How Grailed drives culture through fashion

Founded in 2013, Grailed was born as an online marketplace for the resale of luxury goods, streetwear, and archival jewelry. The site in question was created by Arun Gupta, Julian Connor, and Jake Metzger, but it has been enthusiasts (sellers, buyers, and the curious) who have made it famous, attracted by a curated selection of resale pieces, including an inventory exclusive to the platform. In 2022, it was acquired by GOAT Group, with the goal of bringing together the best products of yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

In addition to having become one of the world’s leading resale sites, Grailed has a large community, attracted by its extensive blogging activity. In sections such as “Surfaces”, “Staff Picks” or “Master Class”, which they put out both on their instagram and on their website, they give full details about trends, personalities and archive pieces that have played a crucial role in the evolution of the synergies between culture and fashion.

This month, it expanded its physical presence with a pop-up experience during Paris Fashion Week that dove into the relationship between rave culture and fashion from the 1990s to the present day. RAVEWEAR, in collaboration with Boiler Room, presented an archive available for purchase on-site that encompassed vintage, rare designer and contemporary pieces from the Grailed Archive and nearly 300 items from its best sellers and collectors. All of them related to the universe of rave culture. There you could find real gems from Walter Van Beirendonck, Balenciaga, Rick Owens, Hood by Air, Shayne Oliver, even Oakley Over The Top glasses, which have been used by artists like Travis Scott or Rauw Alejandro in their concerts.

El espacio de la pop-up también se diseñó como lugar de reunión de la comunidad, que se complementaba con una mesa de DJ en la que cualquiera podía ponerse a pinchar para para un buen rato. ¿El objetivo? Poner cara a la comunidad. 

Community is a word that is used a lot nowadays; all brands do it with their marketing strategies, social networks… but Grailed has become a full-fledged one. It is a platform for resale, yes, but also to find common ground with other lovers of the same cultural codes that Grailed promotes.

Today Grailed can be found in anything, from sponsoring brands like Slam Jam pop up space for others like Heliot Emil, and even hosting parties that bring his community together. In short, it has become a space where people share their stylistic passions and cultural references. The showcase it has become, serves to give vendors, small brands and artists more reach. The result? Grailed as a promoter of contemporary culture.