Dive Brief:
- With the resale industry predicted to grow, activewear brand On has added men’s and women’s apparel to its resale program, the company announced on Friday.
- After launching Onward in September for footwear only, the brand decided to extend the resale program to include tops, pants, running tights, jackets and other apparel items following the success of the footwear recommerce business.
- The brand is working with Trove’s Recommerce Operating System to facilitate its resale business, per the press release.
Dive Insight:
It’s been a year of expansion for On.
The company, which attracted tennis player Roger Federer as an investor, filed to go public last year under the ticker symbol “ONON,” pricing its shares between $18 and $20. Since then, the brand has been expanding its product assortment and distribution channels.
The brand entered into a wholesale partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods and its outdoor banner Public Lands earlier this year. On also announced plans to expand its product assortment of shoes, clothing and accessories. In September, the company unveiled the Cloudprime shoe, which uses CleanCloud EVA foam in its midsole and is 70% based on CO2.
“At On, we’re committed to improving our environmental and social impact,” On’s co-founder Caspar Coppetti said in a statement. “Our goal is to inspire people to move in high-performance gear with the lowest possible footprint. Bringing Onward to our U.S. community was a major milestone, but as a sportswear brand, we wanted to go further. We’ve seen great interest for shopping and trading-in gently used gear and are delighted to reach more people’s needs with this expansion.”
Other activewear brands have launched and grown their own recommerce programs as the concept catches on. Following a pilot in Texas and California, Lululemon expanded its resale program across the country on Earth Day this year. Athleta in September tapped ThredUp’s resale-as-a-service program to launch its own resale pilot.
The interest comes as the recommerce industry is expected to grow in the coming years. A report from ThredUp predicted that the U.S. secondhand market will reach $82 billion by 2026. The report also found that nearly two-thirds (62%) of Gen Z and millennial consumers search for secondhand goods before buying new items.
