Pinoys biggest shoppers of 2nd-hand fashion – study

MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos are the biggest shoppers of second-hand fashion in Southeast Asia, but the environmental impact of such action is not the main reason they do so, according to a study of Milieu Insight.

The results of the study conducted by the consumer research and analytics firm last May showed that 62 percent of consumers in the region shopped for hand fashion, with the activity being especially common in the Philippines.

In particular, more than eight in 10 or 83 percent of Filipino consumers said they have purchased second-hand fashion items.

The study was conducted to understand how people in Southeast Asia see second- hand fashion.

When asked about their opinion on second-hand fashion, 56 percent of consumers in the Philippines said they like it a lot or a little, the highest among all Southeast Asian countries covered by the study.

In other Southeast Asian nations, less than half of the consumer respondents said they like second-hand fashion such as Thailand with 48 percent, Indonesia and Malaysia with 31 percent each, and Singapore with 21 percent.

Overall, 37 percent of consumers in the region said they like second-hand fashion.

When it comes to why they shop for second-hand fashion, 75 percent of those in the Philippines cited the price being cheaper than brand new ones as the top reason, followed by the desire to find branded goods at lower prices at 60 percent, and the style of second-hand fashion at 47 percent.

Other reasons for thrifting by Filipino consumers are the wide variety offered by second-hand shops at 46 percent, joining family and friends when they shop at 37 percent, and having an element of surprise at 35 percent.

Those who said they buy second-hand fashion because it is environmentally friendly are only at 34 percent.

In terms of the overall result in Southeast Asia, 69 percent of consumers have cited the affordability of second-hand fashion compared to brand new items as their main motivation for thrifting.

Finding branded items at a lower price came in second at 47 percent, followed by a variety of offerings in second-hand fashion shops at 38 percent, style at 34 percent, environment impact at 33 percent, element of surprise at 30 percent, and joining family and friends at 24 percent.

When second-hand fashion shoppers were asked if they have reduced their purchases of brand new fashion, the study found that only 28 percent have done so.

At the same time, 48 percent said the overall number of fashion products they bought had increased.

To tackle overconsumption, Milieu Insight believes thrift shopping would not be enough.

While it may slow down consumption of brand new fashion, it said “it is only a band aid solution if it can’t get consumers to shake off the habit of chasing trends, lusting over shopping hauls on social media and feeling all too often that a wardrobe refresh is needed.”

“At the same time, consumers need to be careful about blindly accepting green marketing of thrift shops – or any second-hand marketplace platforms – that encourage blind consumerism and attempt to lift consumer’s guilt by labeling all of it as sustainable,” Milieu said.