The Business School no one is talking about: New Depop research finds resale builds skills employers want

Before landing their first graduate role, many young Americans are already gaining practical business experience through online resale. They’re pricing products, negotiating with customers, creating marketing campaigns, managing inventory, building brands and growing audiences, all while earning money through selling online.

New research from Depop, suggests that online resale is emerging as an unexpected source of career ready skills. Among surveyed hiring managers, 65%¹ selected running an online resale business as one of the experiences that would most impress them when evaluating an entry-level candidate, ahead of internships (46%), part-time retail or hospitality work (39%) and running a social media or content creation account (35%)

The study surveyed 1,000 US Gen Z respondents aged 18–28 who have resold items online and 250 US hiring managers in June 2026. Just over nine in ten (91%) hiring managers agree it demonstrates entrepreneurial ability, and the same proportion agree it demonstrates initiative and self-motivation. A further 88% agree it demonstrates commercial awareness, and 87% agree it develops transferable workplace skills.²

For many Gen Z seller respondents, selling online compares favourably with more traditional professional development pathways. Just over seven in ten (71%) say it has taught them more practical business knowledge than their formal education,⁴ while 52% say it has taught them more than any internship they have completed.⁵ When asked which experiences have taught them the most real-world business or entrepreneurial skills, Gen Z resellers ranked running an online resale business second only to a part-time job (54%), ahead of formal education (35%), volunteering (33%) and internships (25%).⁶

Resale also gives young people access to a broad range of practical business skills. Respondents say resale has helped them develop pricing strategy (53%), sales (50%), communication (47%), negotiation (46%), customer service (45%), marketing (37%), budgeting (33%), problem solving (33%), time management (32%), social media management (32%) and entrepreneurship (27%).³ Three-quarters of those surveyed say it has improved their financial literacy (75%) and confidence (73%), and 76% say it has sharpened their problem-solving abilities.⁷

Max Hunt, Depop Top Seller, said: “I truly believe I have gained valuable experience building my upcycling business on Depop. What started as turning thrifted clothing into one-of-one pieces has helped me pay for gas, contribute toward my college expenses, and develop skills in branding, marketing, customer service, and entrepreneurship.”

Despite this, many young sellers remain uncertain about how employers view their experience. Almost half (49%) say running an online resale business has helped them develop valuable professional skills but they are unsure whether employers value them⁸, even though 85% of surveyed hiring managers⁹ believe candidates should include relevant online resale experience on their CV or résumé, and 76%¹⁰ say they would be more likely to invite an otherwise equally qualified candidate to interview if they had relevant resale experience. The gap is not about whether sellers value what they have built. It is about whether they believe employers do too.

Peter Semple, CEO of Depop said: “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. Negotiating, marketing, managing customers and solving problems are all valuable, transferable skills that can open doors to future careers – it’s exciting to see resale recognised as experience worth including on a CV.”

As more young people gain practical experience through entrepreneurial and non-traditional routes, Depop is investing in programmes that help them continue developing those skills. Depop’s student programme, Depop on Campus, gives participants real experience in marketing, events, content creation and project management alongside what many are already building through resale.

Nhi Huynh, Campus Manager for the Depop on Campus programme, “Hosting events as part of Depop’s student program meant introducing myself to new people, explaining why reselling matters efficiently, reading the room, answering questions, and adapting my approach depending on who I was talking to. You spend your whole career pitching your ideas, yourself, projects, campaigns, funding, collaborations, and the program gives you practice doing that.”

About Depop

Depop is the community-powered circular fashion marketplace where people can buy, sell and discover desirable, affordable secondhand fashion. Together with its community of approximately 56 million registered users, Depop is on a mission to make fashion circular — encouraging more people to choose secondhand and extend the lives of their clothes, redefining fashion consumption. Founded in 2011, Depop is headquartered in London, with an office in New York, and has a team of approximately 500 employees. For more information, visit www.depop.com.

About the Research

Research conducted by Censuswide. Sample A: 1,000 US Gen Z respondents who have resold items online, aged 18–28. Sample B: 250 US Hiring Managers, aged 18+. Data collected 24–30 June 2026. Censuswide is a member of the Market Research Society (MRS) and the British Polling Council (BPC), and a signatory of the Global Data Quality Pledge. All data adheres to MRS Code of Conduct and ESOMAR principles.

Notes to Editors

All statistics cited in this release are drawn directly from the survey questions as asked. Percentage figures represent the proportion of respondents selecting each response option or agreeing with each statement as worded in the questionnaire. ’Agree net’ figures combine ’strongly agree’ and ’somewhat agree’ responses. ’More net’ and ’positively net’ figures are calculated equivalently.

¹ Drawn from Q6 of the hiring manager survey: “Which, if any, experience would impress you most when evaluating an entry-level candidate? (Select up to 3).” Respondents could select up to three options, so figures do not sum to 100%. Running an online resale business was selected by more hiring managers (65%) than any other experience, ahead of internships (46%) and part-time retail or hospitality work (39%). Because respondents’ selections were not ranked, the data shows which experiences were chosen most often, not which single experience each respondent considered most impressive. Base: 250 US Hiring Managers, aged 18+.

² All figures are agree net drawn from Q4 of the hiring manager survey: “To what extent, if at all, do you agree or disagree with the following statements?” The exact statements as presented to respondents were: “Running an online resale business demonstrates entrepreneurial ability” (91%); “Running an online resale business demonstrates initiative and self-motivation” (91%); “Running an online resale business demonstrates commercial awareness” (88%); “Running an online resale business develops transferable workplace skills” (87%). Agree net combines ’strongly agree’ and ’somewhat agree’ responses. Base: 250 US Hiring Managers, aged 18

³ Drawn from Q2 of the Gen Z survey: “Which, if any, of the following skills have you developed through selling items online? (Select all that apply).” As this was a multi-select question, figures do not sum to 100% and each percentage represents the proportion of respondents who selected that skill independently. Base: 1,000 US Gen Z respondents who have resold items online, aged 18–28.

⁴ Drawn from Q8 of the Gen Z survey: “Compared with your education, how much more or less practical business knowledge has selling online taught you?” More net combines ’much more’ (27%) and ’slightly more’ (44%). This question was asked of all 1,000 Gen Z respondents regardless of educational background or attainment. Base: 1,000 US Gen Z respondents who have resold items online, aged 18–28.

⁵ Drawn from Q9 of the Gen Z survey: “Compared with any internship you have completed, how much more or less practical workplace knowledge has selling online taught you?” More net combines ’much more’ (22%) and ’slightly more’ (30%) responses. This question was asked of all 1,000 Gen Z respondents; respondents who had not completed an internship were included in the base. Base: 1,000 US Gen Z respondents who have resold items online, aged 18–28.

⁶ Drawn from Q7 of the Gen Z survey: “Which, if any, of the following experiences has taught you the most real-world business or entrepreneurial skills? (Select up to 3).” As respondents could select up to three options, figures do not sum to 100% and no forced ranking was applied. Each figure represents the proportion of respondents who included that experience among their selections. Base: 1,000 US Gen Z respondents who have resold items online, aged 18–28.

⁷ All figures are agree net drawn from Q4 of the Gen Z survey: “To what extent, if at all, do you agree or disagree with the following statements?” The exact statements as presented to respondents were: “Selling online has improved my problem-solving abilities” (76%); “Selling online has improved my financial literacy” (75%); “Selling online has improved my confidence” (73%). Agree net combines ’strongly agree’ and ’somewhat agree’ responses. Base: 1,000 US Gen Z respondents who have resold items online, aged 18–28.

⁸ Drawn from Q15 of the Gen Z survey: “Which, if any, of the following statements best reflects your view?” The exact response options as presented to respondents were: “Running an online resale business has provided me with professional skills that employers value” (42%); “Running an online resale business has provided me with skills, but I am unsure whether employers value them” (49%); “Running an online resale business has not provided me with professional skills” (4%). Base: 1,000 US Gen Z respondents who have resold items online, aged 18–28.

⁹ Agree net drawn from Q4 of the hiring manager survey: “To what extent, if at all, do you agree or disagree with the following statements?” The exact statement as presented to respondents was: “Candidates should include online resale experience on their CV/resume.” Agree net combines ’strongly agree’ and ’somewhat agree’ responses. Base: 250 US Hiring Managers, aged 18+.

¹⁰ Drawn from Q10 of the hiring manager survey: “If two candidates were otherwise equally qualified, would relevant online resale experience make you more likely to invite one of them to interview?” 76% selected ’yes’. Base: 250 US Hiring Managers, aged 18+.