eBay’s $1.2B Depop Deal Signals Big Bet on Fashion Recommerce

correction; high interest rates Strategic goal Build a “House of Brands” for unique items Capture Gen Z and expand recommerce Depop performance Rapid growth, high cash burn ~$1B GMV (2025), narrowing losses Why Etsy paid more in 2021 and sold for less in 2026 In 2021, Etsy was riding a COVID‑era surge with record marketplace growth, cheap capital, and sky‑high valuations for high‑growth tech and resale platforms.

Depop was pitched as “Etsy for the next generation,” a way to own Gen Z resale without diluting Etsy’s handmade/vintage positioning.​ By 2026, macro conditions had flipped: higher rates and inflation cooled e‑commerce, and investors shifted from “growth at all costs” to profitability and focus on core franchises.

Etsy came under pressure from low‑cost players like Temu and Shein in its core marketplace, and began shedding non‑core assets (e.g., Elo7, Reverb) to refocus.​ In resale, Vinted emerged as a powerful rival, with a no‑seller‑fee model and very low friction UX that eroded Depop’s share, especially among casual sellers.​ The Secondhand Market Demand by Gen Z and Millennials Depop’s core strength remains its penetration among young users: as of late 2025, nearly…