Happy first birthday, Vinnies Finds
There's something worth celebrating in the Vinnies NSW family this year. Our online pre-loved fashion platform, Vinnies Finds, has turned one and what a first year it's been.
Like any good first year of life, it's been full of milestones, a few surprises, and plenty of reasons to feel proud.
Created at the right time
Vinnies Finds didn't arrive by accident. It was created because the way Australians like to shop has changed and Vinnies NSW paid close attention.
The Australian recommerce market is expected to reach USD$6.75 billion by 2029 and is currently growing annually by 9.6%. Shoppers are actively choosing pre-loved items, and they're doing it online. Australia Post's 2025 eCommerce Report found that 65% of Gen Z and Millennials plan to buy more second-hand goods over the next five years, a shift driven by both sustainability and cost-of-living pressures.
Vinnies NSW saw these trends and acted. Vinnies Finds launched in late May 2025 and brought quality, character, and the community of our stores into the online space. Vinnies Finds made pre-loved fashion accessible to shoppers across the state and country.
First steps? More like a sprint.
Vinnies Finds didn't crawl. It ran. Our shoppers clearly have style and the numbers prove it. Since May 2025, the platform has sold more than 53,000 items.
The Vinnies Finds community has discerning taste. The most-searched categories were bags, boots, dresses, jewellery, and jackets. The most-searched brands spanned Country Road, Gorman, and Nike through to Gucci, Chanel, and Prada. And the quickest online sale? Two minutes.
The standout pieces from year one reflected the remarkable quality of what passes through Vinnies NSW stores every day – an Yves Saint Laurent crossbody bag, Céline knee-high boots, a Christian Dior jacket, and a vintage Burberry trench coat. Each one found a new owner. Each item has told a story of a donation that found exactly the right home.
Growing up green
We’re also proud of what didn’t happen in year one, as a result of the creation of Vinnies Finds: 53 tonnes of clothing and accessories didn't go to landfill. Instead, these items were recycled.
To put this figure in perspective, 53 tonnes is the weight of an Airbus 220-300 aircraft. Every item that has been sold on Vinnies Finds has been a garment given a second life. It has been re-worn, re-loved, and kept in circulation rather than discarded. In a country where fashion waste remains a significant environmental challenge, that's a huge feat.
Shopping with purpose
Here is where Vinnies Finds becomes something more than a fashion platform.
Every purchase made on Vinnies Finds has been reinvested directly into Vinnies NSW programs and services supporting people experiencing homelessness, housing insecurity, and financial hardship across the state. Right now, that support has never been more needed.
A recent YouGov survey commissioned by Vinnies NSW found that more than half of Australians are cutting back on food, medicine, and other essentials just to keep a roof over their heads. Calls to Vinnies Assist NSW have doubled since March 2025. The cost-of-living crisis is not easing and for many people, Vinnies is the call they make when there is nowhere else to turn.
When a shopper buys a pre-loved dress or a vintage coat on Vinnies Finds, they're not just making a sustainable choice. They are contributing to emergency relief, housing support, and the community programs that help people find their footing again.
Vinnies Finds has had a wonderful first year of life. We couldn't be prouder and we can't wait to see what it does next.