Question:
Hi ya'll!
I've only sold 3 items of used clothing on eBay in my 6+ years. I've sold lots on NWT, but not so much in the used dept.
I'm considering some now.
I did very well with shoes in 2002, because I was very picky and knew brand names to get. I found some excellent bargains in thrift and consignment shops - they sold ganbusters.
But clothing? Is it worth it?
My little sister goes nuts about every 6-8 months and completely empties her closets. She brings all this stuff to me. Previously, I've been able to cherry pick some good stuff, and sell the rest at consignment and tag sales.
This time, however, my favorite consignment shop is closed.
If I want to do the consignment thang, I'll have to drive in to Orlando for a decent place.
So ... I'm considering eBay again.
I've got 200+ pieces of Ann Taylor, Express, Liz, Carole Little, Levis, Lee jeans and casuals, Old Navy, Mossimo, Columbia, Victoria Secret, etc.
Should I bother with eBay?
Should I try some lots instead of individual pieces?
My sis usually buys something she likes in 3-4 colors, so I have nice lot potential.
Advice?
Thoughts?
Thanks.
Oh! Return policy? Yes or more headache than it's worth?
Answer:
I've never had much luck with clothes and anything that sold was new. For me larger sizes sold better. I don't advertise a return police and nobody ever asked to return anything. If I made a mistake there is no question I'd put it right but with clothing I'd be leaning towards no returns unless I made a mistake.
~Mary.
Answer:
I have sold used clothes and new clothes in lots. Lots did not do to well for me. I have sold new with tags single pieces of clothes and done well. I have not sold used single pieces but I am part of Here Comes The Stork (link below) and there are alot of people selling used and seem to do well. You do have to pay to be a member of HCTS but it is worth it to me. There is a place on the site to list your auctions and people there do buy them. I hope this helped.
Answer:
Hi'ya FLvamp! I do quite well with used clothing, especially the name brand items. I sell a mixture of new and used and do equally as well with the used.
You might trying just lotting up a few pieces and see how that does.
About the return policy: I've only had to refund one time on used clothing.
Hope this helps! Bet
Answer:
I sell a mix of new and used clothes. I've had lots of luck with Ann Taylor, as well as Liz and Kaspar. I've had very little luck selling in lots, though.
Beth
Answer:
I've got 200+ pieces of Ann Taylor, Express, Liz, Carole Little, Levis, Lee jeans and casuals, Old Navy, Mossimo, Columbia, Victoria Secret, etc. When I sold off my career wardrobe, I did REALLY well with used clothing. Really well. But you need the higher-end stuff, with Ann Taylor, Liz, Vic Sec and Carole Little being the ones **I** would try.
Take lots of pics, give lots of measurements, and STATE no returns unless you've made a mistake. List ANY flaws you find -- what amazed me is that even with flaws, people MAY still buy. I remember one thing in particular that I missed a flaw on, and when I was packing it, saw the flaw. (It sold at opening bid). So I wrote the buyer and sent a pic, and she decided to not buy it. Fair enough. So I put it back up, with pics of the flaw, and it sold the second time for 10x the opening bid, and had 5 rabid bidders
Selling clothing is lots of work, between the pics, the measurements and the description. And like everything else on ebay, the market is MUCH quieter than it once was.
I'd avoid doing "lots" -- just because YOU liked the shirt in both pink & blue doesn't mean the buyer will. So you will lose both the liker of blue and the liker of pink. I had one 10-piece lot of Louis Feraud, Escada, Anne Klein sell for $14 or something.
Answer:
Thanks all, excellent advice. Much appreciated!
Answer:
I've been selling (& buying) on eBay for 6+years now. I put myself in the place of the prospective bidder and decided that I'd rather chance a few refunds and have more bidders/BINs, more return customers, and positive f/b rather than not accept returns.
Plus, this puts me above most other eBay sellers--I have my "Satisfaction guaranteed--I guarantee all my items with a full money-back return policy."
I add some conditions, mainly that shipping costs are not refundable unless it's something that I really missed the boat on (e.g. I have the wrong size listed).
To help prevent those returns I make sure to list every single measurement I can think of, and if it's a used item, any damage, stains, etc. I've found that I rarely get returns--maybe two to three per year on the average. And that's usually because no matter how thorough I am, there are people who just don't read the listings! Grrrr.
I've had several customers (repeat ones, too) tell me that they weren't sure they were going to bid on or BIN an item until they saw my guarantee, and that's what made them decide to go for it. But rarely do I have to process refunds.
One cardinal rule I have is: I never leave retaliatory f/b, and my f/b is always businesslike & straight to the point, i.e., "Non-Paying Bidder. NPB Filed, Strike Given." (Don't ask why I capitalize my f/b like a title--it just looks good to me!).
And there are the occasional jerks who don't read the listing, receive the item, don't like it, & leave neg f/b w/o even attempting to contact me. I find that they'll usually agree to remove the f/b if they can return the item & get their $$ back, which, of course, they can. First I write my infamous "oh, why me?" e-mail to them 'cause I've got to make 'em feel a wee bit guilty for doing that, in hopes that the next seller won't get nailed for no good reason!
My pet peeve is the customers who still e-mail me with questions such as "What is the waist measurement?" when it's clearly and plainly written out completely in the listing. Arrgh! But I hold my tongue because I've done the same thing, and I don't want potential bidders to be embarrassed and vanish!