How to Categorize Products for ThredUp

Understanding ThredUp Product Categorization

ThredUp has emerged as the world's largest online resale platform, revolutionizing the secondhand fashion industry with a mission to inspire a new generation to think secondhand first. Founded in 2009, ThredUp processes millions of secondhand items annually, offering consumers access to quality fashion at fraction of retail prices while promoting circular economy principles that reduce textile waste and environmental impact. Proper product categorization within ThredUp's ecosystem is essential for ensuring items reach the right buyers and contribute to the platform's sustainable fashion marketplace.

The ThredUp product taxonomy reflects the unique requirements of resale fashion, combining traditional apparel categorization with condition assessment, brand authentication, and sustainable shopping attributes. Unlike traditional retailers selling new merchandise, ThredUp's taxonomy must accommodate the pre-owned nature of items while maintaining clear category structures that facilitate discovery. Major divisions include Women's spanning all categories from tops and dresses to outerwear and intimates; Kids covering children's apparel from infant to youth sizes; Plus Size featuring extended sizing for women; Maternity with pregnancy-specific fashion; and specialty categories for designer items, vintage pieces, and new-with-tags merchandise.

Manual categorization for ThredUp presents distinctive challenges related to the resale model's scale and variety. Each day, ThredUp receives thousands of items from Clean Out kits, requiring efficient processing systems that accurately identify brands, styles, sizes, and conditions. The platform's quality standards mean items must be categorized appropriately for their condition tier, from Like New to Good, affecting visibility and pricing. Our AI-powered categorization API addresses these challenges by understanding resale-specific attributes, recognizing over 35,000 brands, and accurately placing items within ThredUp's sustainable fashion taxonomy.

ThredUp's customer base represents environmentally conscious consumers who value sustainable shopping, brand quality at accessible prices, and the treasure-hunt experience of discovering unique secondhand finds. These shoppers navigate the platform through brand searches, size filters, category browsing, and curated collections. Understanding the ThredUp taxonomy means understanding how resale shoppers discover items, whether seeking specific designer pieces, building affordable wardrobes, or exploring trending styles. Our technology ensures secondhand items achieve optimal categorization for maximum discoverability in this growing circular fashion marketplace.

ThredUp Resale Fashion Category System

The ThredUp category structure represents a specialized resale fashion taxonomy designed to serve both sellers consigning items and buyers seeking secondhand treasures. Unlike new retail taxonomies, ThredUp's system incorporates resale-specific considerations including condition grading, brand tier positioning, and the unique browsing behaviors of value-conscious fashion shoppers. This approach enables efficient item processing while maximizing discoverability for the millions of unique secondhand items in ThredUp's inventory.

Major divisions within the ThredUp taxonomy include Women's covering the full range of apparel categories from tops, bottoms, dresses, and outerwear to activewear, swimwear, and intimates; Kids spanning infant through youth sizes with age and gender subdivisions; Plus Size featuring extended sizing typically 14W and above; Maternity with pregnancy-appropriate styles; Shoes including heels, flats, boots, sneakers, and sandals; Accessories encompassing bags, jewelry, scarves, and belts; and specialty collections like Designer items, Vintage finds, and New With Tags merchandise. Each category supports filtering by brand, size, condition, and style attributes crucial for resale shopping.

Primary ThredUp Categories

ThredUp continuously evolves its taxonomy to accommodate fashion trends, emerging brands, and changing resale market dynamics. The platform's growth into new categories and demographic segments requires flexible categorization systems that can adapt quickly. Our AI models are trained on current ThredUp category structures and updated regularly to ensure secondhand items achieve optimal placement for resale success in this dynamic circular fashion marketplace.

API Integration Guide

Integrating our ThredUp categorization API into your resale platform is straightforward. We provide RESTful endpoints that accept product information including brand, item type, size, condition indicators, and style attributes, returning detailed categorization results optimized for ThredUp's secondhand fashion taxonomy.

import requests

def categorize_for_thredup(product_description, api_key):
    base_url = "https://www.productcategorization.com/api/ecommerce/ecommerce_category6_get.php"
    params = {
        "query": product_description,
        "api_key": api_key,
        "data_type": "thredup"
    }
    response = requests.get(base_url, params=params)
    return response.json()

# Example usage
result = categorize_for_thredup(
    "Madewell Women's Denim Jacket Medium Wash Button Front Size Small Like New",
    "your_api_key_here"
)
print(f"Category: {result['category']}")

async function categorizeForThredUp(productDescription, apiKey) {
    const baseUrl = 'https://www.productcategorization.com/api/ecommerce/ecommerce_category6_get.php';
    const params = new URLSearchParams({
        query: productDescription,
        api_key: apiKey,
        data_type: 'thredup'
    });
    const response = await fetch(`${baseUrl}?${params}`);
    return response.json();
}

// Example usage
categorizeForThredUp('Reformation Floral Midi Dress Red Size 4 Excellent Condition', 'your_api_key')
    .then(result => console.log('Category:', result.category));

curl -X GET "https://www.productcategorization.com/api/ecommerce/ecommerce_category6_get.php" \
  -d "query=Lululemon Align Leggings Black Size 6 High Rise 25 inch" \
  -d "api_key=your_api_key_here" \
  -d "data_type=thredup"