The holidays are drawing near, and you’re thinking of how to make more cash? Your wardrobe is too clumsy; you want to clear it out? Are you bored and want to try something new?
It is estimated that at least 20% of the clothes in your wardrobe are underutilized or never worn. Selling your used clothes could be a justifiable cause that will give you extra cash and more space in your wardrobe. The only problem is how to sell your used clothes? Well, you can do this online or offline through different stores and websites. It’s different from electronics and footwear, but it’s doable.
Ways To Sell Used Clothes
#1. eBay
Why It’s Great: eBay offer a very fair commission at 10%, which is relatively low compared to other platforms where you can sell your used clothing. They have an excellent selling package for their customers. They allow you a charge-free listing of your first few (100) auction-style. Any added item attracts a sizeable fee of $0.30; after that, any new deal you make is charged just 10%.
The Drawbacks: Recently, they’re losing sellers more than any other platform. They have spiked the seller’s fee; you want to make more money, not lose somewhere you can save some.
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#2. Tradesy
Why It’s Great: Of all the online platforms where you can sell your used clothes, Tradesy gives you more return on your item. Their commission is the lowest at just 9%. But to enjoy this low commission, you’d have to leave your money on Tradesy. But in the event where you want your cash with you? An additional PayPal fee of 2.9% is added. At 11%, they still offer good value for your item.
The Drawbacks: Because of the low commission, they tend to have much traffic on their site, which sometimes makes their page crash. Due to that, we have heard the report of sellers losing their money on Tradesy.
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#3. Buffalo Exchange
Why It’s Great: This offline platform is more of a brick-and-mortar kind of company. Buffalo Exchange is mainly based in the US, with different locations within the country. More than just selling your used clothes for profit, they offer you the chance to make clothes for clothes exchange. You can trade your old item for a new one. Their web page states that their goods sell with a good value of $15 on average.
The Drawbacks: one major issue with Buffalo Exchange is, they don’t accept every item. So you would have to check from their website to know what and what they accept.
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#4. ThredUP
Why It’s Great: Majorly ThredUP have an average customer rating of around 3.30 stars. In a way, it means most of their customers feel their services are satisfactory. Most of their items have different pricing sections based on price, ranging between $20, $15, and even $10). They have just the right product for everyone.
The Drawbacks: from customer reviews, some of the items don’t match their description and are far different from the photos of the clothes uploaded.
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#5. Local Clothing Exchanges
Why It’s Great: You have access to the internet, you can conduct proper research for clothing exchange stores around you. You wouldn’t be short of shops that deal in used clothes exchange. Most of these stores have a presence online, and you can easily access them and make money. You’d be surprised that with such platforms, you get good money value for your used items.
The Drawbacks: These kinds of platforms
may be a little challenging to locate. Their reliability can also be questioned, but you can never rule them out.
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#6. Poshmark
Why It’s Great: Poshmark has a seller/customer-friendly interface. They have different sections for men, women, and kids, making the site easy to navigate. They have reasonable shipping and refund policy in case of miss-delivered goods.
The Drawbacks: their customers’ ratings are not so good. Meaning, not all their customers are satisfied with their services. They have poor customer service and are not always reliable when you want to lodge complaints.
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Tips & Best Practices For Selling Used Clothes
1. Prioritize, stick to one section of your wardrobe per time
If you decide to handle all the sections of your wardrobe at a time, it could be a whole lot stressful and tiring. Take it one section per time; you can start with your casual wear, winter wears, or even you can start with your shoes. If you take it one section per time, it becomes easier to deal with.
2. Before you clear your wardrobe, consider the season
From around November all through to the latter part of February, knitted clothing and coats sell pretty well, especially on eBay. From around March, summer specials begin to come in. It would be best if you also had the festive season in mind; all festive wears sell pretty well around that time, crop tops and headbands do well during this period.
3. Before you put out your clothes, check for similar product/item listing on your preferred website/outlet
When you check out the items on the platform you want to use; you get an overall idea of what to expect in terms of money. Have it in mind that these platforms and their payment channels have their percentage charges. Regardless of the platform, you are guaranteed at least 50% payment for whatever you are selling.
4. Be sure of what you want to sell
If you have fond memories of a particular item and you feel you’d regret parting with it, then don’t sell it. Anything you want to sell, make sure it wouldn’t come with a feeling of regret.
5. Take your time, don’t rush
You can spend hours trying to sort out specific sections of your wardrobe. When you start to clear out, there may be a need for restyling some of the clothes. You can time yourself to have an idea of how many clothes you can sort in a specific timeframe. You need to know that this process takes time and may not necessarily be done in just one weekend; you may need more than that.
6. Take good photos and give a detailed description of the clothes
Every buyer wants to be sure they are getting their money’s worth. Everyone wants to buy what they would like and something that looks good on them. Make sure you take very nice photos which complement the item. When you do that, there wouldn’t be any unpleasant surprises after the deal is done. Make sure to give a detailed description so the buyer can know what they are going for.
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FAQ
What do you need to start selling used clothes?
You don’t need much to start selling used clothes. First of all, you have to be willing, ready, and committed; that way, you’d be able to hold on regardless of the situation.
Also, if you have an extensive wardrobe and want to clear out, you are ready to start selling.
How much does it cost to get started selling used clothes?
It doesn’t cost anything to start selling used clothes. Depending on the platform you want to sell your clothes on, all you need is to sign up, agree to their terms and policy, then you are good to go.
Mind you; you’d be charged a particular percentage when you start earning from your deals; it could be between the range of 10-25% off any deal you are making.
How much money can you make selling used clothes?
How much you can make from selling used cloth is relative. Everyone wants a deal that suits, used clothes are not any different. There is numerous outlet where people can shop z so a reasonable price is the first thing that can capture the heart of anyone who wishes to buy your clothes.
If you are haste to make a deal, you should price your clothes at around 70% off the retail price. At the minimum, make it 50% off. Yes, you want to make more money, but the higher the price, the slower the sale.
How do you price used clothes for resale?
First, you would want to conduct a price check at a thrift store. For best pricing, check on a resale website like Tradesy and eBay or any specific store specializing in selling used designer clothing.
When doing your price check, you have to be very meticulous about it. In most instance, thrift shop fails to spot fake clothes, which make them overprice fake clothes. The ounce is on you to spot original items and match them with the labelled prices.
Can you sell used clothes as a side hustle?
Yes, you can; whatever the reason why you want to sell used clothes, it could turn out to be a nice side hustle. It is relatively easy and stress-free. On the plus side, you get to make some cash.
It is flexible and may not necessarily be time-consuming, so regardless of what your main job/hustle is, selling used clothes can be a good companion and an excellent side hustle.