How + Where I Resell My Clothing and Accessories

I’m often asked how and where I resell my clothing (and accessories and shoes), so with the new year and everyone obsessed with Marie Kondo on Netflix, I thought it would be a good idea to dedicate an entire post to resale!

I have been reselling items since at least 2013, so over the past 5+ years I’ve had a lot of success with consignment and learned about how the process works. This past year, for the first time, I tracked what how much I made back. I ended 2018 with more than $700 from selling clothing, shoes and accessories I wasn’t wearing enough. I say made back, because I’m sure the initial cost of all those items over the years greatly exceeded $700, but it’s nice to be able to recoup some of that sunk cost. $700 over the course of the year may not seem like a lot of money, but I’d much rather have $700 than $0 so…

This year I am working very hard to purchase less of everything and I will be focusing on that throughout the year to ideally break my bad habits. My plan is to continually clean out my closet and sell a TON of items. We’re working with a small closet now, and I absolutely have more than I need, so the goal is to pare that down to only the items I love!

[Sidenote – if you are cleaning out and some items aren’t in good enough condition to sell, or aren’t worth enough, donating or recycling are great options. H&M will recycle your old clothing if you bring it into them. DO NOT THROW CLOTHING AWAY -it is terrible for the environment. My mom just sent me this article sharing 6 places where you can recycle your old clothing for discounts to their stores – enjoy!]

 

Today I’m going to touch on the online resources/apps I’ve used to sell and then some of my favorite local consignment shops in Grand Rapids.

Poshmark:

Poshmark is an app I recommend to anyone looking to buy or sell resale. I’ve been using it for years and haven’t had any issues. The dress I’m wearing in the photo above I purchased from Poshmark!

How it works:

• First you create a login and closet
• Then upload photos of the item, a description, along with the size, brand, any notes about the items, the original price, and your listing price
• People can “like” your item, and are able to comment on it and ask questions.
• They can either buy the item outright, or make an offer
  • If someone makes an offer you are able to decline, accept or counter offer

What I really like about Poshmark is how easy it is. The buyer pays for the shipping, so when an item sells you will receive an email with a prepaid shipping label. You are responsible for packing up the item on your own.

Poshmark also offers buyer and seller protection, so if you buy an item and it is not as described, you can reach out to them and receive your money back. Because of this it is important to disclose all details about an item when listing!

This is a FREE app, but Poshmark takes 20% of the amount your item sold for.

You can view my closet here if you want to see what it looks like!

Mercari:

Mercari is an app very similar to Poshmark. The only differences are that they 10% instead of the 20% Poshmark takes, and you can set it up for either the buyer or selling to pay shipping. If you decide as the seller you want to pay for shipping and list items higher, you may sell more but it will definitely be more work.

Personally I have seen less high end items on Mercari, but this is just my observation. I have friends that will list items on Mercari and Poshmark simultaneously to sell them faster. If you’re going to do this you have to make sure you manage it well and delete items right away on whichever platform it doesn’t sell.

There are plenty of other places to sell online, but these are the two I’ve consistently worked with. I know many people have luck on eBay, and if you’re in the market to resale designer items you would want to look at places like Tradesy and TheRealReal.

I apologize if you’re not local, because this next part is pretty much only for my Grand Rapids friends, but I would recommend looking up resale shops in your area!

My favorite resale shop in Grand Rapids is Rock Paper Scissors.

Rock Paper Scissors: They are located right off Diamond north of Cherry! I been selling here since 2013. Had great success selling and purchasing (remember when I found a Louis Vuitton bag there for $60?)

They list items at about 50% of original price, and once it sells the consigner (you) receives 40% of that sale price. This may seem low – but the work required for you is minimal! You have to drop it off (they accept drops on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays – excluding the last weekend of each month), they keep it for 60 days, and if it doesn’t sell they donate it to charity. They have a website where you can track what sells and when you’re ready you can stop in and pick up your check. My items generally sell fast here – and I have purchased a good amount of items from them as well. I would recommend following their Instagram because they share some of the best pieces there. Follow them here!

Rosa’s Closet: Located in Gaslight Village in East Grand Rapids, Rosa’s Closet is geared more toward high end resale. From my understanding they list items similar to RPS, at about 50% of the original, and you take 40% home – this is pretty standard for resale shops! They also keep items for 60 days, and you can either pick them back up or they will donate them after that time period.They always have beautiful items in store, and update their Instagram frequently when new pieces come in. Follow them here!

Audrey Lane Boutique: They are right next to where Marie Catrib’s used to be. I just started selling there this past summer and had great luck. The owner was super sweet when I met her! Their process is just like Rock Paper Scissors and Rosa’s Closet, and they also have children’s items as well.

Urban Exchange: They’re located on Fulton just west of Diamond. I haven’t shopped in there in years but I love that they organized all their merchandise by color (or at least they used to). The store holds SO much product, and I find it slightly overwhelming, but if you’re a thrifter in GR definitely stop in.

In addition, we have both Plato’s Closet and Style Encore in Grand Rapids, but I much prefer to work with the local consignment shops near me. In my opinion, you earn more and can sell better products when you consign versus getting cash up front from Plato’s Closet.

Last but not least (because this post is getting LONG!), is a consignment store called Buffalo Exchange. We do not have any in Michigan, but I’ve visited locations in both San Diego and Phoenix and had great finds like a vintage Dooney & Bourke and a fully beaded sequin cocktail dress (for under $20 each!)

Now I want to hear from you – do you resale your clothing? If so, where?

Thanks for stopping by!

xo, Maddy