Zara is launching a new service for pre-owned clothing (2024)

Zara is set to launch a pre-owned service that will let UK customers resell, repair or donate clothing from the brand.

The Spanish fashion giant, owned by Inditex, will launch Zara Pre-Owned on 3 November as part of its environmental sustainability commitments.

Shoppers can post second-hand Zara items for sale through the service, as well as book repairs and donate unwanted items online or through a store.

The platform will be hosted on Zara’s website and app, with transactions going through the Stripe system.

Similar to existing resale apps like Vinted, shopper can upload pictures of their items with detailed product information. The buyers’ details will be passed on to the seller once a sale is made so the goods can be posted.

If customers are seeking to repair their Zara clothes, they can book a wide range of options from replacing buttons and zippers to fixing seams.

Customers can also request for unwanted clothing to be collected from their home for donation.

Paula Ampuero, head of sustainability at Zara, said that Zara Pre-Owned is not expected to be profitable in its early stages.

“At this stage, this platform is exclusively conceived as a tool to help customers extend the lifetime of their clothing and take a more circular approach.”

Fast fashion brands have come under mounting pressure to tackle the industry’s high carbon footprint and introduce more sustainable practices instead of encouraging “throwaway” culture.

Several retailers, including Zara and H&M, currently run recycling schemes that allows shoppers to give them unwanted textiles that can be sorted and recycled to make into new clothes and fabrics.

Earlier this year, Marks & Spencer said it became the first major high street brand to enter the resale market when it announced a trial partnership with the Dotte Resale Collective.

Dotte is a fully circular childrenswear resale marketplace that lets parents with young children buy, sell, donate, and recycle clothes they have outgrown.

John Lewis also launched a rewards scheme for members who bring in five items of clothing to be resold or recycled. The retailer said it launched the scheme because more than 300,000 tonnes of textiles end up in landfill each year.