Thrifting is a different method of shopping, where rather than buying new clothing, people visit markets and second-hand online stores, to buy clothing that has been previously used. Although a common method of shopping in multiple countries around the world, is still a relatively new concept in the UAE.
As it takes around 7,000 litres of water to make a new pair of jeans, and many clothes that are mass-produced and not resold end up in landfill, thrifting has a positive impact on the environment. While thrifting, people sell their clothes second-hand, and others can shop from a variety of clothing options, be it vintage to luxury brands, and find these pieces a new home.
When shopping second-hand, new materials are not used to make products, and when compared to making clothing, gives used clothing a longer lifetime of being used rather than ending up in landfill.
Additionally, factories tend to dump waste while manufacturing clothes into water bodies and leads to chemicals and toxins ending up in fresh water, causing detrimental effects on the planet. However, another benefit of thrifting is that brands do not have to make as many clothes from scratch, and the clothes are going to another place to be worn and used.
With thrifting, people are able to sell pre-loved clothing for men, women and kids at discounted prices, making it a sustainable process that contributes to saving the planet, decluttering their homes and also making extra money on the side.
Alyssa Mariano, the CEO and Co-Founder of Bazaara shared with Connector a look into creating a dedicated platform for people to buy and sell pre-loved clothes, from mainstream to high-end luxury brands.
Born and raised in New York, United States, Alyssa Mariano started her career in marketing and garnered experience for 10 years in New York before moving to Dubai in 2017.
Having spent her whole life thrifting, after moving to Dubai, Alyssa Mariano realised that there were not a lot of opportunities for people to thrift, with only a few marketplaces available to sell all kinds of products, but not focused on fashion.
Alyssa Mariano said, "Growing up, I was always passionate about thrifting. My grandparents used to take me to antique shops and thrift shops, and I was also using the app called Poshmark in the US. When I moved here, I realised there was a huge gap in the market for a similar app."
That was when the idea of Bazaara came to life, and after waiting a few years to see if the thrifting concept would pick up, Alyssa Mariano decided to create a brand of her own.
Alyssa Mariano said, "I am super passionate about the environment and about sustainability. There is only one earth and only one world, and we need to take care of it for future generations. It is frustrating to see a lot of companies, for example, fast fashion, really taking advantage of the environment and labour. That is why I wanted to do something, and Bazaara was created."
In 2020, Alyssa Mariano decided to start the process of launching the brand, and after meeting her co-founder and curating a team to develop the app, Bazaara was launched in the UAE in 2021.
The aim of the app is to create a space where shoppers have a one-stop app to buy clothing at discounted prices and sell pieces that they do not use anymore, and find a new home for them with someone that will make use of the item.
Alyssa Mariano wanted to make the shopping experience as relaxed and easy for buyers and sellers, and usually, when shopping from marketplaces, people, after finding what they are looking for, need to arrange to collect the item as well as make the payment, making it a tedious process.
Alyssa Mariano added, "I came up with an idea to have a marketplace where we take care of the payment, the shipping, and everything is integrated so it is a super seamless process for both buyers and sellers."
With Bazaara, all the selling and buying is done through the app. While listing, the seller gets to set the price of the product, and before it is listed, transaction and courier charges are added. On finding the desired products, the buyer will then pay the fixed price, with the courier then immediately sent out to pick up the item from the seller, and deliver it to the doorstep of the buyer.
To ensure all the transactions made are accurate, the app has multiple steps set in place to make the shopping experience a great one for the user.
Alyssa Mariano said, "We have a star rating system, where after buyers receive their items, they go back and can rate sellers from one to five stars on that purchase. We found that really motivates sellers to list their items and describe them correctly and make sure they are real items."
As luxury branded products are also sold on the app, to make sure the items are genuine, they are approved manually. Clear pictures, a receipt of the product and the authenticity code are required to make the listing available to shop.
Additionally, the clothing sold on the app are of good quality and rather than being used once and discarded, sellers are able to repurpose and allow someone else to make good use of the items bought.
In the day and age of social media, where the latest hype in fashion is worn by many, especially fashion influencers, fashion trends are constantly flittering in and out of the market. People tend to shop for the latest trends and only use the items, when they are in fashion, and end up not being used for a long time, after the trend has passed.
With fast fashion, certain fashion brands mass produce clothing that is in trend at a low cost to meet the high demand.
Alyssa Mariano added, "The fashion industry is very detrimental to the environment. As you are buying and selling secondhand, it helps save the environment. In addition, when you sell your second-hand items in marketplaces like this, you are helping people find items that people love and do not have to go and buy something new."
The app aims to bridge the gap and make shopping for fashion easier, while also reducing the number of clothing items that end up in landfills, from being mass produced.
Bazaara is currently available for people in the UAE via the App Store and Play Store, with plans to expand in Saudi Arabia and Egypt by the end of the year.
