Image credit: (left) depop.com, (right) vinted.com
As the seasons begin to slowly change, I yearn for something new, whether that be a gym membership, a new hairstyle, or a personality change. Above all this, however, a new wardrobe is something that I desire (even as I stray into my overdraft). As someone living on a dwindling student loan, I have found that second hand shopping has become my absolute best friend. Retailers such as Urban Outfitters and Zara have swiftly taken a step back in my life, and the need for a bargain has become my number one priority when it comes to finding what styles work for me. As Winter begins to leave us, I have been focusing on the use of accessories to enhance the clothes I already own. Online second-hand shopping is great to find what you are looking for, but if in-person high street shopping is more your thing, many charity shops house a great selection of style-enhancing pieces such as jewellery, bags, and (if you’re lucky) gorgeous coats, jackets and shoes. It is easy to turn away from second hand shopping and head straight for the likes of ASOS and PrettyLittleThing; trawling through pages of half-baked attempts to sell 10-year-old clothing can send even the most determined person spiralling. Personally, I find the challenge of sifting through dusty rails or swiping through (often) overpriced pieces on Depop and Vinted sold under the guise of ‘vintage’ or ‘y2k’ to be a fun activity, particularly when I need to procrastinate from any kind of productivity. As someone who spends dedicated hours on such apps, I feel I have garnered enough experience to speak on whether Vinted or Depop is better for your thrifting needs. To get straight to the point, I prefer Vinted overall, however, both have their fair share of advantages.
Price:
In terms of pricing and the likelihood of finding a bargain, Vinted wins hands down. As somewhere that ran under the same guise as Ebay in terms of its type of user (more middle-aged I feel) for a short while, it is yet to fall fully into the hands of the y2k trend, selling cheap items as overpriced ‘one-of-a-kind’ pieces. I must admit I have fallen for this once or twice, and have found my ‘vintage, never-before-seen’ items to be slightly busted pieces from Shein. Despite this, however, it is possible to find genuine pieces for a very low price on Vinted, lending it the top spot over Depop in terms of value for money.
Quality:
As someone who spends countless hours on Vinted, I have found myself many items of great quality for a lower price. But if, unlike me, you aren’t obsessed with a bargain and actually have a life to attend to, Depop may be a better option when looking for better quality items. Although the prices are all round slightly higher for similar items, it is clear that Depop houses more business sellers, and so the quality of items can often be better. On Vinted it is part of the policy that you describe any damage to an item that you are selling, but this can often lead to sellers playing down such damages. Therefore, I would say that Depop takes the biscuit when it comes to quality control.
Ability to Buy:
Vinted offers a more transactional experience to its users than Depop by incorporating fewer categories for both sellers and buyers to attend to, and allowing for a more buyer-focused experience compared to Depop. It is much easier to make an offer to sellers and often they will more likely offer it on Vinted than anywhere else, as the largest profit isn’t the driving factor for many regular sellers. Because of this, the experience is made so much more simple than Depop and becomes less intimidating as a result.
My advice for thrifting this new season would be to find which app works better for you, and just have fun with it. When it comes to second-hand shopping, it is important to not think about it too much as nothing is ever guaranteed when it comes to such sites.
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AUTHOR: Olivia Carter
