Fashion’s untapped goldmine: Monetizing the secondhand market with Digital Product Passports
For decades, fashion brands have built their business models around a single moment, the point of sale. Once a product leaves the store or ships to the customer, the transaction and the brand relationship effectively ends.
But that’s changing.
With the rise of the secondhand economy and the emergence of the Digital Product Passport (DPP), forward-thinking fashion brands now have the opportunity to extend the life and value of their products far beyond the first sale. According to a recent Bain & Company and eBay report, DPPs could double a product’s lifetime value and help brands unlock entirely new revenue streams through ownership tracking, resale, and post-purchase services.
The resale economy is booming and brands are missing out
The global secondhand apparel market hit $230 billion in 2024, and it’s growing three times faster than the primary fashion market. Platforms like Vinted, Vestiaire Collective, and eBay are thriving but most brands don’t see a cent from the resale of their own goods.
That’s because resale value is currently captured by consumers and marketplaces, not the original brand. Once the item is sold, visibility is lost. Ownership changes go unnoticed. Resale data stays siloed. In short, fashion companies are flying blind once the product leaves their ecosystem.
DPPs are set to change that.
DPPs open the door to lifetime product value
With DPPs, fashion brands can track the full journey of their products, from first sale through resale, repair, and reuse. Instead of being limited to a one-time transaction, brands can gain ongoing visibility into how their products are used, who owns them, and when they change hands.
This unlocks new business opportunities:
Buyback and trade-in programs
Knowing a product’s full history enables profitable resale, refurbishment, and recycling.
Authentication and anti-counterfeiting
Verified ownership and origin protect brand integrity and preserve value.
Direct-to-resale integration
One-click resale features embedded in the DPP can streamline resale through your own platform or partner services.
Data-driven product development
Brands can analyze what sells well in secondhand markets and why to design longer-lasting, higher-value pieces.
“A single transaction could turn into ongoing revenue opportunities.”
From customer lifetime value to product lifetime value
Most fashion marketers focus on customer lifetime value (CLV), the total revenue from a customer over time. But DPPs introduce a new metric: product lifetime value (PLV), the total value a product can generate throughout its lifecycle.
For brands with durable, high-quality products, this is a major competitive edge. A well-made jacket could be sold, resold, repaired, and re-loved, creating value at every stage. And with the DPP in place, brands stay in the loop the whole way.
Don’t wait for 2027, act now to lead
Bain’s report warns that 90% of brands still see DPPs as a compliance burden, rather than a growth opportunity. But those who invest early will be best positioned to win in the emerging resale economy.
Some already are:
Brands like Armani, Diesel, and Louis Vuitton have begun using DPP-like technologies to authenticate products, provide digital ownership certificates, and power richer post-sale experiences.