Goodwill Hunting #22: everyday luxury

Gen Z, accessible luxury, and well-worn designer bags

Jan 20, 2023

Welcome to Goodwill Hunting, a newsletter curated by Danielle L. Vermeer, a fashion tech leader and avid thrifter obsessed with making fashion more social, circular, and fun. This weekly edition includes 6 hand-picked thrift finds, 5 consumer insights and articles, and 7 jobs in resale fashion. In case you missed it, last week’s edition covered my new role at Teleport, a social app to share and shop outfits in an positive, Gen Z-driven community. You can download the Teleport app here.

♻️ Thrift Finds of the Week

If you’re looking to refresh your wardrobe this year but want to do so more sustainably (and affordably!), then enter the Teleport giveaway! You can win $200 to thrift online, plus a styling session with me! Giveaway ends today, January 20 11:59PM ET.

Enter Giveaway

Sourced from GoodwillFinds and ShopGoodwill. Made with <3 with Landing.

📕 Weekend Reading

“That's So Raven” Costume Designer on the Show's Sartorial Significance 20 Years Later (Teen Vogue)

It’s been 20 years and we’re still talking about the clothes from Disney’s That’s So Raven. Starring Raven Symone, the show “created a space for fashion lovers everywhere to rejoice in colorful, explorative fashion that wasn’t solely on a size zero body.” This was a near radical act compared to stick-thin beauty standards of the early 2000s.

As Pinterest expands commerce features, chief shopping officer Julie Bornstein moves to advisory role (Glossy)

Pinterest‘s chief shopping officer Julie Bornstein has moved to an advisory role after last year’s acquisition of her fashion tech startup, THE YES. Pinterest has been investing in its commerce capabilities, with plans to make “everything” on the platform shoppable by the end of 2023.

It’s All So…Premiocre (The Atlantic)

From the portmanteau of “premium” and “medicore” comes “premicore,” a new crop of lifestyle products that cater to the almost-haves.

The presence of many nice-enough choices without any meaningful way to distinguish among them is a fundamental dysphoria of modern consumerism. Anybody can track in intimate detail how the wealthy and stylish spend their money via social media, and just when you’ve learned exactly what you can’t have, the internet swoops in to offer a look-for-less utopia of counterfeits, rip-offs, and discount cashmere sweaters, perfectly keyed to the performance of a lifestyle that young Americans desperately want but can’t afford.

Not just “like new”: Visibly used bags rise in resale’s ranks (Vogue Business)

Millennials and Gen Z are driving the demand for resale fashion. Younger consumers don’t think there’s stigma in buying secondhand, and want to access their favorite (and luxury) brands at more affordable price points. While sustainability is a factor in buying secondhand, consumers are ultimately motivated by lower prices and finding unique items—even those with minor wear and tear.

How Aritzia is winning over Gen Z (Business of Fashion)

Aritzia is an everyday luxury brand for Gen Z women who have disposable income but don’t want disposable clothes. The fashion retailer, which was founded in the 1980s in Canada, had their US revenue grow 78% in the past 12 months—to $745 million.