Welcome to Second Take: 🎤 what dealers and collectors are really talking about in this multi-billion dollar secondhand fashion industry.
PS: If you work in resale, your $5 paid subscription to Pre-Loved is likely a business expense.
In this letter: New resale data shows this season’s fifteen creative director shake-ups are fueling major spikes in secondhand demand—but not every debut triggers a frenzy. What separates a “moment” from a move that barely registers?
Plus: Why Beni took its digital thrift tool offline with IRL pop-ups, fashion remembers Diane Keaton’s legendary personal style, and the Gap x Sandy Liang collab proves that maybe you should just shop on Japanese eBay instead.
And finally: Steal my saves! [Ralph Lauren staples, Scottish cashmere, fawn print fur, sterling silver, and monogrammed shirts. Pieces range S-XL, all under $150]
Creative Director Shake-Ups Fuel Resale Frenzies, New Report Shows:
The fashion industry was counting on the SS26 season to shake itself out of a rut — to change everything.
With fifteen creative director debuts at the most powerful houses—Gucci, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Givenchy, Dior, Chanel (to name a few!) —this season marked one of the biggest leadership shake-ups we’d ever seen. And the stakes for a turnaround were high — as Business of Fashion called it “The Great Fashion Reset,” the industry is “betting big on creative reboots to reignite consumer demand amid the biggest luxury slump since 2008.”
And, yes, the debuts were splashy, and they were hotly discussed. But when things change so dramatically, the culture naturally become nostalgic for what’s gone and passed. Debuts send designers to the archives — where they parse through what’s been done, looking to reimagine “house codes” in their own creative vision. Here’s where it gets juicy: all that reminiscence? It shows up in resale data.
According to Fashionphile’s 2025 Ultra-Luxury Resale Report: when Demna left Balenciaga for Gucci (later succeeded by Pierpaolo Piccioli), sales for the Balenciaga Le City rose 525% year-over-year. Jonathan Anderson’s move from Loewe to Dior sparked a 13.3% increase in Loewe Puzzle Bag searches. At Celine, Michael Rider’s debut show ignited a frenzy around the Luggage and the Phantom bags, with searches for “Celine Phantom” spiking 576.4% after his appointment.
But not every creative director shift creates the same impact. What separates a “moment” from a move that barely registers on the secondhand market?
I spoke with Lauren Leger, Senior Director of Brand Marketing at FASHIONPHILE, about what their report reveals:
What’s the resale X-factor here—is it the designer’s cult status, the strength of the archive, or how drastically the aesthetic is shifting?
Over a decade of data shows that the resale market reacts most strongly when nostalgia and novelty collide. When a creative director taps into an archival piece with emotional equity, something collectors already hunt for on the resale market, it signals both reverence and reinvention.
We saw this with the Dior Saddle Bag, the Prada Re-Edition, the Fendi Baguette, Louis Vuitton Epi Speedy and so many more. These weren’t new designs; they were icons reimagined through a current lens. That tension between what’s being rediscovered in resale and what’s being reissued in retail is what creates a true fashion “moment.”
Fashionphile launched a YouTube series with the CFDA on designing for “resale desirability.” How can resale enhance a brand’s value? Are we seeing evidence of ‘resale-aware’ creative directors?
We’re seeing more designers recognize that resale can enhance, not compete with, a brand’s image. Pieces that hold or increase in value on the secondary market validate a house’s craftsmanship and cultural relevance in a way that traditional marketing can’t. It’s an added layer of storytelling and relevance. A strong resale presence suggests longevity and desirability, which feeds back into how consumers view the brand.
What luxury bag might trend next? Do you anticipate a Lady Dior boom after Jonathan Anderson’s debut at Dior? Where’s the next 500+% surge?
The Lady Dior is already one of the strongest performers in luxury resale, so it’s more about how high it can climb from here. Jonathan Anderson’s debut could definitely amplify that momentum.
Our data continues to show that heritage-led reinvention drives the biggest spikes when a house builds on what’s already culturally iconic. Think of Gucci’s Horsebit, Louis Vuitton’s Speedy, or Bottega Veneta’s intrecciato evolving into fresh variations.
The next surge could be hiding in the Dior Book Tote, a newer classic that seems to have the right mix of strong brand storytelling, cultural relevance, and everyday functionality that translates across both retail and resale audiences.
