requires 7,600 litres of water to make.

“We are turning the tide on fast-fashion, driving category awareness and creating a genuine impact on the planet and consumer pockets throughout the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.”