eBay giant ‘bet’ 1.2 billion USD on the used clothing market

Reuters Information about the deal on February 19 pushed the stock price of e-commerce platform eBay up more than 7%. The used clothing e-commerce platform acquired is Depop, part of Etsy, an American marketplace headquartered in Brooklyn, New York.

Depop, headquartered in London, plans to keep its name, brand, platform and corporate culture intact. They have strong growth momentum in the used fashion sector. By the end of 2025, the Depop exchange has 7 million active buyers, nearly 90% of whom are under 34 years old, and more than 3 million active sellers.

With this deal, eBay strives to differentiate itself by expanding into the resale market, moving towards a circular economy, focusing on used and repaired goods, in the context of a challenging e-commerce market.

Jamie Ianonne, CEO of eBay, commented that the younger generation pays great attention to used clothes, towards sustainability, recycling what they have in their wardrobes. “This gives us a real opportunity to focus on customer experience through this acquisition,” he said.

The Depop deal has been approved by the board of directors of the two businesses and is expected to be completed in the second quarter. Depop’s business results could help eBay’s 2026 gross merchandise value (GMV) increase by 1-2%. GMV is an important indicator that shows the total value of goods sold on a platform. Ebay expects this level to be about 21.5-21.9 billion USD in the first quarter of this year, exceeding analysts’ estimates of 20.10 billion USD.

In the latest quarter, the company had revenue of $2.97 billion, exceeding estimates of $2.88 billion. GMV increased 10% over the same period, to 21.24 billion USD.

Depop was founded in 2011. In 2021, Etsy acquired Depop for $1.6 billion, along with the move to acquire a series of other e-commerce platforms. They want to fulfill their “Home of Brands” vision, to compete with larger competitors, like Amazon.

However, Etsy later changed direction, selling off e-commerce platforms outside of the main platform. That is, with this “buy and resell” deal, Etsy lost 400 million USD.