So you were scrolling through Instagram one day and came across some posts about #thrifthauls or #labelporn. Okay, interest is piqued. You click into the hashtags and see an entire community of people who resell clothes online. That's right. These people on social media are finding used clothing at the thrift store and then using platforms like Poshmark, eBay, Mercari, Depop, or others to resell clothes to other people and actually make money at it.
Naturally, now you want to know how they are doing it...
Curious about how to resell clothes on platforms like Poshmark?
Learning to resell clothes online is an amazing way to earn a little extra income, or you can grow your business to be a fully functioning small business that you run out of your home. It's a great option for stay-at-home parents, single parents, college students, empty-nesters, and pretty much anyone who wants to make extra money.
Excitement about extra income aside, it can be daunting to start reselling clothes online, especially if you don't have a strong grasp on fashion or business, or if you just don't know where to start.
That's okay; we've got you covered. We've broken down the steps to starting to resell clothes online, giving you all the information you need to launch a successful secondhand clothing resale business.
How to resell clothes: Understand the Basics
If you’re looking to make some extra cash, reselling clothes on Poshmark is a great way to do it. Poshmark is an online marketplace for buying and selling new and gently used clothes, shoes, and accessories. In general, all you have to do is create an account, list your items, and wait for the offers to come in. However, as with everything in life, there’s a bit more to it than that.
To make sure you’re successful in reselling clothes on Poshmark, you need to understand the basics. Here are a few things to keep in mind:
Be Honest
It’s important to be honest about the condition of your items. If something is stained, torn, or otherwise damaged, make sure you mention it in the description. Honesty is key when it comes to reselling clothes on Poshmark.
Be Professional
You want to make sure you’re presenting yourself in a professional manner. Treat your customers with respect and respond to their messages in a timely manner. You want to make sure you’re creating a good impression.
Be Patient
It can take some time to get sales going on Poshmark, so be patient. It may take a few weeks or even months before you start to see any offers coming in. Don’t give up!
Gather Your Clothes to Resell
The first step in reselling clothes on Poshmark is to collect clothes to sell. This is the fun part!
We recommend you take a look in your closet and see what you can part with first. It's important to learn the basics of reselling clothes online before putting a lot of money into your inventory. You can totally launch a clothing resale business on platforms like Poshmark, eBay, Depop, Mercari, and more without spending any more for start-up costs. Purge your closet, your partner's closet, and your kids' closets, and list those items. Once those items start selling, take the money you've earned from the sales and start putting it toward getting better inventory.
You can thrift, hit up yard sales, or buy wholesale online from sites like Helpsy Source. When you're learning to resell clothes online, it's great to expand your inventory with online wholesale sites, especially if you don't have easy access to thrift stores locally, or your local thrift stores are extremely overpriced.
When it comes to what clothes to sell, focus on items that are in good condition and are in style. You want to make sure you’re selling items that people will actually want to buy. Research brands that are selling on eBay using data programs like Terapeak. However, we seriously believe in not limiting yourself to one specific style, brand, or niche to resell clothes. If there's anything we've learned with our years of experience, it's that there's a buyer for just about everything, even if it's not your personal style.
Take Quality Pictures of Your Clothes
The next step for you to successfully resell clothes is to take quality pictures of your items. This is the best way to advertise the clothes you are selling, and it shows the customer as many details as possible since they can't see the item in person.
You want to make sure the pictures are clear and show the item in its best light. You can take pictures outside in natural light or inside with a white backdrop. Make sure you’re taking close-up pictures of any details or flaws. You want to be transparent about the condition of your items.
You can use a simple corner of your room or office for photos, or if you don't have a great area with a clean wall or backdrop, do the best you can and use one of these handy background removing apps to improve your photos.
We use both our phones and a DSLR to take product photos to resell clothes, depending on how much time we have available that day. But if you want to learn more about the correct camera settings for product photos, check out our recent YouTube video about it!
Write Descriptions (& Product Titles) That Sell
When it comes to writing titles and descriptions to resell clothes online, you want to make sure you’re focusing on the positives, while being honest about the condition of the item.
Titles are how you get people to your listing. This is an important craft to hone, because you need to include keywords that will help the right buyer find your item. Nobody is searching for "Super cute lacy beach dress that I can't wear anymore" (trust us, we've seen Poshmark titles like that 😫 ). People ARE searching for "Free People Maxi Dress Floral Multicolor Women's Excellent Condition".
To successfully resell clothes online, your product title doesn't need to be grammatically correct. It does, however, need to be full of applicable keywords, placed in the right order. A few years ago, at eBay Open, a formula was released for making effective titles for your product listings. This formula is still one of the best ways to come up with titles for your products, no matter what platform you use to resell clothes.
Lucky for you, we've got that formula, and we're passing it on to you.
Brand > Style name (if applicable) > Product > Style > Size > Gender > Color > Condition
If you're selling women's Levi's jeans, a title would look like this according to this formula:
Levi's Wedgie Jeans High Rise Slim 28 Women's Dark Wash Like New
You've now effectively hit just about every keyword someone would search when looking for Levi's jeans, and you can watch the hits roll in to your product listing!
Now, let's talk about the description.
Be specific in your description. You want to resell clothes, and you want the customer to know exactly what they are getting, so you avoid return requests. Talk about the brand, the fit (using measurements), the color, and any special details. Avoid subjective or unnecessary information like "I think this is just such a cute shirt" or "I bought this and it doesn't fit me anymore, so I'm getting rid of it." Make sure you’re using keywords that will help your item show up in searches, but don't spam your listing with paragraph blocks of keywords that don't apply to your product, just for visibility.
You also want to make sure you’re being honest about the condition of the item. If there are any flaws, make sure you mention them in the description, and include photos of the flaws in your listing.
Price Your Clothes Competitively
When it comes to pricing your items, you want to make sure you’re being competitive. Take a look at what other similar items are selling for and price yours accordingly. You want to make sure you’re making a profit, but you don’t want to price your items so high that they won't sell.
It's important to take into consideration that Poshmark encourages price drops and offers to likers, though, so padding your price point a little bit to account for giving discounts is always a good plan.
Promote Your Listings To Get Sales
Once you have your items listed, you want to make sure you’re promoting them. Share your listings on social media and join Poshmark parties. This will help get your items seen by more people and increase your chances of making a sale.
Package and Ship Your Clothes
So, you've done everything up to now to resell clothes, and now you've got your first sale. It's time to ship your items!
Lots of Poshmark sellers make a big deal about sending a free gift with each item shipped, wrapping the item in special paper with ribbon, and more. You can be as creative as you like when you ship your item, but the most important step to take is making sure you have carefully packaged and secured the item. Use a polybag or recycled box to ship your item; avoid using colored tissue paper (if it gets damp, it can stain your item); and securely affix the Poshmark provided label to the outside of the package. Avoid putting packing tape over the barcode on the label, as this can make it difficult for USPS to scan and delay tracking updates to the buyer.
You want to make sure your items arrive in the same condition they left your house in. It's entirely up to you when you resell clothes online if you want to add all the fluff and extras to your packaging -- we say, do what works for you. If it makes your heart happy to add a few extras, go for it!
Provide Excellent Customer Service
Finally, you want to make sure you’re providing excellent customer service. Respond to messages quickly and make sure your customers are happy with their purchases. This will help ensure you get positive feedback and repeat customers. Ship on time, and only use the label sent to you by Poshmark (otherwise, you risk tracking not updating on the app, and the customer can cancel your order even after you've shipped it).
Learning to resell clothes on Poshmark can be a great way to make some extra cash. Just make sure you’re following the tips above, and you’ll be a pro in no time!
Ready to source more inventory for your Poshmark closet?
Here's some of our best selling product to spice up your reseller inventory.
