THE PHENOMENON OF MERCARI AND RAGTAG: SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF SLOW FASHION IN JAPAN

Abstract

Abstract: Fast fashion creates affordable access to clothing but also encourages rapid turnover, resource consumption and textile waste. Japan provides an informative setting for examining a different economic model: extending clothing use through organized secondhand markets. This article compares Mercari, a consumer-to-consumer (C2C) digital marketplace, with RAGTAG, a specialist business-to-consumer (B2C) designer-fashion reseller. Using a qualitative comparative case-study method, official Japanese environmental information, corporate disclosures and peer-reviewed literature, the article evaluates the effects of resale on household budgets, transaction costs, information asymmetry, social inclusion and environmental outcomes. A simple illustrative calculation shows how platform fees and shipping change a seller’s net proceeds; a separate sensitivity model demonstrates why the displacement of new purchases matters for climate benefits. The evidence suggests that Mercari primarily expands access and market liquidity, whereas RAGTAG creates value through inspection, authentication, curation and services. These models serve different market needs and may be complementary, although a direct commercial partnership or causal market-wide impact is not established. Resale offers meaningful economic and environmental opportunities, but its benefits depend on durable products, trustworthy transactions and reductions in new clothing purchases.