March 26, 2026
By Aubrey Valente
Staff Writer
This feature is part of a five-part in-depth reporting project about fashion.
Freshman Adrianna Martinez walks down the crowded aisles of MyUnique in Union City, skimming through the racks of her favorite thrift store. The hope of finding her ideal vintage outfit keeps her motivated to continue searching, as she knows she is one hanger flip away from the perfect find.
With thrift-haul videos on Instagram and TikTok getting millions of views, secondhand fashion has gone from niche to mainstream.
As of 2025, the global market for secondhand apparel was valued at $177 billion and is expected to nearly double to $351 billion by 2027, according to Statista, an online statistics platform.
Martinez said garments go out of style only to return years later, making thrifting especially popular among fashion-conscious teens.
FACT BOX BY ALEXANDRA LOURENÇO This fact box represents the responses of 97 students. Survey results were collected using Google Forms from Jan. 14-16.
“A lot of popular brands like Hollister try to recreate vintage pieces, but people often prefer authentic clothing,” Martinez said.
She said fast fashion has negatively affected thrift stores.
“It takes time to find vintage pieces at thrift stores because there’s a lot of fast fashion that you go through that have cutouts and ripped seams,” Martinez said. “Modern brands, and especially celebrities that have advertised [fast fashion brands], convince the public that it looks good when I think it looks terrible.”
Martinez said thrifting gives people a way to display their creativity through the outfits they create.
“It’s very fun for me to take a deep dive into what people wore before. I liked when people could actually express themselves in their own style,” Martinez said.
She said she frequents different thrift stores depending on what she is looking for.
“There’s this thrift shop in Rutherford called Mikayla’s Thriftique. I go there more for records and stuff, but I usually go thrifting at MyUnique in Union City to get clothes,” Martinez said. “I usually go every three weeks.”
Martinez said thrifting is more than just shopping; it is also a way to relax.
“Thrifting definitely takes a lot of time and energy, but I like going there to get my mind off of things. I think it is very fun and exciting,” Martinez said.
Sophomore Julie Kara, who thrifts every few months, said she started thrifting after social media introduced her to its benefits.
“I saw on TikTok what people found thrifting for a fraction of the store price. For example, I got a new H&M sweater for $5,” Kara said. “My homecoming dress — I found it at Goodwill for $5.”
“I love digging through the racks and finding things. It makes me feel like I conquered something.”
Kara said that besides saving customers money, thrifting reduces waste and overconsumption. In fact, 11.3 million tons of textile waste end up in U.S. landfills each year, accounting for 7.7% of all landfill waste, according to Capital One Shopping.
“Instead of buying so much new stuff, [people] are recycling their old clothes, which also causes fewer clothes to end up in wastelands,” Kara said.
She said she goes thrifting every few months, with Goodwill and the Salvation Army stores being her favorites. Not all thrift stores appeal to her, though.
“Some stores are denying perfectly fine clothes because they are deemed ugly, and I saw some stores charging more than the [retail] price,” Kara said.
Freshman Tenzin Sodpa, who used to go thrifting about three times a month but has cut back because of her busy schedule, said her favorite thrift store is American Thrift in Passaic, where she purchased a pink Ralph Lauren short-sleeve polo shirt for $4.
She said thrifting is gaining popularity because trending styles are expensive.
“The 2000s style is rising. You can’t find any of those clothes for a cheap amount, so most teens rely on thrifting,” Sodpa said.
She said that discovering vintage pieces is the highlight of her thrifting experience.
“I love digging through the racks and finding things. It makes me feel like I conquered something,” Sodpa said.
She said she encourages others to give thrifting a chance.
“Thrifting is really fun to do. Especially if you love shopping and browsing through clothes, it heals shopping addictions,” said Sodpa.
