Resale and reuse programs are having a moment in retail, and increasingly, ThredUp has been at the center of them.
In 2019, the resale platform partnered with both J.C. Penney and Macy’s to sell its secondhand clothing in stores. The following year, ThredUp made deals with Walmart and Gap. This year has been even more momentous for the resale platform, with the company filing for an IPO in March and acquiring European resale company Remix in July. Its resale-as-a-service program has also brought in a plethora of retail clients in 2021, from Farfetch and Fabletics to Madewell and now Adidas. The company is also testing a secondhand store with Madewell in Brooklyn, New York.
For Adidas, the partnership is just one point in a string of sustainability efforts that include creating shoes from a mushroom-based material called Mylo, making products out of recycled plastic from oceans and a partnership with Allbirds to create low-carbon shoes. By 2025, Adidas is planning to be a carbon neutral brand across all of its North American facilities, including stores, distribution centers and offices.
Source: Retail Dive