The Coolest Brands You Can Buy On Depop Are Handmade

Scrolling through ASOS or Zara these days can quickly send the best of us into a stupor. Seeing the same styles, cuts and colours everywhere can leave you crying out for a crumb of originality – something, anything – to stop you giving in and buying the same top that everyone on your Instagram feed is sporting. Luckily, Depop may just be the answer to all your problems.

Widely known as the place to buy secondhand high street and vintage gems, Depop has risen to fame due to its Instagram-style, user-friendly interface and emphasis on sustainable secondhand fashion. However, more and more young people are using it as a platform to launch their own handmade labels, aided by tutorials and ‘thrift flips’ from YouTube and TikTok. Instead of following the crowd and buying the same high street pieces as their peers, young people are now taking matters into their own hands, creating cool and innovative pieces that stand out from the trend-dominated fashion market.

Depop itself is committed to giving young makers a platform. "Depop has always championed creative entrepreneurship, inclusivity and a sustainable, circular mentality," a Depop spokesperson tells me. "With 90% of our active users being under the age of 26, Depop exists to support the next generation in their transformation of the fashion industry. 
 
"With that mission, we’ve committed to amplifying our community’s diverse creative voices and perspectives – giving them a platform to be a part of the fashion industry. Depop offers simple tools to start an independent business; the freedom of self-expression and a hyper-engaged social community, along with tangible guidance on how to take your business to the next level."

The wealth of easily accessible sewing tutorials online, combined with the ease of setting up a shop on Depop, has enabled smaller, marginalised creators to come to the fore. Giving a platform to makers who may not otherwise have access to expensive fashion degrees or prestigious design internships, Depop has helped to democratise the market, shaking up the fashion industry with designs you quite literally can’t find anywhere else. "By empowering our young community and helping them realise their dreams, we're helping enable a more democratic, accessible and diverse fashion industry, and one that’s less wasteful."

Click through to meet seven of Depop's coolest makers to shop now.