Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/1518432
NOBLEBIOMATERIALS.COM sales@noblebiomaterials.com + State-Of-The-Art Citric Technology + Commercially Proven and Tested + 50x Wash Durability Rating + EPA Registered with Pending Certifications + Permanent Silver Yarn Technology + Professional Athlete Grade Performance + Industrial Wash Rating. Does Not Wash Out + EPA Registered, OEKO-TEX, Bluesign TOPICAL BOTANICAL ANTIMICROBIAL + ODOR CONTROL PERMANENT MINER AL ANTIMICROBIAL + ODOR CONTROL OVERUSED. UNDER-RESOURCED. OUR PORTFOLIO OF ODOR CONTROL TECHNOLOGY REMOVES ODOROUS BACTERIA FROM THE FABRIC. THIS MEANS YOU CAN USE IT OVER AND OVER WITHOUT NEEDING TO WASH IT AS MUCH. THE RESULT IS LESS DEMAND ON OUR PLANE T'S RESOURCES LIKE WATER + ENERGY. WE CALL THIS BEING PLANE T POSITIVE. textileinsight.com Spring 2024 ~ Textile Insight • 33 F or brands, one important path to circularity in the supply chain is the secondhand market. According to thredUP's 2023 Resale Report, the global secondhand market is set to nearly double by 2027, reaching $350 billion. This market is expected to grow three times faster on average than global apparel overall. Smartwool recently teamed up with thredUP for their Second Cut resale program because "con- sumers, especially younger ones, are changing the way they shop," said Alicia Chin, director of sustainability and social impact at Smartwool. Growth of the secondhand market is primarily fueled by online platforms. "When we launched on thredUP in September 2023, we saw a 99 percent sell-through rate over 90 days on the site," she commented. Smartwool chose thredUP, a managed resale model, to pilot resale and gain insight on consumer demand, while also attracting new customers with Smartwool Second Cut Resale. At smartwool.thredup.com, consumers can both purchase secondhand women and kids' Smartwool apparel and acces- sories, and donate gently used women's and kids' items from any brand through a takeback program to obtain a Smartwool shopping credit. Last April, Smartwool released its first circular hike sock, the Second Cut Hike Sock, made with repurposed yarn from consumers' old socks via the brand's Second Cut sock takeback program. Since the launch of the takeback program in 2021, Smartwool has collected 1.07 million consumer socks. General Manager of thredUP's Resale-as-a- Service, Ann Starodaj, explained how the firm works with brands. For many, "all you do is give us the creative assets. We have the technology to do the landing page. We build the website." Participating brands include Madewell, Frame, Athleta and Fabletics. Consumers trade in cloth- ing from their closets via a Clean Out Kit that thredUP sends from one of their dis- tribution centers. thredUP gets the package that is sent in; does the quality inspection, itemization, price analysis, listing, storage, fulfillment and customer care. Anything that comes back through takeback that is your brand, gets listed on your shop site. While some brands have the infrastructure to perform reverse logistics and take on resale and takebacks independently, most do not. "We understand the customer engagement," said Starodaj, adding, "and we make it as easy as possible so brands don't have an excuse." ROUTING THROUGH RESALE