Secondhand market ‘here to stay’ amid cost-of-living crisis, Vinted head says

The cost-of-living crisis has ensured the future of the secondhand market, Vinted chief executive officer, Adam Jay, told Sky News. This was mirrored in Vinted’s report of shopping behaviour shifts this year, showing that two billion pounds was forecast to be spent on pre-loved Christmas gifts.

Speaking to the media outlet, Jay, said the “trend” of buying pre-loved was “happening anyway” but noted that rising costs had been a possible "accelerator", with the cost of living crisis in the UK said to have supported the “secondhand industry”.

Jay continued: “I do think this trend was happening anyway because of people’s consciousness around overconsumption, around sustainable buying and sustainable consumption. I think all of these have I think these are deep trends and I think they're trends that are here to stay. I really think secondhand can become the first choice ultimately.”

Jay further addressed the “confusion” around new tax rules set to debut in the new year. It will require sellers who have sold more than 30 items or over 1,700 pounds worth of products in the past 12 months to provide their national insurance number via the app, and share it with HM Revenue Customs (HMRC).

Jay noted that this does not mean there will be any obligation to actually pay tax as, currently, there is no tax to pay on the private sale of secondhand goods. While supporting the regulatory changes, Jay said he still hoped the HMRC would rethink the thresholds, both to ensure the right people were paying tax and to align with other OECD countries.

He added: "I would hope even across all of Vinted markets in which we operate, that the tax authorities will consider changing those thresholds or making them more appropriate for business models like Vinted."