5 Things Resale Shops Look for When Buying Your Clothes

Scenario: You took my advice and tried to Spring clean your closet. Now what?

You’re either stuck with a mountain of clothes that you don’t know what to do with, or maybe you just found 5 pieces that still had the tags on.

When reselling clothing, it is important to remember that someone else will be paying money for these unloved items in your closet. Some of them may be in better shape than others and dumping an enormous pile of Lord-Knows-What on the counter usually doesn’t help your case. It can often affect the amount of money the buyer offers, because they simply won’t want to dig through, or they don’t have the time.

Here are 5 tips to follow when choosing what items to bring to your thrift store or resale shop:

1. Make a donate and a resale pile– Give your items a good look. Those gauchos from 2005? No one is going to pay for those, my friend. Your Michael Kors purse that you used for 5 months before it was out of season? Yes please! Think about what you as a shopper would find valuable and go from there.
2. Name brands rule the world- If it has a logo or brand, keep it in the resale pile. Name brands, whether it’s a t-shirt or jeans, will always score you big bucks. Victoria’s Secret Pink, Brandy and Melville, and designer will rake in the money.
3. Tags still on? Bring it on! – I once resold a white Easter-looking dress from Walmart. I did not think the girl would take it because it was “off-brand” and not very fashionable. She said they usually take most things with the tags still on as long as it is good condition. Give your garments a chance. Just because you did not love it, doesn’t mean someone else won’t.
4. Check the armpits- This should go without saying, but check your garments for wear and tear before they go in your resale (or donate) pile. No one wants to dig through your weird pile of clothes to find a pair of pants with pilling fabric all over the buttocks. Be courteous and understand that even though you have this Free People sweater that is in good condition, if the pits are stinky and stained, don’t bother.
5. Fold your clothes! – When I am filling up my trusty reusable bag, I always make sure to go through my pile one last time and fold everything before placing it in the bag. This is helpful for two reasons; one, you may have put something in the resale pile that you actually don’t want to get rid of. Taking a second look can’t hurt. Two, folding the clothes will make it easier for the sales associate or buyer to look through your items.

These tips should get you started. Keep in mind, if you ask the buyer why they didn’t take some of you items they will tell you. Sometimes they tell you to come back in a few weeks for the next season. Sometimes they will admit it was not all in great condition. Other stores occasionally have different standards so don’t be discouraged.

Happy selling!