Depop CEO on the future of fashion and the path to profitability

IIt takes a few minutes to walk from one side of Depop’s London headquarters to the other. The open-plan space, complete with its own bar, is so large that I’m told some staff use scooters to get around the entire space. As Depop CEO Kruti Patel Goyal and I visited the store, we browsed Leather Choker, Low Rise Jeans and Fishnets. Not the questionable clothes and accessories themselves, but the rooms named after fashion trends over the years.

I sat down with Patel Goyal in May in his office, called “Boots with (Faux) Fur.” It’s in the Y2K part of the office and is named after the lyrics of the 2007 hit Low by Flo Rida, but Depop, in a nod to its environmentally conscious mission and ethics, added “fake” to the name. Depop merchandise is also printed on recycled Fruit of the Loom sweaters, and employees are encouraged to take unwanted items to a clothes swap rail at the entrance.

Since its founding in 2011, secondhand clothing marketplace Depop, one of the most influential companies in this year’s TIME100, has achieved one thing above all: making circular fashion cool. From mall favorites to vintage and reworked clothing, Depop’s inventory has attracted a user base that has grown 17% to about 35 million — predominantly Gen Z and millennials — in 2023. While smaller than platforms like Poshmark , Depop has promoted prestige with the most eco-conscious generations.

Under the leadership of Patel Goyal, Depop, an Etsy subsidiary, last year eliminated its 10% selling fees in the UK. And users can now shop for items associated with emerging trends in the app using AI recommendations. Sales on the platform grew 9% to $600 million in fiscal 2023, and Patel Goyal told TIME it is focused on long-term expansion.

She also discussed building lasting relationships with customers and why the competitive landscape is good for sustainable fashion.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

What prompted your move from the chief product officer role at Etsy to Depop?

What made this business more attractive to me is that it is also a community-driven, machine-powered business. The questions I asked myself were: do I believe in the product and the mission? Our mission is to make fashion circular, the impact we can have on millions of people and the planet is truly inspiring. And so the answer to that first question was absolutely yes. The second question was: Do I feel like this is an opportunity to continue to expand and grow? Certainly, yes. This is the first time I have assumed the role of CEO. And the third question is, do I feel like I can bring something unique to this business that will allow me to help it grow and prosper. And that’s when I looked back at my time at Etsy and said, “Wow, this is how everything I’ve done comes together and prepares me to really help bring a new perspective to the pot to help them through this next phase of growth.”

Can you tell me about your professional journey, was it a linear process?

I wouldn’t consider my professional journey to be linear, but I think of it in two very distinct phases. The first was exploring different industries and different roles to figure out what I was meant to do, what I do really well, what I found meaning in. first 10 or so years of my career, from finance to media to the non-profit world. I gained some really critical insights from this part of my journey that helped me find my mission and purpose. The first was that I wanted to be inside the business, building something, rather than on the outside looking in.

I arrived at Etsy and the second phase of my career began. I found passion and purpose around a mission that really resonated with me. I spent the last decade of my career really learning peer-to-peer marketplace businesses and community-driven businesses. I like to say I work on the business rather than get ahead. My last role there was product director. And then in September 2022, I transitioned from Etsy to Depop. Looking back, it seems very clear how each of the experiences I have really dovetailed to prepare me to lead this business, a community-driven marketplace with such clear and positive impact potential.

What are Depop’s priorities under your leadership?

Our big ambition ahead is to offer people a more attractive purchasing alternative. If you look at the market opportunity, the resale market is obviously huge and growing rapidly. It is estimated that global resale will grow to US$350 billion by 2027. But what’s really exciting is that resale is moving at three times the rate of the retail fashion industry overall, which means people are choosing to buy more for resale. When thinking about this ambition to offer a more attractive alternative to buying new, there are three things we need to achieve; The first is to make buying and selling on the market incredibly simple and efficient. The second is to really dig into what sets Depop apart, which is more than just a transaction, it’s offering an inspiring and engaging personalized experience. And the third thing we’ll do to get there is bring Depop to a larger and larger audience over time.

What valuable lessons have you learned during your career?

Early in the first phase of my career, one of the things that struck me most, especially working in an industry that was being disrupted by technology, was how critical it is to really listen to your user community and be able to quickly respond to what they need and really want to serve them well. And I think that’s what led me to work at a technology company, and particularly a product-driven company, where the essence of being able to build a great business comes from that active listening.

The other big learning I would highlight is really about leadership. When I started my career, I thought that being a great leader was having all the answers and that was how you guided yourself. What I’ve realized in my career is that great leadership is actually about doing two things really well: providing great clarity of purpose and direction so people can understand how their work contributes collectively to the common goal, and creating an environment where people are empowered to do great work and actually discover the answers on their own.

Depop has a young audience. How will you build lasting relationships with customers and maintain their interest as they age?

The opportunity for us is to be more than just a place where you shop, but a place where you find inspiration. And I think this has no age. Our offering really resonates with young people, but that’s not limited to Gen Z. Our value proposition sits at the intersection of style, value and sustainability, this core value proposition really sets us apart. We are in the early years of this business and our offering has really struck a chord with young consumers, especially as they care more than any previous generation about the impact their choices have on the world around them. But this idea of ​​wanting to find great style, great value and shopping in a way that is more sustainable in the long term is more important to people of all generations.

Resale platforms can be gentrified as sellers use them to create profitable businesses. Is Depop accessible across all economic backgrounds, at the selling and buying level?

What we offer and how it reflects the broader community we serve is incredibly important to us. In terms of who we serve, anyone can be successful selling on Depop. And we see that our sellers’ stories are as diverse as those of individuals around the world. Sure you have stories from really amazing influencers to creative professionals who have built a business or launched their own fashion lines, but equally, you have many more people around the world who sell unwanted things from their closets. Our salespeople come from different backgrounds and have different motivations and ideas for success. In terms of what you can find, we sell items of various styles and price ranges. You can find clothes for everyday and special occasions – or items you can’t find anywhere else. And that’s what makes Depop so amazing. It’s the uniqueness and breadth of our inventory.

One of Depop’s priorities under previous leadership was attracting more diverse employees and users. Did you inherit that priority and what do those efforts look like?

Diversity is extremely important to us in multiple dimensions. First, building diverse teams is an extremely important priority. It’s the right thing to do and it’s good business. We know that more diverse teams are more effective and more creative because of the diversity of thinking they bring to the table, especially for a product-driven technology business. The more diverse our team is, the more it reflects the community we serve and the better we will be at building a product and experience that meets that diversity of needs.

One of the ways to get there is from the top. I am very proud that we have built a leadership team that is 60% female and ethnically diverse. We set public goals that we publish every year around our impact goals, and that includes our diversity goals. We evaluate ourselves regularly and publish how we are doing. Every hiring manager is required to have a diverse pool of candidates that we interview, because you can’t find candidates, you can’t hire people, if you’re not looking at a diverse pool.

With the emergence of major competitors like Vinted, how does Depop stay competitive?

Fundamentally, we believe the future of fashion is simpler. And what this means is that it’s a good sign that there are more and more companies innovating in the circular fashion space. This means more business, more business models, it means resale agents are participating in circular fashion resale. We’re happy to see this, because it means more and more people are realizing that reselling is a great option for living a more circular lifestyle. We have a really unique and powerful value proposition that sits at that intersection of style, sustainability and value. And I think if you look at other competitors, they might be really great at one or maybe two of them, but Depop really stands out in how we deliver all three. Finding this combination in one place is increasingly important for consumers.

What is your plan to make the business profitable?

Profitability is definitely something that is important and in focus. I think that to have the long-term impact that we want to have, being profitable is the basis of a truly sustainable business in the long term. It’s definitely something we’ll be working on over the next few years and I think the most important factor is continuing to grow the business. We’re really encouraged by what we’re seeing in terms of growth trends in the business last year and also this year.