The RealReal Raises Awareness For National Consignment Day With New Programs

The RealReal REAL has a spate of initiatives planned for National Consignment Day, the commercial holiday it founded five years ago to raise awareness of resale and help create a more sustainable future for fashion. Among its endeavors, The Real Real is partnering with Mytheresa, launching a Circular ReSource Lab, expanding consignment categories, and taking its instant payment program national.

The RealReal, an online marketplace for resale luxury goods, is joining forces with global luxury fashion e-commerce platform Mytheresa to drive resale engagement across its fast-growing U.S. customer base.

Mytheresa will reward both its customers and The RealReal’s consumers for recirculating their handbags and supporting the circular economy. Consignors of handbags with a resale value of $750-plus on The RealReal will receive a $200 voucher for Mytheresa.

“We’re excited about the opportunity to be part of The RealReal’s consignment community,” said Heather Kaminetsky, Mytheresa president, North America. “We strongly believe that it’s important for us to strengthen circularity as part of the fashion ecosystem and to offer something special to our customer base in the U.S.”

The RealReal is launching a Circular ReSource Lab in a major step to expand its circular economy efforts beyond resale. The Lab is a hub to test, learn and share impactful solutions to the fashion waste crisis. The Lab is upcycling by taking on the scrap heap of luxe fibers and fabrics and turning them into high-end one-off creations. ReCollection 02, coming this holiday season, will be the first release from Circular ReSource Lab.

“Fashion is a waste crisis,” said James Rogers, director of sustainability at The RealReal. “Resale is a big part of the solution, and we’ve extended our work in recent years to repairs and upcycling to address the high volume of pieces that can’t live on in their current state.

“Our Circular ReSource Lab is a hub for innovation, which will include initiatives such as our ReCollection upcycling program, collaborations and education as we share findings with the industry to help make fashion more circular,” Rogers added.

“It’s time to get real about the future of fashion,” said Julie Wainwright, founder and CEO of The RealReal. “If the industry continues on its current trajectory, the world’s carbon footprint could jump to 26 percent by 2050 and will miss the 1.5-degree pathway laid out by the Paris Climate Accord by more than 50%.

“Recirculating just one in five items would put the industry on track to achieve that goal,” Wainwright added. “Consigning is something everyone can do to make a difference.”

The RealReal is expanding consignment to new categories such as sports and outdoor gear, collectibles and electronics, beyond its initial focus on luxury handbags, designer apparel, fine jewelry, watches and men’s wear. One of the last major categories the platform launched was home, which includes fine art and furniture as well as $28 pillows and $2,895 Hermes throw blankets.

The RealReal is offering up to 85% of the sale of consigned sports and outdoor gear, collectibles and electronics, but the category could span a range of more ordinary to special and rare products as the platform achieves critical mass.

Rati Sahi Levesque, president of The RealReal said introducing the new category was driven by demand from consignors and the strength of the business opportunity.

“A quarter of our site traffic comes from male shoppers and we believe expanding our assortment across these additional categories will both appeal to that base and attract new members,” Sahi Levesque said. “It’s still very early days, but what we’re seeing is encouraging.

“It’s not a stretch for a consignor who’s selling their Moncler puffer on The RealReal to sell their Salomon skis, or for a shopper buying vintage Michael Jordan sneakers to be excited to see that we also have vintage Jordan trading cards,” Sahi Levesque added. “We’re optimistic about the opportunities these categories create for us to continue to grow the business while meeting the demand of our members.”

The RealReal is making consignment easier and more flexible. The platform gives consignors more choices to consign, trade or get paid instantly for items they recirculate. Get Paid Now offers on-the-spot payments across a broad range of brands and items, and the program is now expanding nationally. Flexible selling options include in-person or virtual appointments to drop-offs at 18 locations nationwide, as well as at-home pickups to complimentary direct shipping.

“We’re making it easier than ever to join the circular fashion movement and it couldn’t come at a more critical time for the health of the planet,” Wainwright said.