The tri-dimensional role of sustainable secondhand clothing consumption in circular systems: a conceptual framework

Sustainable fashion scholarship has advanced, yet the industry’s unsustainability persists (Abbate et al., 2024; Mukendi et al., 2020; Niinimäki et al., 2020). Textile waste remains a key issue, exacerbated by unsustainable consumption (Birtwistle and Moore, 2007; Tang, 2023). Whilst circularity is seen as a model for circular transitions, its environmental impact reduction is debated, especially regarding clothing reuse (Corvellec et al., 2021; D’Itria and Aus, 2023; Sandin and Peters, 2018). Secondhand consumption (SHC) is booming (Herjanto et al., 2019) and remains crucial for achieving sustainability, given the role of the consumer in CE (Machado et al., 2019; Turunen and Gossen, 2024; Valor et al., 2022). There is a surge in scholarly calls challenging the crux of SHC, concerning when and how SHC consumption contributes to sustainability, which remains absent (Iran and Schrader, 2017; Moon, 2024; Sandberg, 2021). This study addresses this, proposing a conceptual framework to guide scholarly and practitioner avenues for further research.