Before plunging into those Black Friday sales with your holiday shopping list in hand, remember that your fashion sense might not match your mother’s.
Returns are huge after the holidays: online thrift store thredUP says it sees a surge of new-with-tags items every January. The influx of roughly 250,000 brand new items (presumably rejected gifts) each new year amounts to 60% more than what the company receives normally.
To make sure your loved ones won’t be wishing they got a gift receipt with that new sweater, thredUP released a list of the most purged holiday gifts. These are the items that thredUP saw the biggest surge in new-with-tags as a percentage of all inventory.
Topping the list was J. Crew cardigans. They may be practical, but according to thredUP’s data, they’re not what people love to see when they open up a gift. Neither are Nike sneakers, Lululemon cutout shirts, or Victoria Secret swimsuits (apparently no one wants to think of exercise or swimsuit models after the reality of that holiday weight gain settles in).
Ruffles are also questionable: both Banana Republic ruffle dresses and Express ruffle tops made the list of top 10 rejected gifts. As did Forever 21 T-shirts, ASOS maxi dresses, James Jeans pants, and Christian Louboutin heels.
If you’re hoping to play it safe but still add some color to someone’s closet this holiday season, thredUP also released a list of its 2018 “brands with least regret”—items thredUP received without tags attached, meaning they were likely worn.
The top brand with the least regret two years running, says thredUP, is Everlane. A few designer brands also made the list, including Prada, Stuart Weitzman, Gucci, and Coach. For outdoor clothes, head to L.L. Bean or REI. The data also shows gifts from Cole Haan or Citizens of Humanity is a safe bet.
The final brand on the list of least regrets is UGG Australia. The fuzzy boots may have been a cringe-worthy sign of popularity in every millennial’s high school, but they’re still loved, says thredUP.
