UK’s Car Boot Culture Moves Online: Peer-to-Peer Merchants Capitalise on Pre-Loved Boom

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The traditional car boot sale – once the spring / summer hallmark of British grassroots retail – is transitioning online, as online platforms are increasingly being used to sell pre-loved items to reach wider audiences and optimise returns. Checkout.com, which processes billions of transactions for thousands of companies that shape the digital economy, has reported a 127% uplift in pre-loved transactions from February to March this year.

It seems the busiest days for pre-loved purchases this year were Sunday 23rd March and Sunday 30th March, the first two weekends after the spring equinox (21st March), which marks the official start of spring. From September 2024 to March 2025 alone, the volume of pre-loved transactions as a proportion of Checkout.com’s total processed business increased by 680%. 

These findings add to evidence of a growing trend towards online pre-loved sales. A recent report from Evri found that 55% of the UK – approximately 28m people – purchased a pre-loved item online between November 2023 and November 2024, and 47% had sold an item online in the same timeframe. According to GlobalData, sales of pre-owned clothes are set to reach $350bn by 2028 and make up 10% total global fashion sales – a 77.8% increase from 2023’s volume. 

Checkout.com is uniquely placed to support the pre-loved market thanks to its dedicated focus on the digital economy, which is distinct from other payments providers. It processes billions of transactions for thousands of companies that shape the digital economy worldwide, prioritising industry-leading acceptance rates and value for the merchants it serves. 

Its network of merchants includes some of the nation’s most notable shopping brands, including Vinted, Sainsbury’s and Uber Eats. The trend data released today shows an aggregated picture of transaction volume by merchant sector. 

Checkout.com CMO Rory O’Neill said: “What was once predominantly an in-person, peer-to-peer experience is now increasingly shifting online. Consequently, Checkout.com has become the partner of choice to transact on behalf of the global pre-loved merchant landscape. This is the result of our unrivalled focus on the digital economy, for which we operate exclusively, and our commitment to the highest levels of transaction performance on behalf of the brands we serve.”