Second-hand selling apps and the notion of luxury: trend networking and circular economy

ABSTRACT The link between social networks and consumption is changing. In the beginning, social networks used to encourage fast fashion; now, social networks promote the concept of slow fashion. This situation has led to the appearance of reselling apps that use the same tools as social networks. This paper aimed at analysing the role of status within fashion. To this end, a sample of second-hand clothes apps, selected since their similarity to social networks, was subjected to a descriptive technique based on a bibliographic review of the current trends in the fashion industry. The results demonstrated that two new approaches to luxury were considered in the sale of second-hand clothes. A thoughtful luxury, called deliberate luxury, that involves reflection and looks for creativity, exclusivity and reuse; and an automated luxury, called iconic luxury, that involves post-commercial pieces, authenticity and resale.