So you have a ton of clothes in your closet that you can’t just throw away. Maybe you spent a lot of money on the clothes or you struggle with the idea of being wasteful. Re-selling gives you the opportunity to rehome the clothes and free up space and money to get new things.
Things to consider when getting started re-selling:
- What platform to sell on
- Where to source inventory from
- Storing inventory
- How much to pay yourself
- How much to reinvest
Reselling is fun and exciting. I love when I find a cute item in a store and then sell it for more than I paid. I started by selling things around the house and then gradually git into flipping items bought at a low cost. You can even resell as a side hustle or spend most of your time selling as your full time job!
My Clothing Journey
I first got started thrifting, or shopping at thrift stores, for my own clothing in high school. I was low on money and loved how far the dollar would go at a Goodwill or Salvation Army store. I also loved the excitement of finding things on the racks that no one else was wearing. There seemed to be more fashion possibilities than the mall or Target.
In my early 20’s I stumbled upon the idea of capsule wardrobes while browsing Pinterest. I loved the idea of challenging my style to have a limited amount of clothing options to streamline dressing and minimize overbuying. I already loved the idea of reusing clothing (thrifting clothes) and have always struggled with waisting clothing that may have been a bad purchase, no longer fit or loved. Being intentional about clothing purchases and usage seemed right up my alley. I had a capsule wardrobe for about a year and loved it. Then I got pregnant and it all went out the window as I grew, struggled with post partum weight and then got pregnant again. Maternity fashion was a a mix of feeling confident and self conscious. Post partum required frequent washing friendly clothing that could be adjusted to breast feed. My wardrobe changed dramatically and my closet grew.
After my second baby was born I was introduced to the brand LuLaRoe. I loved the idea of owning a clothing boutique and working from home with my kiddos. I actually invested in the brand and started selling the clothing without having previously owned any clothing. I was a LuLaRoe retailer for three years and love the independence it brought me at the time. As a retailer I bought inventory and sold it both online on Facebook and at in person pop up parties. I then switch brands and became a Piphany stylist for two years. With Piphany I kept a small handful of samples on hand to help my in person customers with sizing and fit and would sell clothing over an online platform that dropped shipped for me. With both brands I learned all about fashion, selling clothing and styling customers. I got all my clothing from one source but became familiar with inventory, budgets and marketing to others. I also grew my wardrobe and collected a bit of clothing.
Presently I have started to pair down my closet and move back towards a capsule wardrobe lifestyle. I haven’t officially planned a capsule wardrobe again but I can see that as a possibility in the future. As I have begun to be intentional with what I wear I have removed a bunch of stuff that I acquired from the maternity/ post partum stages of life and from the retailer stage I recently went through. I struggle with tossing perfectly good clothing or pawing it off on my sister as hamydowns. (We are different sizes and have very different style choices.)
I ended up re-selling pretty much my whole closet on an app called Poshmark. I loved the idea that these clothes were going to be loved again and re-homed. I also liked that I could buy new clothing that was more my current style with the sales and even a few things for my kiddos. I have slowly begun to sell more and more things on Poshmark and started organizing myself to take on other peoples giveaways as well.
Getting Started Reselling
As I spent more time on the fashion selling app Poshmark I became familiar with other sellers and watched their habits. There is a community of fashion re-sellers who are using the platform as a side hustle, for extra spending cash and some even make full time money selling on the app. I watched these ladies and read their tips for almost a year a before deciding to invest in clothing with the intention to sell it myself.
There are quite a few apps and websites available to resell clothing and shoes on. I had found Poshmark a few years ago when I started my closet purge and made it my primary resource for selling clothing and shoes.
So before you begin selling do some research on apps and sites to resell on and see what fits your niche the best. If you are flipping clothing, toys or furniture or all of them you will want to pick your platform accordingly.
Sourcing Inventory to sell. Once you know how you will sell your inventory it is time to figure out where you will be buying the inventory from. I bet you already have an idea of where you will be sourcing and that is why you are interested in reselling. A few ideas to help you get started are:
- Go through your house and attempt to sell anything you don’t want anymore.
- Ask friends and family if they have anything they don’t want.
- Check out local garage sales, you can often get items for less than $5 and sell for more online.
- Shop local thrift stores and consignment shops.
Storing Inventory to be sold can be simple or tricky depending on the items. Reselling stamps vs vintage cars will have drastically different space requirements. Make sure you have ample space for storage where inventory will remain clean, free from damage and odor. Also keep in mind storage rental fees if going that route.
When I was an online retailer I stored all my clothing hanging on racks in my garage. I had about 12 racks of clothing I would roll around the garage. Currently we have a different living situation and less inventory so I store my reselling inventory in bins under my bed or hanging on a separate rack in my closet. If you are planning to sell bigger items that can’t be folded consider a shed on your property or a storage unit.
Keeping Profit and Reinvesting in you business is a factor that will probably change frequently. In times of growth you will reinvest more to get to the ideal amount of inventory. When you are at your target inventory you will be able to pay yourself more and if you are liquidating or selling off items you will keep all the sales proceeds.
The money part of a business has always been something I consider over and over again. When I was an online retailer the supplier would launch new products on a whim constantly attracting the retailers to purchase more. At that time I was frequently reinvesting my profits and growing my inventory until instead of paying myself. I then moved to a brand that had a sample/ drop shipping business model and I kept my inventory and pay in balance. Currently in my reselling venture I have decided to keep a certain dollar amount invested in my business and adjust my buying habits as my selling increases.
As I get started in this venture I am a mix of cautious and excited. I want to enjoy myself and this side hustle of re-selling. If you are reading this and starting your own journey reach out and let’s connect!