Low budgeted, Cash-strapped fashionistas are turning to eBay

Cash-strapped fashionistas are turning to eBay to supplement their wardrobes in the face of rising clothes prices.

Figures from the online auction site show that the sale of shoes, clothes and accessories has risen 55pc in the last two years, and 29pc this year alone.

This week's inflation figures provided some respite from soaring clothes prices, which have been hit by the cost of oil. The wholesale cost of cotton has tripled in a year after poor harvests in China and Pakistan, and experts fear the rise in clothing prices will continue. Official figures for last year registered Britain's first increase in clothing and footwear prices since 1992, up 0.9pc.

High street retailers say that prices of clothes will continue to rise over the summer, with Debenhams warning that a man's winter coat will cost 20pc more this autumn than last, while retail consultancy Verdict is forecasting 5pc inflation in clothing prices across the board.

Instead, customers are opting to buy their clothes second-hand, with increasing numbers also selling on items on the auction website when they have finished with them. The list of popular brands ranges from top-end luxury to modest workwear, while shoppers are also taking advantage of the new Fashion Outlet stores on eBay, where top high street brands are sold brand new for less

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Figures from eBay showed that when customers want clothes, the top terms they search for are Mulberry, Next, Superdry and Topshop. Just over half of the items sold on the clothing section of the site go via auction, many of which are second-hand. The remaining items are sold at a fixed price.

The outlet sells discounted items from popular high street brands. Retailers using it include House of Fraser, Jigsaw, Karen Millen, Office, Kookai, Ted Baker, L.K. Bennett, Very.co.uk and Figleaves.

Ruth Szyszkowski from eBay said: "The constant squeeze on the fashionista's purse has seen many turn to online for an easy fashion hit without the extra overheads. Our clothes, shoes and accessories category is still the most visited on eBay, especially when shopping via mobiles."

She added that more people were also logging on to sell unwanted goods as the credit crunch hit. "We've also seen the number of people who sold on the site increase by 13pc between 2009 and 2010. Interestingly, we're also seeing a massive shift over the years in instant gratification purchases and now 60pc of items sold globally are at a fixed price rather than auction."

eBay's gain is the high street's loss, with the British Retail Consortium announcing an unprecedented slump in sales last month, down 1.9pc, or 3.5pc if you ignore new store openings. Clothes shops reported their biggest drop in sales since August 2009.

The most popular items on eBay are clothes, T-shirt tops and dresses, with prices often well below the high street cost. According to the site, the average selling price for a dress is £13.

Other clothing options for the recessionista include "swishing" – essentially clothes-swapping parties. While some people organise such parties among themselves, there are also larger, more organised events. The website swishing.com lists some. The parties sometimes become so heated that one of the rules is "remember, no scratching, spitting or fighting".

Other shoppers prefer discount sites like outnet.com for designer clothes. There has also been a rise in "members only" sites that offer cheaper designer clothing. They may sound exclusive, but many simply require you to set up a free profile – your login name and contact details. Secret Sales, Brand Alley and Achica are three of the popular sites. Many of these websites act as middle men, so delivery may take longer than from full–price online retailers.