Luxury resale in China goes offline to win online

When Xianyu opened a 4,000-sqm "lifestyle hub" in Shenzhen in December 2025, it wasn't just expanding its retail footprint — it was responding to a structural challenge reshaping China's $30 billion secondhand luxury market: consumer anxiety over fakes and a growing appetite for experience-driven retail are pushing platforms offline and onto livestreams. The country’s secondhand luxury sector has grown from around $8 billion in 2020 to an estimated $30 billion in 2025, according to iResearch, driven by rising new-goods prices, macroeconomic uncertainty, and shifting attitudes toward pre-owned goods among millennial and Gen Z consumers — a cohort that shows no sign of slowing down. Standing in the way is trust. Around 42% of consumer complaints about secondhand luxury in 2024 related to authenticity, according to the China Consumers Association, as cited in a Daxue Consulting report, and more than 30% of surveyed consumers said fear of counterfeits stops them from using resale platforms altogether — a significant drag on a market with this much growth potential. That concern is not unfounded: China alone accounted for 45% of all counterfeit goods seizures globally in 2021, according to a joint OECD-EUIPO report published in May 2025. China's leading secondhand platforms have responded physically. ZZER, the tech-driven consignment marketplace, was among the first to move, opening a flagship store in Shanghai in August 2021 where shoppers can scan product QR codes in-store to access authentication records and pricing for items from Hermès, Chanel, and Gucci — often at up to 50% below original retail. Tencent-backed Zhuanzhuan followed in June 2025 with the launch of Super Zhuanzhuan, China's first secondhand multi-category recycling warehouse store, occupying 3,000 square metres on the third floor of Beijing's historic Friendship Store and stocking more than 30,000 authenticated items across 200 categories. Xianyu, meanwhile, began opening branded Recycle Shop locations in Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Nanjing from 2024, before unveiling its Shenzhen flagship in December 2025. Going offline is only half the answer. What draws consumers through the door — and keeps them spending — is what happens once they are inside. ZZER employs senior authenticators holding formal China inspection qualifications to examine items in person, rather than relying on photos or AI, and works with an independent certification body stationed at the store to add a layer of legal assurance. If an item later turns out to be fake, buyers can claim a full refund plus reimbursement of any external authentication fees. Zhuanzhuan puts all Super Zhuanzhuan stock through its "Official Inspection" process before items reach the floor. Xianyu uses AI-assisted pricing and in-store staff to assess and list consigned goods across both its physical and online channels simultaneously. "Trust is earned," says Yuan Qian, China luxury expert and founder of ZAIYE STUDIO, ONZE ONZE, and HIH PARIS, who adds that consumers gravitate toward platforms with "multi-step authenticity verification processes that are transparent to customers." For those who get it right, the result is an emotional proposition that online shopping cannot replicate. "Second-hand stores are exciting, affordable, massive and full of choices, plus there's the bonus of interactions with an enthusiastic shop assistant, so it triggers quite a lot of dopamine for visitors," says Yuan. "And, of course, seeing the product in real life is crucial for second-hand luxury items." Livestream effect Physical retail solves the trust problem for those who can walk through the door. Livestreaming extends that reach to everyone else. China had 1.108 billion internet users by December 2024, according to the China Internet Network Information Center — the world's largest connected market, and one in which entertainment, commerce, and community have converged into a single digital ecosystem. "Consumers often discover a product through content first, rather than through direct search," says Jone Smiths, digital marketing manager at Gogetop Marketing. Shanghai has emerged as the epicenter of that convergence. Targeting 600 billion RMB in livestream retail sales by 2026, the city has become a natural home for platforms including ZZER and Xianyu to build out their streaming operations. Since 2023, creators and resellers have been streaming live from ZZER's Shanghai stores, walking viewers through authenticated Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Bvlgari pieces in real time — discussing condition, pricing, and provenance on camera. Viewers in lower-tier cities, where access to luxury has traditionally been limited, can reserve or purchase items directly through the stream. Xianyu runs similar operations through late-night "night market" sessions and trending-topic events, where hosts introduce secondhand items and viewers transact without leaving the stream. Purpose-built for this model is ZhongSheBo's hybrid exhibition and trading center in Shanghai — a 3,000-sqm space hosting around 80 secondhand luxury merchants alongside dedicated livestream studios, functioning simultaneously as a retail floor, content production hub, and wholesale trading infrastructure. "Livestreaming does have limitations as a sole means of selling secondhand luxury since every item is a unique piece," says Yuan. "But it can introduce the platform's authenticity process, teach consumers how to identify details of luxury goods, bring the consumer to the shop for a virtual tour, and eventually increase sales offline." Consolidation play As domestic platforms sharpen their offline and digital capabilities, the competitive landscape is also consolidating. In November 2022, Zhuanzhuan made a $100 million Series C investment in Plum — also known as Hongbulin — a high-end secondhand fashion platform with a predominantly female, luxury-focused clientele. Zhuanzhuan completed the full acquisition in September 2024, folding Plum's authentication technology and luxury fashion expertise into its broader platform while allowing the brand and app to continue operating independently. Together, the combined entity brings deep authentication capabilities, a national offline footprint, and a product range extending well beyond fashion. International resale platforms face a considerably steeper climb. Vestiaire Collective and The RealReal have both struggled to gain meaningful traction in mainland China — Vestiaire, in particular, faces regulatory hurdles around importing secondhand goods into the country, constraining its ability to compete on scale or convenience with platforms that have spent years building domestic authentication networks, physical retail, and livestreaming infrastructure. Across ZZER, Zhuanzhuan, and Xianyu, the trajectory points in the same direction: offline retail and livestreaming are not competing strategies but complementary ones, each reinforcing the other's ability to convert consumer trust into transactions. With China's secondhand luxury market set for continued growth in 2026, the platforms that have invested most deeply in both are well positioned to define its next phase — and maintain a considerable advantage over the international players still working out how to enter it.

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Luxury resale in China goes offline to win online