Gen Z and millennial graduates are calling their degrees worthless. Meanwhile, bosses are saying the same degrees failed to prepare them for the workforce. They may both be right. Shockingly, young people are saying they’ve learned more about the business world from selling their clothes on the likes of Vinted and Depop than they did in college.
That’s according to new research exclusively shared with Fortune from secondhand fashion marketplace Depop, which found that 71% of Gen Z sellers say online resale has taught them more practical business knowledge than their formal education did.
And bosses agree. A striking 85% of hiring managers say candidates should be listing their resale experience on their resume—and they’d even be more likely to interview an equally qualified candidate if they had it, over one who didn’t.
Running an online reselling business was even more impressive to hiring managers than a traditional internship.
When asked what experience would most impress them in an entry-level candidate, 65% pointed to resale, compared to just 46% who said the same about internships, 39% for retail or hospitality work, and 35% for social media management.
Reselling unwanted clothes is teaching Gen Z what college didn’t: pricing strategy, sales, and customer service
For many Gen Z resellers, selling their secondhand clothes (or electronics, or homeware, for that matter) started out as a way to make a little extra cash while facing down the worst entry-level job market in decades. But it could be the very thing that makes them stand out among the millions of unemployed young people who are spamming bosses with the same AI-written résumé.
Max Hunt, who according to Depop is a top seller on the platform, said that thrifting his clothes “helped me pay for gas, contribute toward my college expenses, and develop skills in branding, marketing, customer service, and entrepreneurship.”
Without even realizing it, Gen Z sellers have been building a masterclass in running a small business. Depop’s research found they’ve picked up pricing strategy, sales, budgeting, negotiation, customer service, and marketing—all while just trying to clear out their closets.
And employers have taken stock of it too: More than nine in ten hiring managers say that running a successful resale account demonstrates entrepreneurial ability and initiative. A further 88% say it shows commercial awareness, and 87% believe it builds transferable workplace skills.
It’ll be good news for young resellers, many of whom (49%) didn’t realize their resale experience actually counts for anything professionally—let alone be the very thing that could get them hired over another candidate.
“For years we’ve watched people come to Depop to earn an income through creativity and entrepreneurship, but what often goes unnoticed are the professional skills they’re building along the way,” Depop CEO Peter Semple said. “It’s exciting to see resale recognized as experience worth including on a CV.”
Reselling skills being so hot among employers is a sign of how far degrees have fallen
Depop’s research confirms something bigger than simply the benefits of listing yourself as a reseller in the hopes of getting hired: it’s another nail in the coffin for degrees, which have already lost much of their value. Great Place to Work surveys tens of thousands of companies every year for its rankings, and its CEO Michael Bush concluded they’ve become completely irrelevant.
“The overwhelming focus of the last five years—and among companies on our list—is around skills and skills development,” he told Fortune. “They’re not even talking about degrees now. They’re talking about skills. What skills do you have and what skills are going to be needed in the future? A lot of activity there.”
Meanwhile, employers are complaining that graduates are entering the workforce completely unequipped; They’re noting that universities have failed to teach young adults basic skills like speaking up in meetings, conducting presentations, and even how to communicate professionally—and it’s putting them off hiring fresh-faced graduates altogether.
It explains why hiring managers like to see relevant experience listed on candidates’ career history, as it highlights some skill level beyond their studies. But watching the shift toward skills and personality over credentials is just more salt to the wound for those who wasted years of their lives (and thousands in student loans) to a degree.
Now, a third of graduates are admitting that their degree wasn’t financially worth it, leaving many unable to save for a first home or even retirement for a decade after graduating.
Instead of their degree being the launch pad for a successful life and career, some 14% admit they had to delay moving out of their parents’ house and starting a family because they’re drowning in debt.
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