Pre-loved fashion reseller Messina Hembry is on a mission to address a major issues holding its sector back: the hidden costs that inhibit it scaling into profitability. And it’s using artificial intelligence (AI) to address the issue.
Messina Hembry has partnered with Aistetic, a University of Oxford spin-off that has “revolutionised the listing process” for its brand, helping it “successfully carve out a niche in vintage and resale fashion with over 7,000 new pieces being uploaded each week”.
It says that despite the sector seeing rapid growth, the market has a persistent issue, noting that while Vinted has recently turned a profit, other major resale platforms such as ThredUp and The RealReal “have faced challenges after their IPOs, struggling to find the balance between sustainability and profitability”.
It points to the costly and inefficient labour-intensive process of re-merchandising secondhand clothing, noting that each pre-loved piece is unique, “requiring careful attention, from quality control to photography, to ensure that it’s ready for resale”.
Additionally, the complexity of reverse SKU logistics — essentially managing single-item fulfilment on a massive scale — adds to the friction that resale platforms face.
On the shopper side, the struggle is just as real. While some relish the thrill of hunting for the perfect pre-owned item, many others are overwhelmed by the sheer volume of choices and the frustration of endless scrolling through disorganised listings.
“Resale platforms must capture the excitement of the treasure hunt while simultaneously eliminating the time-consuming process of scrolling, searching, and endless comparisons. What shoppers need are tools that make the search faster, smarter, and more personalised,” the company said.
So Aistetic’s AI-powered computer vision solution claims to enable Messina Hembry to tag, label, and describe garments directly from images, automating the once-manual process of cataloging each item.
What once required significant human labour now happens at lightning speed, unlocking the potential to scale in ways that were previously impossible. This breakthrough technology allows the company to tag and list more items more effectively, we’re told.
Messina Hembry’s CEO Zac Hembry, said: “Using Aistetic’s AI Listing solution has revolutionised our workflow. We’ve seen a 3x increase in our listing capacity, a 70% reduction in our workflows and increases in conversions linked to faster, more accurate tagging”.
Duncan McKay, CEO of Aistetic, added:“Our goal is to empower resale platforms with the AI tools they need to scale profitably while driving sustainability. Through this partnership with Messina Hembry, we’re helping them unlock more capacity, enhance the shopping experience, and contribute to the circular economy.
“AI is making it possible for resale platforms to scale quickly and profitably while reducing the friction that often frustrates shoppers.”
