Zero Waste Fashion
By Guest Blogger, Lena Al-Rayess
I will admit that my first foray into buying used clothes came from the purely selfish reason of wanting to save money. What started as selling clothes in local consignment stores for a few bucks here and there turned into a full-blown obsession when I learned about the clothing consignment app Poshmark over three years ago.
Discovering Poshmark has led me into finding new ways to both sell and buy used clothes for not only me, but my whole family. Selling and buying used clothes is a fantastic way to earn and save money, but it also helps reduce waste. The more I learn about the negative effects of fast fashion, the more motivated I am to buy used clothing. This has been further enforced by seeing how fast my son, now ten months old, grows out of clothes. There have been many outfits he has only worn once or not at all!
Here are four of my favorite ways to sell and buy used clothes (and accessories):
Poshmark
Format: App
For: Clothing & Accessories for women, men, and children
Pros: Higher profit potential, high end fashion is verified for authenticity, only for clothes & accessories
Cons: Time consuming, high shipping cost
To date (around three years) I have made over $1,100 selling used clothing & accessories! This is by far the best app to use to make serious money, but it does take work. You upload photos of your item using your phone, describe it, and then connect with other “Poshers” to help increase sales. The app is easy to use for both buying and selling, particularly when it comes to shipping. There is a flat rate expedited shipping fee ($6.49) and when you sell an item and prepaid label gets emailed you to. All you need to do is print it off, tape it to your package, and drop it off at the post office. If you sign up for Poshmark sign up with the referral code VINTAGEVIOLETTE (my username) for $5 off your first purchase.
Mercari
Format: App
For: Everything, not just clothing & accessories
Pros: Mercari only takes 10% of what you sell; can sell/buy anything, not just clothes & accessories; cheap shipping
Cons: Less popular of an app
The benefit of this app is that the shipping is cheaper ($4) and they take less of a commission fee than Poshmark (10% versus Poshmark’s 20%). If I am really motivated to sell something I will post it on both Poshmark and Mercari. There is a lot less work involved to get exposure for your item, which is both a pro and a con. Literally anything can be sold on here, not just clothes. The shipping process is the same as on Poshmark, though you as the seller can pay the flat fee for shipping which often entices people to purchase your item.
ThredUp
Format: Website (thredup.com)
For: Clothing & Accessories for women, men, and children
Pros: No work involved to sell, very cheap prices
Cons: Pay-out is very small
ThredUp is a website that I have sold to once. The appeal here is that there is no work involved in selling. All you do is request a clean out kit from their website (a giant, pre-paid shipping bag) and stuff it full of whatever clothes and accessories you want to get rid of. But that ease comes at a price: they are very picky about what they select, and they don’t pay very much. (Unselected items are recycled or you can elect to have them sent back to you) I sent a bag of name brand clothes and got $7 in credit! I was shocked, but after seeing how low their prices are, I understood a little more. Unless you getting money for your old clothes isn’t a priority for you, I suggest this site more for shopping. I used my credit and got two gently used name brand tops for a total of $11!
Kid to Kid
Format: Brick and mortar stores in 25 states
For: Kids clothing & accessories
Pros: Incredible prices on gently used kids’ clothes, well organized
Cons: Not available in every state
This is a franchised store not available in every state. I wanted to include it though to highlight how easy (and in my opinion, smart) it is to shop for used kids’ clothes. There are several Kid to Kid locations in Utah and the majority of my son’s wardrobe is from here. The most I’ve ever spent on an item of clothing was maybe $4. Because kids grow so fast, they usually don’t wear clothing items for very long. If everyone started buying even a fraction of their kids’ clothes used, imagine how much waste could be saved! Even if there is no Kid to Kid location near you I’m sure there are other locally owned kids consignment stores. Or, check out your local thrift store. I have found great baby clothes at thrift stores as well.
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Lena is an educator, mom, and activist living in Salt Lake City, Utah. You can check out her Instagram account @local_vist to learn how to get involved locally.