Four pre-loved clothing stores in Nottinghamshire have closed down in the past month.
Online though the retro and second hand clothing market is thriving with apps such as Vinted reaching 16 million users from the United Kingdom.
Statistics also show the second-hand clothes retail market size in the UK is set to grow by £4m by 2032.
But it’s a different story for Nottinghamshire.
Stores that have recently closed their doors include: The Bees Knees Preloved Boutique, Mesopotamia and Cow Thrift.
Nottingham cult classic Wild Clothing, also announced it would be closing down after 43 years in business, back in December.
“We are competing with people at home.”
Charlotte Oatens, owner of Wild Clothing
Owner of Wild Clothing since 2023, Charlotte Oatens said: “Rents have increased, business rates have increased, and we are also competing with people at home.”
“Not competing in a horrible way as it’s great that it is thriving online,” she added.
Mrs Oatens explained that people on these sites have a massive advantage compared to in store vintage shops such as Wild Clothing.
She said: “We cannot afford to sell our clothes for unreasonable prices whereas people at home can easily sell for lower prices.”
“It’s great so many people are wearing second-hand clothing, but competing with the online becomes quite unsustainable,” she added.
Silan Gulmez, supervisor at Cow Vintage thinks that a combination of lack of tourism and lack of funds being brought into the city is a factor for why such shops are closing.
She said: “We don’t really have a tourism industry so we are not seeing a different flow of people compared to a Manchester or a London.”
Mrs Gulmez believes that shopping in-store is abetter experience than using online.
She said: “The experience of going into a store and going on a day out shopping will always be better as you can try on the clothes and know what is best for you.”
