H&M to launch second-hand online clothing offshoot Sellpy in Ireland 

H&M has been looking for additional revenue streams to stem slowing sales at its mainstream shops.

Fashion retailer H&M is to launch its online second-hand clothing business Sellpy in Ireland as part of a significant European expansion drive.

Sellpy is a growing player in the area of clothing ‘re-commerce’, but to date has only been online in its home market of Sweden, the Netherlands, Austria and Germany.

The expansion will spread its presence to 20 more countries including Ireland, France, Belgium, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Hungary.

H&M, which has 19 stores across Ireland, has been seeking new revenue streams to offset slowing sales at its mainstream shops.

It first invested in Sellpy in 2015. A further investment in 2019 boosted its shareholding to around 70% and its total investment in the brand to more than €20m.

It is, as yet, unclear what recruitment plans might accompany the move as Sellpy handles the entire sales process from picking up goods from sellers’ homes to photographing, selling and shipping them to the buyer.

Sellpy said the online second-hand clothes market is one of the fastest growing segments of the wider fashion retail industry and demand within its new markets is “growing rapidly”.

As consumers become increasingly conscious about the origins and sustainability of their clothes, the fashion industry is coming under scrutiny for fuelling a throwaway culture.

"Every garment bought pre-owned saves resources for our planet. Demand in our new markets is growing rapidly", said Sellpy's head of expansion Gustav Wessman.

H&M saw a slightly less-than-expected fall in sales in the first two months of this year and a rise in March as Covid restrictions began to ease in some of its international markets and its stores started to reopen.

-additional reporting Reuters