On TikTok alone, the #haul hashtag has accumulated well over 60 billion views, with creators unpacking mountains of $15 tops and $20 dresses that will likely be discarded after just a few wears. 

Behind this content hype lies a $216 billion fast fashion industry that produces 92 million tons of textile waste annually—and a generation of content creators who have unwittingly become its most effective marketing channel.

“The overconsumption crisis is deeply rooted in consumer psychology, with brands capitalizing on our craving for novelty and the excitement fashion brings to encourage excessive shopping,” explains Dounia Wone, Chief Impact Officer at Vestiaire Collective. 

“At Vestiaire Collective, our mission – and our marketing campaigns – have always focused on proving that consumers can embrace trends and personal style more sustainably.”

Founded in 2009, the Paris-based company has established itself as the leading global platform for pre-loved luxury fashion, with over 5 million items for sale at any given time. 

Now, the company is running a systematic educational campaign targeting fashion influencers who command audiences of millions—providing them with data, expert insights, and firsthand experiences designed to transform how they present fashion choices to their followers.

The Strategic Case for Educating Fashion Creators

When Dounia joined Vestiaire Collective in March 2020, her goal was clear: define a vision and strategy for impact that would keep the company’s circular DNA at its core while driving meaningful industry change. 

Five years later, her team is addressing a critical gap in the creator economy—the disconnect between influencers’ enormous persuasive power and their limited awareness of fashion’s environmental footprint.

“Studies show that social media is one of the most influential sources of sustainability information for consumers,” Dounia notes. “Seventy-five percent of people are more likely to adopt eco-friendly behaviors after engaging with sustainability content online, and 83% consider TikTok and Instagram valuable platforms for advice on living sustainably.”

The company recognized that by educating just one influencer with a million followers, they could potentially reach more consumers than through traditional marketing channels—at a fraction of the cost. 

Their hypothesis: informed creators would naturally integrate sustainability considerations into their content, shifting the narrative around fashion consumption without sacrificing engagement metrics.

The Cost-Per-Wear Argument

Vestiaire Collective’s recent research revealed a startling reality that contradicts conventional wisdom: pre-loved fashion offers a 33% lower cost-per-wear than fast fashion items, which are typically worn less than half as often.

“Fast fashion is often perceived as the more affordable and convenient choice, while sustainable alternatives can seem less accessible or too expensive,” Dounia explains. “However, we believe in investing in high-quality, pre-loved pieces built to last and designed with more flattering cuts or timeless design.”

According to Dounia, fast fashion haul videos create a false economy in which consumers believe they’re saving money when, in reality, they’re spending more in the long run than they would on quality pieces.

The Creator Education Methodology

In November 2024, Vestiaire Collective operationalized their hypothesis by launching a structured six-month program for fashion creators. Unlike traditional influencer partnerships focusing on transactional content creation, this program was designed as a systematic educational intervention with measurable outcomes.

“We chose one influencer per key market to ensure our message reaches the right audience,” Dounia explains. “We selected influencers who are working with fast fashion brands and perpetuating overconsumption trends. All of them represent a different category of shopper.”

Rather than focusing solely on follower counts, Vestiaire Collective prioritized creators with consistently high engagement rates with their content. They specifically sought out influencers whose audiences primarily consisted of women between 25 and 35 years old—a demographic particularly responsive to both sustainable messaging and luxury products.

The company was particularly interested in creators who maintained mixed portfolios spanning luxury and fast fashion brand partnerships, as these influencers could credibly bridge both worlds. Finally, geographic distribution across key markets ensured the program would have a global impact while remaining culturally relevant in each region.

This data-oriented selection led to partnerships with Amy Jackson (@fashion_jackson) from the U.S. (1.1M followers), Audrey Afonso (@audreyafs) from France (810K followers), Frederica Esposito (@federica_es) from Italy (690K followers), Yewande Biala (@yewande_biala) from the UK (780K followers), and Carefree Hamuyela (@carefreehamuyela) from Germany (520K followers).

The program’s educational methodology includes six components, each addressing a different aspect of creator knowledge:

1. Data-based educational modules analyzing fashion’s environmental impacts
2. Expert discussions with industry specialists like Matteo Ward (sustainable fashion activist) and Carolyn Mair (fashion psychologist)
3. Marketing psychology workshops examining persuasion tactics used by fast fashion brands
4. Practical content creation guides designed specifically for sustainability communication
5. Peer-to-peer learning sessions with creators who have successfully pivoted to sustainability-focused content
6. Field experiences at clothing landfills providing firsthand documentation opportunities

“The goal is not to impose a narrative on influencers but rather to equip them with knowledge, tools, and experiences that enable them to communicate authentically about sustainability,” Dounia clarifies. “We’re targeting the knowledge gap, not dictating content.”

Data-Driven Program Iteration

Four months into implementation, Vestiaire Collective’s creator education program has already generated significant data on what works and doesn’t when training fashion creators on sustainability issues. The company has identified specific patterns in knowledge gaps and content engagement that have led to programmatic adjustments.

“We initially planned to offer expert-led masterclasses, but our data showed these sessions weren’t translating into content creation,” Dounia reveals. “Creators were absorbing interesting information but struggling to convert it into engaging posts that maintained their usual metrics. This led us to pivot toward peer-led coaching sessions where successful sustainability-focused creators share practical content strategies that have maintained or improved their engagement rates.”

The company tracks traditional metrics like engagement and views while also employing sentiment analysis to identify changes in how participating creators discuss fashion consumption.

“We’re building a sophisticated attribution model that can detect shifts in creator messaging and audience response,” Dounia explains. “Our preliminary data shows that audiences respond most positively to sustainability content that maintains the aspirational quality of fashion while introducing practical alternatives—precisely what pre-loved luxury offers. Since impact is our key driver, we’re looking at this as a long-term investment with compound returns as creators influence both consumers and other creators in their networks.”

The Business Case for Circularity

Beyond its educational initiatives, Vestiaire Collective is building a compelling business case for circular fashion. As a leading global platform for pre-loved luxury fashion, the company offers a curated selection of items at various price points as an alternative to fast fashion purchases.

“We want to show influencers and their audience that once you consider the cost-per-wear, you can find better-quality items and are usually even cheaper than fast fashion because they last longer,” Dounia says.

This value proposition directly addresses sustainability concerns and economic considerations—which heavily influence consumer purchasing decisions. Through educating influencers, Vestiaire Collective aims to shift the narrative around pre-loved fashion from a niche ethical choice to a smart financial decision.

The company’s approach recognizes influencers’ powerful role in shaping consumer behavior. “With the trust they’ve cultivated with their followers, they have the power to greatly shift consumer behavior toward more sustainable fashion choices,” Dounia notes.

Creator Education as Part of a Multi-Channel Strategy

Vestiaire Collective’s creator education program operates within a comprehensive business strategy that targets multiple points of intervention in the fashion ecosystem. While many companies in the creator economy focus exclusively on digital marketing, Vestiaire Collective has developed a three-pronged approach:

• Creator Education: Training influential voices who shape consumer perception
• Platform Innovation: Developing technology that makes pre-loved purchasing as frictionless as fast fashion
• Policy Advocacy: Driving regulatory changes that level the playing field

“In addition to our creator programs, we actively engage in advocacy and lobbying in Europe and have recently begun similar initiatives in the United States,” Dounia explains. “We’ve found that influencers who participate in our education program often become powerful advocates for policy change themselves, creating a multiplier effect.”

By working simultaneously on all three fronts, Vestiaire Collective is achieving mutually reinforcing effects. For example, when creators highlight the quality of pre-loved luxury items, it drives platform adoption, which provides data to support policy arguments for extended producer responsibility.

Measuring ROI on Creator Education

As the program approaches its midpoint, Vestiaire Collective is developing frameworks for measuring return on investment in creator education—metrics that could prove valuable for the broader creator economy.

“This represents a fundamentally different approach to creator partnerships,” Dounia explains. “Rather than paying for specific deliverables with immediate conversion goals, we’re investing in changing how creators think about and present fashion choices. The ROI manifests in multiple ways: direct content creation, network effects as creators influence peers, audience behavior change, and brand positioning benefits.”

Preliminary data from the program has revealed specific KPIs that demonstrate effectiveness:

• 28% increase in engagement when participating creators discuss pre-loved fashion
• 37% growth in conversation volume around “cost-per-wear” as a purchasing consideration
• 15% reduction in fast fashion haul content from participating creators
• 42% increase in pre-loved product placement in style recommendations

For companies considering similar educational initiatives, Dounia offers pragmatic advice: “Start with a small cohort of creators who show genuine curiosity, provide them with concrete data that connects to their audience interests, and measure specific content changes rather than broad attitude shifts. The key is creating educational experiences that align with creators’ economic interests—showing them how sustainability content can enhance rather than diminish their metrics.”