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65% of Gen Z buying pre-loved fashion as a result of the Love Island effect1
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Searches for pre-loved Islander-inspired outfits up by 4000% on the marketplace2
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The first season where buying and selling pre-owned fashion is free on eBay UK
Today, eBay UK confirms its return as headline sponsor for ITV’s Love Island Season 11. This marks eBay’s fifth consecutive season in partnership with ITV, spotlighting the power of pre-loved fashion on millions of screens nationwide.
Consumer behaviours are notably shifting in favour of pre-loved fashion: 65% of Gen Z now go out of their way to buy pre-loved or try to buy pre-loved where possible. This is up by almost 20% (18%) compared to before the partnership first being brokered in 2022.3
This increased appetite for pre-loved has been seen on the marketplace, as searches for ’love island pre-loved’ increased by over 600% on eBay UK whilst the All Stars season aired. Searches for ‘love island outfits’ also surged by 4000% during the same period.4
As the very first Love Island season where both buying and selling pre-owned fashion is free on eBay UK, it’s the perfect time to cash in on unworn items to fund “new to you” pre-loved outfits inspired by the Islanders. With the average consumer potentially sitting on £400 of unworn items5, it’s worth exploring top-selling fashion brands like Louis Vuitton, Zara, and Marks & Spencer, along with other sought-after items such as Levi’s 501s, Wrangler men’s jeans, and Ralph Lauren t-shirts that may be tucked away in wardrobes.
Amy Bannerman, eBay’s Pre-Loved Style Director will once again be sourcing fashion from eBay, alongside the Love Island styling team. A curated selection of pre-loved clothing, authenticated sneakers and garments from eBay’s Imperfects range will head to the villa wardrobe. Including memorable pre-loved fits such as the red Jean Gaultier co-ord and Versace yellow skirt co-ord, both originally worn by Tasha Ghouri and reworn by other Islanders across the series.
Fans can shop the villa looks through a dedicated Love Island fashion hub on eBay UK, benefitting from up to 60% discounts on Imperfects items and eBay’s Authenticity Guarantee to instil confidence when buying sneakers.
Jemma Tadd, Head of Fashion, eBay UK, commented, “We’ve seen attitudes shift in favour of pre-loved through each season of Love Island but there is more work to be done as shoppers still look to fast fashion for the latest trends.
Pre-loved fashion can be timeless, luxurious, and the ultimate style statement - we’ve seen in the Villa Islanders re-wearing fabulous pre-loved fits time and time again. This Summer, I’m encouraging the nation to take advantage of free buying and selling on eBay to make their wardrobe better than new.”
Mike Spencer, Creative Director of Love Island at Lifted Entertainment, said: “Love Island is back for its 11th series, and with it we welcome back eBay as our headline sponsor and pre-loved fashion partner. We are so thrilled to see eBay's pre-loved fashion continue to be loved and worn, and re-worn (!), in the villa by our islanders, all via the shared wardrobe and the re-list me drawer we designed for the partnership. Alongside this we are continuing to work up new ways to showcase the pre-loved items, as we continue to influence and shift perceptions as a result of the partnership. Roll on Love Island this Summer!”
Bhavit Chandrani, Director of BE Studio from ITV, said: “I am thrilled that eBay will return as our headline sponsor for Love Island this Summer. After a brilliant 5 series’ of partnership, the pairing continues to thrive with a truly 360 campaign featuring broadcast, streaming and app sponsorship, bespoke influencer and social content, and of course, eBay pre-loved clothing worn by islanders throughout the show."
eBay will be running a series of idents during the ad breaks throughout Love Island, including catch-up shows like ‘Unseen Bits’.
Notes to Editors
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In 2023, through the sale of pre-loved fashion, eBay UK saved over 1.6 million kilograms of waste going to landfill, equivalent to the weight of more than 4 million shirts.6
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Despite the winter weather, searches for “love island dress” rose by 1150%.7
References
1 2024 eBay Global Consumer Insights
2 Internal eBay data January 2024 - February 2024
3 2024 eBay Global Consumer Insights
4 Internal eBay data January 2024 - February 2024
5 eBay consumer research carried out by Opinium with 2,000 nationally representative UK respondents (aged 18+) respondents (26th - 28th March)
6 eBay internal data January to September 2023
7 Internal eBay data January 2024 - February 2024
About Sneakers Authenticity Guarantee on eBay
eBay launched its Authentication Guarantee for Sneakers in June 2021 which comes at no extra cost to the buyer or the seller, with items being delivered via secure delivery. eBay’s number one goal with Authenticity Guarantee is to build consumer trust and confidence when buying new and pre-loved sneakers on eBay. Working with industry experts to fully verify and vet those items which are sold at or above their corresponding threshold, they are sent to the Authentication Centre to go through a rigorous, multi-point physical inspection, whether it’s the stitching or leather, with the product’s collateral (sneaker box) also being reviewed.
About Imperfects on eBay
Imperfects is the fashion equivalent of supermarkets' wonky veg initiative. Offering clothes, shoes and accessories which are considered new but with defects from over 100 high-street and high-end designers, including North Face, Off White, Puma, Fila, and Timberland, at up to 60% off.
Imperfect items may include defects such as a small scuff or mark, a button missing or a loose thread that may have been from the factory or are ex-display, which means they can’t be sold at full price as they did not meet the manufacturer's strict quality standards. We partner with both brands and resellers to sell their imperfect stock. If any brands or retailers are interested in being involved, they can either partner directly with us or there are trusted seller partners we can connect them with.
About Amy Bannerman
Amy started her career in fashion setting up a vintage clothing stall with a loan from the Prince’s Trust. She sourced and imported vintage clothes from Canada and sold them from her busy market stall in east London. Most recently, Amy was the Fashion Director of Cosmopolitan for four years. Here she successfully pioneered a new path for the magazine, seamlessly incorporating second-hand clothes into cover shoots and fashion stories.
Within a fast fashion culture, she has tirelessly promoted a more responsible, ecologically aware way of shopping, and this is something she is extremely passionate about. Amy’s love of second-hand doesn’t stop with her work, she has bought and sold on eBay for over 20 years and dresses almost exclusively in second-hand and vintage. She lives in a house furnished with an eclectic mix of furniture bought predominantly from eBay and her son now dresses top to toe in pre-loved too.
Amy has styled celebrities such as Jonathan Van Ness, Lena Dunham, Dua Lipa, Sophie Turner, and Rita Ora, amongst many others. Amy also previously worked at Elle and InStyle and styled fashion stories for iD, Glamour and The Sunday Times Style. Instagram - @amybannermanstylist
About the eBay x Love Island Partnership Brokerage
The eBay x Love Island partnership has been facilitated by media agency EssenceMediacom. EssenceMediacom has played a key role in driving both the fashion and headline sponsorships forward, working closely with ITV and eBay to conceptualise and manage the agreement to help this collaboration bring pre-loved to the fore for a new audience.