History as business: Changing dynamics of retailing in Gothenburg’s second-hand market

Abstract

This article traces developments in the second-hand market over the last 15 years in Gothenburg, Sweden. Outlining how the second-hand market is characterised by rapid shifts in ownership, location and type of business, it explores how retailers perceive and negotiate these shifting forces. With an analytical focus on people and things in motion, it aims to increase our understanding of the factors and forces involved in such movement and transience. The article shows how retailers develop an adaptive apparatus for navigating the second-hand market and that market growth translates into motion and flux rather than stability.