What are you doing with outgrown clothes? I used to do an annual consignment sale, but they cancelled it pre-COVID and I don’t know if it will come back. I think there were issues with the owners.
I’m not having a ton of luck with online because shipping is pricey.
I probably need to call my local consignment store and see what they are currently taking. I’m just not sure if their structure is worth it except the couple times a year I buy from them.
We do have a OUAC, but I don’t really know if that’s safe right now. The store is very packed and used to have a lot of traffic. It was not a pleasant experience for my anxiety, buying or selling.
Post by icedcoffee on Jan 22, 2021 14:15:09 GMT -5
I give it all to my sister, but if I didn't I would sell the nicest pieces individually on Mercari. Then the other stuff I'd bundle into lots by season and size and sell on FB Marketplace.
Post by thebreakfastclub on Jan 22, 2021 14:31:27 GMT -5
I give some nicer things to my coworker/friend whose son is 2 years younger than mine. Otherwise I might post on Next Door or elsewhere and offer up just as donations.
Boys clothes are a different animal vs girls, especially if you are buying Walmart or OUAC like I do, vs premium brands. Trying to resell a generic $5 t-shirt for 50 cents is not happening. So I just find someone who will take the donations and pass them off as a bulk lot.
I give DS's outgrown clothes to my next door neighbor, who has a son who was born exactly year after DS. I've also handed down to them some of the nicer toys (wooden Hape push toy) as DS outgrows them. It's total win/win.
DD's are a mix of giving to a support staffer at work who has a daughter about 1-2 years younger than DD, or a few special pieces I mail to my friends with younger DDs.
I haven't really tried selling any of the kids' clothes. It seems like a tough slog, and only really doable in lots. I might possibly start selling Patagonia stuff as DS outgrows it, since that holds value particularly well, and there's a brand-specific swap board on FB.
I'm currently working on purging and trying to sell kid/baby stuff on FB, via my town's mom swap group and market place. I've been aiming for stuff that's machine washable, or dishwasher safe, or is hard plastic and can be wiped down. I've had mixed results: - Boon lawn, 3 stems, and a dishwasher basket - sold for $10 for the lot - Paige and Seven maternity jeans - sold $30 for two pairs - Old Navy, Gap, and Loft maternity pants, tops, and sweaters - no bites at $5/item - Pottery Barn queen duvet & matching shams - sold for $25 - Fisher Price popper toddler push toy - offered for free, no takers. - V-Tech sit to stand push toy - offered for $5, no takers. - Lillebaby carrier in excellent condition - listed last night for $40, TBD.
I've been somewhat surprised what goes fast and what doesn't.
Post by expectantsteelerfan on Jan 22, 2021 14:48:31 GMT -5
I am having issues with this too. The consignment sale I usually do is still managing to hold a sale (with tickets for shopping with times I think), but I didn't feel comfortable with doing it, especially because if you sell, you are required to work the sale. I've tried listing a few things on our local b/s/t fb pages, and nothing has sold. I'm definitely pricing things even lower than I would for the consignment sale (things like an almost brand new gymboree winter coat for $5, barely used tap shoes for $2) and NO interest. I did have some luck doing 'lots' of clothing for super cheap (like less than $1 a piece), but I have a lot of odds and ends that I didn't include in the lots. I'm having a hard time deciding if I should hang out to it in hopes of selling at some point or to just donate everything to get it out of the house.
Post by goldengirlz on Jan 22, 2021 14:54:16 GMT -5
I donate them to a local organization that helps disabled individuals. They specifically ask for clothing donations and it ends up being a pretty nice tax write off for us too.
I pass down to my BFF. Her daughter is a year older than C but much smaller. Last year she slipped me a couple of GCs to our favorite stores and insisted I take them since they would end up on her kid anyway. I thought that was nice.
I give to my sister or put it up for free in our neighborhood fb group. We don’t have anything super nice so it’s not worth it to me to try to sell it.
Post by mccallister84 on Jan 22, 2021 14:58:03 GMT -5
Honestly I just pass them down to people unless they are expensive brands or special occasion dresses - I sold the girls old Christmas dresses for example. It’s just not worth the energy to do anything else. And honestly baby and toddler clothes can be bought new so cheaply.
icedcoffee I’m not having much luck on Mercari for brand names like Lilly and Tea. I have stuff on Kidizen to, but same. And the fees on Kid are high.
Are you doing lots or individual? Lots seem to go quicker. Like others have said, by the time people pay for shipping it's not worth it for them to spend much for 1 item so doing like 10 pieces might be better and the shipping should be the same since kid stuff is so small.
Post by starburst604 on Jan 22, 2021 15:04:30 GMT -5
In the fall we did a yard sale with the other 2 townhouses in the row and sold a ton of kids clothes that way - we did fill a bag for $5 for the lower end stuff and sold the higher end stuff individually. Otherwise, I have luck selling in lots by size and season on local FB and/or FB Marketplace. People seem more interested in coming to buy several items rather than one thing when it comes to kid's clothing. I will do "Lot of 9 Girl's 4T leggings" "Lot of 12 Girl's Summer Tops & Dresses in 4T" and in the description list the brands, because when I buy pre-owned I like to buy brands that I know fit DD well. There's also a local FB consignment page which I've bought and sold with in the past. I also make sure the photos I use are decent, it only takes a few minutes to nicely fold or hang the items and turn on decent lighting.
When I rotate clothing items out for good I immediately separate what I will donate and what I will sell, and when I'm finished with that size/season I'll put it up for sale to get it out of the house.
I have been trying really hard to get rid of years of clothes. I had kept everything for my smaller kids and then for the cousins.
1. I pull all the out-of-style, stained, or clothes with holes and donate to Goodwill. Our Goodwill takes damaged clothes and recycles. They don't even care if you try to separate those items out, which I know, b/c I tried to separate it for them a couple times.
2. I've been selling nicer lots of clothes by size on Facebook Marketplace with completely mixed results. Some sets of clothes sold immediately. Others sat forever. I priced things REALLY CHEAP, and still sometimes nothing would sell. Little kid clothes sell WAY better than big kid, unless big kid are certain brands. Adidas pants sold right away, for example. It's just super hit or miss.
3. As my online selling was going on, I discovered that we have a charity here that sets up nice-quality, used children's clothing by season in a store-style environment. Low-income and foster parents can get appointments to come shop. It's really nice, and very close by, but I had never even heard of it. I pulled the plug on a lot of listings that were just sitting there and donated all of my sorted items in November. I am now donating most of what I have left to that organization.
I want to get rid of EVERYTHING up to the sizes we still need.
Nicer brand/unworn stuff goes to my friend's kids consignment shop to see if she wants them, or to younger cousins. Stuff that's not in perfect shape goes to Goodwill. Everything in between I post on my local Buy Nothing Facebook group and someone in the neighborhood comes to pick it up from my doorstep. I love to give things away on Buy Nothing!
icedcoffee I’m not having much luck on Mercari for brand names like Lilly and Tea. I have stuff on Kidizen to, but same. And the fees on Kid are high.
Are you doing lots or individual? Lots seem to go quicker. Like others have said, by the time people pay for shipping it's not worth it for them to spend much for 1 item so doing like 10 pieces might be better and the shipping should be the same since kid stuff is so small.
Both depending on brand and weight.
Maybe I’ll call the local consignment store and see.
At least ok kid and posh it’s easy to do a bundle. Mercari really needs to add that feature.
Are you doing lots or individual? Lots seem to go quicker. Like others have said, by the time people pay for shipping it's not worth it for them to spend much for 1 item so doing like 10 pieces might be better and the shipping should be the same since kid stuff is so small.
Both depending on brand and weight.
Maybe I’ll call the local consignment store and see.
At least ok kid and posh it’s easy to do a bundle. Mercari really needs to add that feature.
Yeah. I've manually created bundles after being asked on Mercari, but agree they need to make it easier.
Post by Velar Fricative on Jan 22, 2021 15:38:12 GMT -5
We have some organizations that do pickups around here (we get mailers for them every so often). So when we get the mailer, we get our stuff prepared and bagged and leave it out for them the day they are scheduled to come. Then they leave a donation receipt for our taxes. It's so easy.
I used to sell in a large consignment sale as well and for this last batch my youngest grew out of I just ended up giving them to a neighbor. I usually can net a few hundred in the sales but with the cancellations I just really wanted things out of my house and didn't want to deal with a hassle of selling anything on FB etc.
I don't like dealing with shipping things anymore. I have had good luck with our neighborhood B/S/T Facebook page. (I don't add them to marketplace). I looked and have made almost $1,500 on kid clothes/shoes since this summer. I just put the clothes/shoes out on the porch and am done with with it. Stuff that I don't want to deal with selling individually I just take to our local consignment store. Stuff that is carters/cat&jack still in good condition goes to the goodwill. Stained stuff goes to the textile recycler.
I give the nicer/vehicle themed clothes to my sister who has a DS 2 years younger than mine. The other stuff I gift on BN. Shoes are harder for me to get rid of. My DS' feet are super wide. In my last BN their was another mom with a younger DS who also had really wide feet. It was perfect. Just as my DS outgrew a size her DS was sizing up. I haven't found such a person in my new BN group sadly.
I give to my cousin who has a kid a year younger than mine. If I didn’t have her, I would donate. I don’t have the time or mental energy to attempt selling and it is worth it to me just to have them out of my house.
We give first preference to our neighbor who have a son two years younger than DS. Everything else that is in good enough shape gets donated. DS is really rough on pants and shoes, so we haven’t been able to donate too many.
2. Give to daycare or school nurse as spare clothing in case a kid gets sick, has an accident, forgets their sweatshirt.
3. Give to charity. There are a few local churches who have clothes closets, and a few shelters that accept children’s clothes.
4. Post on FB Marketplace. It’s always more hassle than it’s worth because people ask me to hold stuff for them and then they never show up, and really I just want to put it by the curb and have it disappear.
I’ve given up on trying to make money on anything. I really don’t need to salvage $2 on a $10 pair of Cat and Jack pants. I just want them to go to someone who will wear them.
Post by ilikedonuts on Jan 22, 2021 19:05:13 GMT -5
I sell some on our local mom fb group and people pick up from driveway. I then give them rest to my friends with younger kids or I give it away on the fb group.
Post by KellyEasterbrook on Jan 22, 2021 19:10:12 GMT -5
I’ve had good luck selling higher-end brands on Poshmark and Kidizen and Noisaf.kids (Mabo, Patagonia, Zara, Tocoto Vintage, etc — basically anything that might sell for over $25). Everything else (and anything that doesn’t sell within a week) either to friends who are expecting or to a friend who owns a thrift store in rural Alaska. I know she’s always in need of new inventory, has the only clothing store for 200 miles, and frequently donates clothing to those who can’t afford to buy from her. I just don’t have the time or patience to try to sell everything.
I sell on FB. I generally buy my son’s clothes for around 50% off retail and I sell for 30-40% of retail. Our local FB BST group is very strong. Almost all my stuff sells immediately, I ask for epay only, and set out in a bin for people. Super easy.