NASDAQ: REAL

We operate neighborhood retail stores which are typically 1,800 to 3,500 square feet with items for sale reflecting a selection of the Company's online assortment. These smaller footprint neighborhood stores are located in areas we have identified as having a large amount of potential customers. These stores attract new customers and provide an in person consignment experience for our consignors. In addition, we operate several larger footprint flagship stores in San Francisco, California, Los Angeles, California and New York, New York. Our flagship stores are typically 8,000 to 10,000

square feet with thousands of unique items for sale and are located in highly desirable, densely populated locations with strong foot traffic.

Our Market

The existing luxury resale market is fragmented, difficult to access and laden with counterfeit goods. Primarily due to these challenges, a vast quantity of consignable luxury goods languishes in homes, and buyers can be hesitant to purchase pre-owned luxury goods. We are transforming the luxury resale experience by addressing these challenges.

• We provide a seamless consignment experience enabled by our proprietary technology platform and data. Our sales team, enabled by our proprietary technology and data analytics, provides world-class service, making consignment easy, convenient, reliable and fast. As a result, we unlock luxury supply from first-time consignors, convert consignors who typically consign at local brick-and-mortar shops to our online marketplace and drive high repeat consignment rates. We leverage data from millions of transactions and current market data to optimize pricing and sales velocity for our consignors.

• We offer buyers a vast, yet curated supply of primarily pre-owned luxury goods and instill trust in the buying process. All consigned items are put through our authentication process and thoroughly inspected for quality and condition, which builds trust in our buyer base. This trust drives repeat purchases from our buyer base and instills confidence in first-time buyers to purchase pre-owned luxury goods.

• We also operate stores. Our retail stores are valuable to us in multiple ways as they help us reach higher value consignors and buyers, increase lifetime value, increase average order value, and lower return rates. We also benefit from increased brand awareness that accelerates overall market growth.

Our Competition

We compete with vendors of new and pre-owned luxury goods, including branded luxury goods stores, department stores, traditional brick-and-mortar consignment stores, pawn shops, auction houses, specialty retailers, discount chains, independent retail stores, the online offerings of traditional retail competitors, resale players focused on niche or single categories, as well as technology-enabled marketplaces that may offer the same or similar luxury goods and services that we offer. As the market evolves, new competitors may emerge, including traditional retail competitors who expand their offerings to include resale. We are able to compete for consignors based on our strong market positioning, diverse category and brand offerings, rich data and technology, and advanced authentication capabilities and expertise. Our full service, multi-channel approach provides consignors with convenient consignment options. For more information regarding risks of competitive factors impacting our business, see the information in “Item 1A: Risk Factors”.

Our Consignors

By making consignment easy, convenient, reliable and fast for our consignors, we aim to unlock a vast quantity of desirable, high-quality, primarily pre-owned luxury goods. Our sales professionals remove friction from the consignment process and build lasting relationships with our consignors. In 2025, over 80% of our gross merchandise value ("GMV") came from repeat consignors. Our unique service model incentivizes consumers to consign by making the process easy.

Our sales and service organization is responsible for obtaining exclusive supply for our online marketplace and retail stores. Our sales professionals generate a robust pipeline of new consignors and build lasting relationships, which cannot be easily replicated. They consult on the consignment process and leverage data to advise consignors on pricing, expected selling time and market trends.

• We deliver an end-to-end service experience. We remove friction from the consignment process by providing multiple consignment methods. We offer concierge at-home consultation and pickup, and virtual consultations with consignors. Consignors may also drop off items at our luxury consignment offices. Our retail stores provide an alternative location to drop off consigned items and an opportunity to interact with our authentication experts. Consignors may also utilize our complimentary shipping service to send items directly to our authentication centers.

• We do the work on behalf of consignors. All consigned items are authenticated, written up photographed, priced, sold and fulfilled on behalf of the individual consignor, making the consignment process seamless. Improvements in our automation of authentication, pricing, copywriting and photo retouching have improved the efficiency of our operations.

• We generate high commissions for consignors. Our scale and broad reach combined with our technology-driven online marketplace and proprietary data enable consignors to realize optimal value for

their pre-owned luxury goods. Our consignors can earn up to 90% of the proceeds from the sale of their consigned items in commissions and achieved an overall commission rate of approximately 62% in 2025.

• We offer a range of payment options for consignors and businesses. Our consignors are generally paid after an item has sold, however, we also offer trade-in terms and “Get Paid Now” options to both businesses we purchase items directly from and individuals who consign their items with us. “Get Paid Now” is a program whereby select items are evaluated, authenticated and priced and the business or consignor receives payment based on this process in advance of the sale of the item.

• We drive rapid monetization. Our online marketplace efficiently matches supply with demand finding optimal balance between sales velocity and consignor earnings. We sell approximately 50% of the products on our online marketplace within 30 days of being listed for sale. In addition, we measure the ratio of demand versus supply in a given period, which we refer to as our online marketplace sell-through ratio. Sell-through ratio is defined as GMV in the measurement period divided by the aggregate initial value of items added to our online marketplace in that period. Our online marketplace sell-through ratio in 2025 was over 80%.

Our Buyers

We make it easy for buyers to shop our vast, yet curated selection of authenticated, primarily pre-owned luxury goods. In 2025, we had over 1 million active buyers and over 80% of our GMV came from repeat buyers. As we continue to unlock exclusive luxury supply, we aim to attract new buyers and drive repeat purchases from our existing buyers.

•We offer a seamless buying experience. Buyers access our omni-channel online marketplace through our website, mobile app and retail stores, enabling them to purchase anytime, anywhere. Our retail stores also offer our buyers a sophisticated shopping experience, in a beautifully designed space, where they can shop our dynamic curation of authenticated pre-owned luxury goods across all of our categories.

•We build trust through our authentication process. We continue to invest and innovate in authentication, both in our people and our technology. We believe we have the most rigorous authentication process in the resale luxury goods marketplace. We have highly trained gemologists, horologists, and brand experts who collectively inspect thousands of items each day. All items pass through a rigorous brand-specific authentication process before they are accepted for consignment. This process includes, among other things, inspecting the item for attributes such as appropriate brand markings, date codes, serial tags and hologram stickers. We use proprietary artificial intelligence ("AI") to assist in identifying and authenticating multiple categories. For instance, we use AI and microphotography to assist in authenticating high-end handbags. Our gemologists and horologists inspect and authenticate fine jewelry and watches, and each piece we sell comes with an authentication certificate. We utilize state-of-the-art gemological devices, including proprietary gemstone technology, to assist these experts. Additionally, across all of our categories, our experts leverage proprietary item and consignor risk scoring algorithms to assist in authentication. For inventory sold through our drop-ship consignment service that does not pass through our authentication centers, our authentication process includes diligence of our partners and procedures for establishing provenance, as well as quality checks and audits. We have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to counterfeit goods. Items that are deemed to be counterfeit are removed from our authentication centers.

•We provide access to unique, highly coveted and exclusive products. We provide buyers with access to a vast, yet curated selection of unique, authenticated, pre-owned luxury goods. In 2025, we sold goods bearing the brands of thousands of luxury and premium designers, including highly coveted items such as rare watches and handbags.

•We provide a gateway to luxury brands. We believe we are expanding the overall market for both new and pre-owned luxury goods, as the ability to experience and engage with luxury brands through our online marketplace results in an earlier appreciation for high-quality, well-crafted items, and inspires consumers to purchase new luxury items.

Our Technology

Technology powers all aspects of our business, including our complex, individual stock keeping unit (“single-SKU”) inventory management system. Our supply comes from thousands of individual consignors and businesses across the United States. Given the complexity of our inventory model, we developed AI enabled, specialized, proprietary

applications to optimize inbound processes. We increasingly use AI in our technology platform to automate item attribution, authentication, pricing, copywriting and photo retouching for goods sold through our online marketplace.

Our powerful AI and data analytics capabilities enable us to improve both consignor and buyer experiences. Our online marketplace generates and aggregates hundreds of millions of unique data points, including data from over 50 million item sales since our inception. Each consigned item also has up to 50 unique attributes. Informed by this data, we have developed proprietary machine learning technology and business processes to optimize our operations, including supply sourcing, merchandising, authentication, pricing and marketing.

Intellectual Property

Our intellectual property, including copyrights and trademarks, is an important component of our business. We rely on trademark, copyright, trade secrets, patents, patent applications, confidentiality agreements and other practices to protect our brands, proprietary information, technologies and processes. We rely on copyright, patent, and trade secret laws to protect our proprietary technologies and processes, including the algorithms we use throughout our business. Our principal trademark assets include the registered trademark “The RealReal” and our logos and taglines. Our trademarks are valuable assets that support our brand and consumers’ perception of our services and merchandise. We also hold the rights to the “therealreal.com” Internet domain name and various related domain names, which are subject to Internet regulatory bodies and trademark and other related laws of each applicable jurisdiction. We continually review our development efforts to assess the existence and patentability of new intellectual property and pursue patent protection to the extent we believe it is beneficial and cost-effective.

We control access to and use of our intellectual property through confidentiality procedures, non-disclosure agreements with third parties and our employment and contractor agreements. We rely on contractual provisions to protect our proprietary technology, brands and creative assets with consignors and buyers.

Seasonality

Historically, we have observed trends in seasonality of supply and demand in our business. Specifically, our supply increases in the third and fourth quarters, and our demand increases in the fourth quarter. As a result of this seasonality, we typically see stronger average order value (“AOV”), and more rapid sell-through in the fourth quarter.

Environmental, Social and Governance

Our stakeholders are essential to our business—shareholders, consignors, buyers, employees and the communities in which we do business. We aspire to operate our business with positive social and environmental impact.

Our board of directors and its committees provide oversight on certain human capital matters. As noted in its charter, our Compensation, Diversity and Inclusion Committee is responsible for reviewing and recommending to our board of directors compensation plans, policies and programs intended to attract, retain and appropriately reward employees, as well as provide oversight of the Company’s policies, programs, and initiatives focusing on leadership and our workforce. Our Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee provides oversight of the Company’s policies, programs and initiatives focusing on social responsibility, including environmental, sustainability, social and human rights matters. Our Audit Committee works closely with our management to discuss current and emerging risks related to our workforce and what steps management is taking to manage and reduce the Company’s exposure to risk. The actions of these committees and the work of our board of directors and management seek to attract, retain and develop a diverse and inclusive workforce that is motivated to achieve the Company’s business objectives.

Our Sustainability Program

We are committed to extending the lifecycle of luxury goods by promoting their recirculation, rather than creating waste. In this way, sustainability is woven into the fabric of our business, and we hope to create a more sustainable future for fashion. Additionally, we believe a growing awareness of the reduced environmental impact of recirculating luxury goods compared to the production of new products significantly contributes to the appeal of consigning and purchasing on our online marketplace.

As we move forward, we strive to continuously review our sustainability commitments, strategies and priorities. Recent sustainability efforts include:

• Fair and As-is Condition Programs. These programs have enabled us to offer more secondhand, luxury items and have the effect of increasing the total number of consigned items in the circular economy. To

aid buyers in assessing the condition of items in our online marketplace, we assign each item a condition level. In the first quarter of 2022, we began accepting items in “fair” condition, which tend to be listed at more accessible price points given their level of wear. In 2023, with demand for items in fair condition remaining strong, we began accepting items in “as-is” condition. Items in “as-is” condition might show extensive signs of wear and may require repair. Even if an item requires repair, it is still likely to displace the purchase of a brand-new item and avoid unnecessary waste.

• Sustainability Task Force. In 2020, we formed a cross-functional Sustainability Task Force to identify projects throughout the organization that have the potential to reduce our environmental impact. The Sustainability Task Force prioritizes high impact projects and aims to embed a focus on sustainability across the organization. The Sustainability Task Force, through several individual working groups, has concentrated its efforts on specific, meaningful topics, including preferred materials, transportation optimization, employee travel, employee experience, reducing energy expenditures, limiting use of packaging materials, and waste. In 2025, the Sustainability Task Force continued to focus on projects related to packaging, employee engagement, and energy efficiency at our authentication centers.

Human Capital Resources

Our employees are guided by our mission to empower consignors and buyers to extend the life cycle of luxury goods. As of December 31, 2025, we had 3,140 full-time equivalent employees. Additionally, we rely on independent contractors and temporary personnel to supplement our workforce, primarily in our authentication centers. None of our employees is represented by a labor union or covered by a collective bargaining agreement. We consider our relations with our employees to be positive. We conduct annual employee engagement surveys to better understand employees’ sentiment across a range of topics.

Talent Development and Training

We believe that the training and development of our employees is critical to our long-term success. We offer a variety of employee training programs, including training specific to business functions, enabling us to provide our consignors and buyers with a consistent luxury experience. Our authentication teams receive training based on expertise level. Each employee receives training appropriate to the scope and nature of their role. As a part of our onboarding program, we have developed an engagement monitoring plan for our employees in the form of personal check-ins and questionnaires.

Health, Safety and Wellness

We are committed to ensuring the health and safety of all employees and require compliance with all applicable local laws and regulations governing working conditions, working hours, fair wages, and compensation.

We recognize that in addition to minimizing work-related injuries and illness, a safe and healthy work environment supports employee retention and morale and enhances the quality of products and services. We treat applicable health and safety regulations as a minimum standard as we are committed to high standards for our working environments that protect the well-being of all employees. We encourage consultation and cooperation between management and employees in developing occupational health and safety mechanisms through ongoing dialogue. We expect senior management to integrate health and safety mechanisms in business activities and monitor the program’s effectiveness.

We continued to focus on employees’ overall well-being in 2025 through a range of programs that support access to care, along with resources and tools to address the following pillars of wellness: physical, mental/emotional, financial, and community.

Corporate Information

We were incorporated in the state of Delaware in March 2011. Our principal executive offices are located at 55 Francisco Street, Suite 400, San Francisco, California 94133, and our telephone number is (855) 435-5893. You may access our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and other reports (and amendments and exhibits thereto) filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), as well as proxy statements filed by us, free of charge on our website at www.therealreal.com, as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. Information contained on, or that can be accessed through, our website is not incorporated by reference into this or any other report we file with, or furnish to, the SEC, and you should not consider information on our website to be part of

this or any other report we file with, or furnish to, the SEC. Such periodic reports, proxy statements and other information are also available at the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov.

The RealReal and other trademarks or service marks of The RealReal, Inc. appearing in this Annual Report are the property of The RealReal, Inc. This Annual Report contains additional trade names, trademarks and service marks of others, which are the property of their respective owners. Solely for convenience, the trademarks, service marks, logos and trade names referred to in this Annual Report are without the ® and ™ symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate that we will not assert our rights in these trademarks, service marks and trade names.