Don't throw out your low-rise jeans and animal print, Y2K is here to stay

What was once old, outdated and uncool is new again as Australians embrace vintage fashion.

A 2024 report, commissioned by eBay, found that 70 per cent of Australians surveyed owned at least one pre-loved fashion item and 31 per cent aimed to avoid contributing to fast fashion.

Large-scale fashion markets like the Fashion Thrift Society have toured across the country, averaging 7000 to 10,000 attendees.

Aldrin (Dre) Clores has loved op-shopping since he was 16 years old and was thrilled to see more people coming around.

"An op-shop is a place where everyone goes to find these one-off pieces of clothing that you don't see anymore and that really fascinated me," Mr Clores said.

"Just the thrill of finding something that you had no idea you were looking for in the first place."

Now 29, Mr Clores runs his own pre-seller store via eBay and has amassed more than 24,000 followers on TikTok and more than 44,000 on Instagram.

He started reselling vintage T-shirts during the Covid-19 pandemic to make some extra money while work was unstable.

Once lockdown lifted, he started to expand his selection to women's clothes and other fashion accessories.

He has seen his store and social media grow as more people became interested in how to find pre-loved picks.

"I think people are becoming more sustainably aware. These fast fashion brands pump through clothing every month and the stuff that doesn't sell goes to the wastelands," Mr Clores said.

"We like a good vintage piece in our wardrobe, and the longevity that the clothes have."

Australians were increasingly visiting past trends like animal prints, low-rise jeans, long denim skirts, bucket hats, double-breasted jackets, tweed garments and kitten heels, the 2024 study found.

According to the survey, more than half of the participants cited the superiority of quality of pre-loved over same-priced new items.

The research found that 21 per cent of people surveyed had reduced their fast fashion purchases over the past three years.

"It seems to us that pre-loved fashion is not just a trend, it's the new way that people are shopping," eBay Australia fashion lead Anne-Marie Cheney said

"If people are shopping preloved, they can purchase something that's individual for them," Ms Cheney said.