Turn Your Closet Into Cash?

Hey ladies!  I was writing a post for another website on budget styling and I thought some of you may be interested in it, so I reposted here as well!  If you are interested in my own experience selling, I'm than happy to share!  I do more direct sales and ebay than consignment.  Just my preference!

Keeping up with fashion doesn’t have to break the bank.  Any fashionista knows that if you haven’t worn something in a year, get rid of it.  Each season, go through your clothing and divide them into three piles: keep, giveaway, and maybe.  Put the keep pile back in the closet.  Set aside the giveaway pile for the suggestions below, and keep the maybe pile in a designated part of your closet to examine next time.

Instead of hoarding clothes you aren’t wearing, try a few of these suggestions to get new clothes or get cash for your clothes.

1.       Consignment store – Second hand and thrift stores are popping up everywhere and this can be a great place to take your unwanted clothes.  Call ahead and ask them what season they are buying for so you don’t end up lugging in a bag of clothes they don’t want.  Make sure clothes are in good condition (no rips, holes, or stains). Consignment stores vary from every day clothes to high end designer labels.  A staff member will go through the clothing and tag what they think they could sell in the store.  Most stores have a minimum that they have to accept before opening an account with you, so bring a few options in case a few items don’t pan out.  The store will price your accepted items and put them in the store for a designated amount of time.  They will track your sales and give you a percentage of the sales at the end of the period or you can take the items back.

2.       Direct sale – Nationwide stores like Buffalo Exchange and Plato’s Closet will give you cash or store credit immediately for your clothes. An experienced buyer will go through your clothes and determine if the store can sell it.  They tell you the price they would sell it for and offer you a percentage of that amount. Percentages will vary from 20% on the low end to 40% on the high end depending on location.

3.       Yard/block sales – Community yard or block sales can be a great time to get rid of unwanted clothing items, along with anything else that is lying around the house.  Having a yard sale alone can be hard to organize, but if more people in your neighborhood participate, you are likely to draw a larger crowd.

4.       Online auction – Auction sites are another great way to sell unwanted clothing and you will get a larger percentage of your sales as auction sites take a smaller percentage than stores.  Auction sites will be more time consuming as you will be responsible for taking pictures of your items, pricing them, and dealing directly with your own customers.

5.       Clothing swap – Get a group of friends or co-workers together and ask them to bring in clothing that they are no longer using to set up for a swap.  Instead of getting cash for your clothes, you may end up with a stylish new dress.  Don’t just limit yourself to clothes either.  Try exchanging shoes, accessories, and hand bags.