The trade of used items is as old as commerce itself, with some Neanderthals no doubt doing a brisk business in pre-loved spears, but when it comes to major brands selling their own used items online, chances are you have T-shirts older than the custom.

ThredUp tracks the brands with the most active resale programs on its The Recommerce 100 list, which is updated monthly, and as of November, the furthest back any on the list go is 2009, when Eileen Fisher (No. 13) launched its resale program; the next oldest brands on the list date back to 2017, when both Patagonia (No. 12) and REI (No. 29) launched their resale programs.

Brands that hopped on the resale bandwagon (brandwagon?) in 2024 account for 18 of the list’s top 100, including Modcloth (No. 7), Zara (No. 8), and New Balance (No. 27).

Befitting an emerging industry, there is not a consensus yet on what to call secondhand items, as Retail Brew highlighted this year. “Resale” now seems to have the most currency, beating other descriptive (“used,” “pre-owned,”) and fanciful (“pre-loved”) monikers.

This year, the industry challenged something no less daunting than the tax code, with retail leaders in both the US and Canada arguing that secondhand items should not be taxed. The argument: The products were taxed when first sold; doing so again is double taxation.

Here, according to three resale CEOs, are some other takeaways from 2024.

Keep reading here.—AAN

It’s no secret that consumers are not exactly enthralled by the locked display shelves they’re increasingly encountering in stores. A Consumer World reader poll found 2 out of 3 shoppers did not bother to summon an associate when an item they were shopping for was locked up; a Retail Brew reader poll found even more, 4 out of 5, decide not to have a product they’re shopping for unlocked.

What’s been a mystery, however, is how long shoppers typically wait for products to be unlocked, or how common the practice of locking up products has become.

Keep reading here.—AAN

DoorDash delivery workers who participated in the company’s Portable Benefits Pilot Program in Pennsylvania earned an average of nearly $200 from the company which can be used for expenses such as buying health insurance. Under the program, which was originally slated for six months, workers are now estimated to earn about $400 when the 12-month trial ends in March 2025, according to a recent report about the program issued by DoorDash and prepared by NDP Analytics.

As part of the program, announced in April, DoorDash contributed 4% of monthly pre-tip earnings to a benefit savings account set up by a “Dasher”—the moniker bestowed on those who pick up and deliver food. However, it only applied to Dashers who earned at least $1,000 and made 100 deliveries in the second quarter.

Keep reading here on HR Brew.—TA