ThredUp is exploring the vintage market.
The Oakland, Calif.-based consignment e-tailer is partnering with Beyond Retro, the London-based vintage retailer known for its eclectic style, for a first-of-its-kind Vintage Popup.
Beginning May 8, ThredUp will offer a curated collection of 17,000 vintage and vintage-inspired pieces that span decades and styles from Beyond Retro’s archives. The partnership is ThredUp’s first, truly curated vintage and vintage inspired assortment. The popup aims to be an accessible online destination for one-of-a-kind pieces.
Related Stories
“This collaboration showcases ThredUp’s innovative approach to shopping by uniquely curating vintage items that can be loved by multigenerational customers. We recognized an opportunity to offer customers one-of-a-kind items with inherent history and quality craftsmanship,” said Cynthia Lee, ThredUp’s head of merchandising.
Items include naturally-faded and broken-in denim, aged leather, vintage dresses and vintage patterns—many with hand-finished details such as beading, embroidery, and specialty trims. Pieces retail for $10-$200. The average price point is $30. The popup will be live until ThredUp has sold most of the inventory. The e-tailer anticipates it sell through within a couple of weeks.
Partnering with the world’s largest online resale platform is an opportunity for Beyond Retro to draw attention to its unique sourcing methods. The retailer relies on a sophisticated information management system that gives constant internal trend updates to help inform what they pick from raghouses. Only one in 1,000 items make the cut.
Beyond Retro has stores in the U.K, Sweden and Finland. The company has offered their quality vintage product to the U.S. market for years through their e-commerce platform. The U.S. make up its biggest demographic behind U.K. and Nordic online shoppers.
“We’re excited for this opportunity to connect even more with the North American consumer, offering them our timeless looks,” said Steven Bethell, co-founder of Beyond Retro.
If the Vintage Popup is a success, ThredUp users may see more vintage gems on the platform. Lee said the company is testing this popup to see how customers respond to the vintage offering. She added that it will determine what the future of vintage looks like for ThredUp.
The popup will also put ThredUp’s user-friendly interface to the test. A new suite of new AI-powered search tools aims to streamline the discovery process and help overcome the traditional difficulty of generally shopping secondhand online. Lee said features like descriptive search, image search—which is driving two-times higher conversion and making users four-times more likely to purchase—and style chat empower customers to effortlessly find styles by describing them, uploading inspirational images, or even creating full outfits.
“Vintage is often thought of being pricier and harder to find. Partnering with Beyond Retro allows us to offer a meticulously curated collection at an approachable price point, while directly addressing rising consumer costs. The popup celebrates enduring style, sustainable fashion, and individual expression, enabling customers to discover truly unique treasures,” she said.
