Blog 1: Introduction - The Importance of Exploring Inequality in Access to Vintage and Thrifting Markets in London

Vintage and thrifting markets have gained immense, global popularity in recent years, and it’s no different in London. The second-hand market scene in London seem to move through three stages tied to price and inequality, significantly affected by urban development and gentrification. The blog series unveils the inequality in access to these markets and their products, through three places of such:

• At one end of the spectrum is Portobello Road Market in Notting Hill: a space that has long since been gentrified. Its stalls, once filled with affordable finds, now mostly cater to tourists and upper-middle-class shoppers with designer vintage and boutique, high-end pricing.

  
  

• There’s Hackney, currently in flux: the Hackney Flea Market mirrors the transitional stage of its area, meaning that trendy aesthetics and curated stalls are beginning to replace local, community-rooted sellers.

  
  

• On the other end, in areas like Barking and Dagenham, carboot sales (Bonzer Carboot Sale) still offer the kind of affordability and spontaneity that used to define second-hand shopping, offering low-end prices and thus catering to a broader audience. 

Map of London featuring Portobello Road Market, Hackney Vintage Market, and Bonzer Carboot Sale (Barking and Dagenham) (Source: Map Comersis, Map of Greater London Boroughs)

As a Gen Z student living in London, I’ve found myself drawn to thrifting, not just for the aesthetic value it offers but also for its affordability and sustainability. Like many students, my budget is limited, yet I still aim to express myself through fashion. Thrifting, in theory, offers a perfect solution: low-cost, unique, and environmentally conscious alternatives to fast fashion.

Gen Z dominating second-hand apparel purchuses (2017, 2019) (Source: Medium, Sustainable Appaarel for All)

However, my experience navigating London’s second-hand fashion scene has revealed a deeper, more troubling issue, a shift: what once felt accessible and creative, now is increasingly exclusive and curated for wealthier audiences, therefor not everyone has equal access to these spaces. What was once an accessible and community-driven practice has gradually shifted due to increasing gentrification and commercialisation, creating new barriers for the very people who once helped popularise second-hand shopping and markets.

As a student and part of Gen Z  - the generation often credited with reviving vintage fashion  - I find this shift disappointing. It creates a paradox:

• Second-hand markets, the practice initiated by low-income groups, nowadays is becoming a space, where these very communities often find themselves priced out.

• Referring back to my experience as a student, while thrifting was popularised as a sustainable and expressive alternative to fast fashion in recent years by our generation, we’re also being priced out of these spaces we helped make cool.

Through this blog series, I hope to explore how thrifting markets mirror deeper inequalities and how urban transformation of London shapes who gets to participate in these cultural and consumer spaces.