As seasons change, wardrobes rotate.
Each year, I inevitably uncover a few items that I can't remember wearing. (If you're feeling insecure about what you might've found hidden in your closet, don't worry — last year I found a top I wore in the 8th grade … I'm 23).
It's easy to give that old top the boot — a swift toss into the trash, and it's gone. But that isn't the best for our environment. In fact, a whopping 10 million tons of clothing is sent to landfills each year.
It's not best for your wallet, either. Donating to a local charity is a viable alternative, but those items will be sold to eager shoppers anyways. So why not re-sell the clothes yourself and rake in some cash? (While also helping the planet, of course).
Where to re-sell clothing online
When it comes to making a quick buck from your old clothes, there's a variety of places to go. Here are a few I like:
Platforms like Mercari, Poshmark, and Curtsy are similar in nature. They let you create an online store of sorts, where you list the items you want to sell and shoppers can purchase as they please. Once you sell an item, you package it up and send it off using a prepaid label. While there are platform fees, you can still earn around $300 to $1,000 per month, depending on what and how much you sell.
Unlike other selling platforms, ThredUp requires you to order a Clean Out Kit. Once the bag arrives, you fill it to the brim with eligible clothing items and ship it back for review.
But keep in mind that only 50% of kits meet ThredUp's quality standards. It also costs $10.99 to ship your items in, and there's no guarantee you'll earn anything from what you send. Still, some customers have said they earn around $30 to $50 per shipment.
How much I've made re-selling clothing online
Using just Poshmark and Curtsy, I've made a little under $800 selling my old clothes — $466.10 on Poshmark and $308.68 on Curtsy, to be exact. All in all, it takes around 10 minutes to list a piece of clothing and around 15 minutes to package and ship it. So while it isn't necessarily a massive money-maker, it's good for getting extra cash.
Is re-selling clothes online worth it?
In terms of reducing environmental impact, clothing resale can make a massive difference. In fact, re-selling just one item reduces its environmental impact by 82%. And while making some extra coin is an added bonus, it's a pretty decent wage for fairly passive income.
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