Like so many other brands in recent months, Infantium Victoria is getting into resale.
The high-end children’s wear brand is known for a few things, from its commitment to slow, sustainable fashion to a fully vegan supply chain. But as the benefits of resale become more apparent—especially for luxury retailers—Infantium Victoria is looking to double down on the trend with a new secondhand platform: IV_Preloved.
The brand’s logic is simple: it just makes sense for high-end children’s wear, which can only be worn for the short time the child fits into it, to become a fixture in the resale scene.
“Donating a garment seems to be a very common practice for kids wear, however those goods can easily end up in landfill,” Dinie van den Heuvel, the brand’s creative director, said in a statement. “Of course, our organic plant-based products would make a great compost under certain conditions. But it would really be a waste! So much love is put into creating those precious pieces, so we want to make sure that Infantium Victoria clothing would be worn by multiple kids.”
Infantium Victoria said IV_Preloved will form a new section on its e-commerce site, woven directly into its business model. Customers sending in used clothing will receive a 20 percent off coupon toward their next purchase.
Infantium Victoria will then wash the garments with natural detergent and make any necessary repairs. Some of the clothing will come from photoshoots and samples, the company said, indicating that some pieces will be in like-new status.
Beyond the obvious sustainability benefit, Infantium Victoria said the program would allow for consumers outside of its typical demographic to shop for its products, which the brand admitted are “almost inaccessible” to certain groups. Once that connection has been made, it gives the brand access to a whole new customer base and, possibly, a whole new generation of loyal followers.
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Not to mention, many lower-income groups gain access to luxury brands through unauthenticated means when left without access to an official channel.
Infantium Victoria’s move follows the same model that mainstream resale platforms like TheRealReal and ThredUp have pioneered and that traditional apparel brands like Ralph Lauren have hinted at adopting.
ThredUp, which recently partnered with Madewell to help give consumers access to their favorite fits from years past, has long celebrated the secondhand market as a way to grow a brand’s reach and as a way of diversifying a business model. Simply put, if a recession hits, many brands are more than happy to give cash-poor consumers an opportunity to purchase their products at a lower price.
Other companies like secondhand logistics firm Yerdle have emerged to make it even easier on brands like Infantium Victoria to participate in the resale boom. Yerdle, which already works with Patagonia and REI on their used gear programs, takes all the guesswork out of resale, makes the secondhand model a turnkey business.
Either way, the more brands that enter into the program, the more likely it is that high-end clothing like Infantium Victoria’s makes its way to more homes and fewer landfills.
“Infantium Victoria’s solution opens the possibility to shop for quality heirloom pieces on a budget. Slow fashion garments will last beyond common high street brands,” the company said. “Choosing Infantium Victoria preloved garments is a great investment in preserving the health and well-being of children and precious Earth resources.”