Vestiaire Collective challenges fast fashion via “price per use” calculation

Relative to the number of uses, a fast-fashion item is said to cost more than the corresponding item bought on French high-end resale specialist Vestiaire Collective. The estimate is based on the ratio between purchasing price and number of uses, calculated by Vestiaire Collective following a survey carried out in France, Germany, Italy, the UK and the USA.

Environmental impact analysis firm Vaayu has studied some 250,000 retail transactions and interviewed 13,400 consumers, cross-referencing the data with existing scientific literature. Vestiaire Collective, which at the end of 2023 decided to exclude fast fashion from its site and is basing its message on fighting textile waste, has tapped the data to develop a rational rather than emotional argument to promote its high-end and luxury fashion range.

According to Vestiaire Collective, it is three times cheaper to buy one of its coats than to buy a corresponding fast-fashion item. While the former’s purchasing price is higher, its number of uses is four times higher than the latter. A coat bought on Vestiaire Collective is shown to have a price per use of €1.62, compared to €4.83 for a fast-fashion coat.

By the same token, a dress bought on Vestiaire Collective will cost €1.47 per use, compared to €5.60 for a fast-fashion dress. And the price per use of a handbag bought on Vestiaire Collective is €1.88, compared to €8.51 for a corresponding item by a fast-fashion brand.

“People are wrong in thinking that fast fashion is affordable,” said Dounia Wone, Vestiaire Collective’s impact director. “Buying a cheap fast-fashion item is a false economy. In the end, you will be constantly buying replacements for it. We are promoting circularity because it isn’t just good for consumers’ wallets, it is also a way of protecting our planet. Pre-owned luxury items are better value in the long run, and they last longer,” she added.

However, the study found there are limits to this argument. On average, a pair of shoes bought on Vestiaire Collective is reportedly worn 86 times, compared to 66 for a fast-fashion pair. The gap is even narrower when it comes to t-shirts: one bought on Vestiaire Collective is on average worn 69 times, compared to 52 for a fast-fashion t-shirt.

Vestiaire Collective has also drawn on the concept of “price per use” for its new ad campaign, entitled ‘Swap This for That’, featuring visuals comparing various pre-owned items by major labels with their fast-fashion counterparts. The latter are clearly of inferior quality, and have a higher price per use.

In France, the campaign is extremely timely, as a consultation is under way on the introduction of climate-impact labels, which will soon become mandatory for clothes. The labels will feature an ‘eco-score’, and the industry is currently questioning the French government diminished focus on the physical durability parameter, in other words resistance to wear and tear, to calculate the eco-score, in favour of non-physical durability, which is based on other criteria, including the type of fabrics used.