The archive · Marketing & Growth · Marketing decision · 2022
eBay's Pre-Loved Island dresses Love Island in second-hand fashion — searches up 7,000%
eBay dressed Love Island's 2022 cast in pre-loved clothes with live auctions; eBay searches for 'pre-loved fashion' rose 7,000%.
eBay UK
What it had to solve
eBay had sold second-hand clothing since 1995 but the category lacked mass appeal among 16–34s, who still treated fast fashion as king; a Leeds University study found 69% of shoppers held a negative view of second-hand clothing.
How it works
In summer 2022 eBay took over the wardrobe of ITV's Love Island, the UK's biggest reality show for 16–34s: contestants appeared in second-hand outfits styled by a celebrity stylist, the show's narrator talked up the brand, and co-branded ads celebrated 'pre-loved looks'. The word 'pre-loved' replaced 'second-hand' everywhere eBay touched the show.
The idea inverted the show's role as a fast-fashion engine. Love Island's eighth series had been sponsored by fast-fashion brands for seven of its eight series, and items worn on screen routinely sold out in minutes. EssenceMediacom used the same influence machinery for the opposite message: pre-loved clothes were on-trend, and viewers could bid live on the season's most-coveted outfits during the show's most-talked-about moments.
Results: 1,700+ positive press pieces and 14 billion+ impressions; mentions of 'pre-loved fashion' up 935%; eBay searches for 'pre-loved fashion' up 7,000% and Google searches for 'eBay pre-loved clothes' up 756%. eBay ended the year as the UK's number-one destination for pre-loved fashion, and the campaign took a Grand Prix at the WARC Awards for Effectiveness 2023.
Why it lands
- Love Island was the machine that made fast fashion sell out, so dressing its cast reversed the trend engine instead of fighting it.
- Renaming the category 'pre-loved' reframed second-hand from compromise to desire, giving the media a new word to repeat.
- Live auctions converted the show's talkability directly into commerce, making the partnership measurable, not just visible.
- First-in-break slots in peak episodes plus BVOD and social layering let one partnership behave like an always-on campaign.
What it did
Over 1,700 positive press pieces worth more than 14 billion impressions; mentions of 'pre-loved fashion' up 935% across platforms; eBay searches for 'pre-loved fashion' up 7,000% and Google searches for 'eBay pre-loved clothes' up 756%; eBay became the UK's number-one destination for pre-loved fashion.
What you can take
Instead of telling young people to buy second-hand, change what the cultural machine that makes trends wears; reframe the category inside culture rather than advertising it from outside.
Since then
The partnership expanded into eBay's headline sponsorship of Love Island in later series, and the 'pre-loved' vocabulary spread across UK retail. The campaign won a Grand Prix at the WARC Awards for Effectiveness 2023 and became a reference case for turning a sponsorship into a cultural reframe.
Sources
- eBay: Making the pre-loved Loved with a TV Partnership
- WARC Awards for Effectiveness name Grand Prix & Gold winners
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