Luxury resale in China goes offline to win online

19 Mar 2026

From huge flagships to late-night livestreams, Xianyu and Zhuanzhuan are rebuilding consumer trust in a $30B market long haunted by counterfeits. When Xianyu opened a 4,000-sqm "lifestyle hub" in Shenzhen in December 2025, it wasn't just expanding its retail footprint — it was responding to a structural challenge reshaping China's $30 billion secondhand luxury market: consumer anxiety over fakes and a growing appetite for experience-driven retail are pushing platforms offline and onto livestreams.

The country’s secondhand luxury sector has grown from around $8 billion in 2020 to an estimated $30 billion in 2025, according to iResearch, driven by rising new-goods prices, macroeconomic uncertainty, and shifting attitudes toward pre-owned goods among millennial and Gen Z consumers — a cohort that shows no sign of slowing down.

Standing in the way is trust. Around 42% of consumer complaints about secondhand luxury in 2024 related to authenticity, according to the China Consumers Association, as cited in a Daxue Consulting report, and more than 30% of surveyed consumers said fear of counterfeits stops them from using resale platforms altogether — a significant drag on a market with this much growth potential. That concern is not unfounded: China alone accounted for 45% of all counterfeit goods seizures globally in 2021, according to a joint OECD-EUIPO report published in May 2025.

China's leading secondhand platforms have responded physically. ZZER, the tech-driven consignment marketplace, was among the first to move, opening a flagship store in Shanghai in August 2021 where shoppers can scan product QR codes in-store to access authentication records and pricing for items from Hermès, Chanel, and Gucci — often at up to 50% below original retail. Tencent-backed Zhuanzhuan followed in June 2025 with the launch of Super Zhuanzhuan, China's first secondhand multi-category recycling warehouse store, occupying 3,000 square metres on the third floor of Beijing's historic Friendship Store and stocking more than 30,000 authenticated items across 200 categories. Xianyu, meanwhile, began opening branded Recycle Shop locations in Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Nanjing from 2024, before unveiling its Shenzhen flagship in December 2025.

Going offline is only half the answer. What draws consumers through the door — and keeps them spending — is what happens once they are inside. ZZER employs senior authenticators holding formal China inspection qualifications to examine items in person, rather than relying on photos or AI, and works with an independent certification body stationed at the store to add a layer of legal assurance.

If an item later turns out to be fake, buyers can claim a full refund plus reimbursement of any external authentication fees. Zhuanzhuan puts all Super Zhuanzhuan stock through its "Official Inspection" process before items reach the floor. Xianyu uses AI-assisted pricing and in-store staff to assess and list consigned goods across both its physical and online channels simultaneously.