HOW TO SELL CLOTHES
ONLINE
LOOKING TO MAKE SOME EXTRACASH BY SELLING YOUR
CLOTHES ONLINE?
We all have those clothes that sit in our wardrobes for months or even years without being worn - buying clothes can easily become addictive and hoarding them can be even easier. Have you considered that the dress or pair of jeans you spent your hard-earned money on could be recycled for cash (freeing up some of your wardrobe space in the process)?
If you are thinking of selling your clothes online, our guide will help you to choose the right marketplace, get your listing noticed and sell for the best possible price.
GETTING STARTED
There’s lots of marketplaces where you can sell clothes – but which one will work best for the type of clothes you are selling? Below we give an overview of 7 of the most popular platforms and the pros and cons of each. So whether you are selling last season’s must-have Zara dress or a one-of-a-kind vintage piece, you’ll be able to find the perfect site to sell your item quickly and for the best possible price.
EBAY
Ten years ago, eBay was the go-to-site for buying and selling clothes. Since then, multiple new marketplace sites have cropped up, but eBay remains a popular choice - every day there’s over 2 billion transactions on the site!
One of the main benefits of using eBay over other platforms is the sheer number of visitors. At any given time, eBay will have 148 million active buyers browsing listings. It’s important to remember that eBay sells a wide array of items so not all of these buyers will be in the market to pick up a new piece of clothing.
eBay offers three selling options: ‘Buy it now’, ‘Bid’ and ‘Make me an offer’. Make sure you choose the one which is right for your item. An auction works well for in-demand items where stock is low (for example a vintage piece) – just remember to set a reserve so the item doesn’t sell for less than you are willing to part with it for.
Did you know you can link your eBay account with DHL eCommerce UK to get your orders out in no time? When an order is placed on your eBay store, we’ll automatically fill in our booking form with the shipping details – all you need to do is review and pay for the booking. Once you’ve sent the item, we’ll even update eBay to say it has been dispatched. This is a great option if you are selling lots of clothes at once as it could save you admin time.
ETSY
Etsy is a marketplace site designed specifically for creative sellers. The site is packed with millions of unique pieces of clothing, jewellery, furniture, toys and art. If you are a small business, selling handmade clothes, upcycled creations or vintage pieces then this may be the platform for you. Note, Etsy stipulate that clothes must be at least 20 years old to be classed as vintage.
It could not be simpler to set up an Etsy shop – an easy-to-use wizard takes you through each step and you can even customise with your company’s logo and branding.
Once you’ve set up an Etsy shop, we can help you to send out orders quickly. Simply link your Etsy account with DHL eCommerce UK and every time you sell an item, we’ll input the delivery details into our booking form. You will just need to login to your DHL eCommerce UK account to review and pay for the booking.
SHOPIFY
If you are selling clothes as a hobby or following a clear-out then marketplace websites are a great way of reaching lots of potential buyers, without having to do any marketing. However, if you are a budding entrepreneur who wants to set-up your own clothing brand then Shopify has all the features you need to run a successful e-commerce business.
It is quick and simple to set-up an e-commerce store on Shopify, while the extensive marketing, SEO and customer engagement tools available will help with the day-to-day running of your business.
Let us help you get your Shopify orders out to customers. Link your Shopify account with DHL eCommerce UK and every time you sell an item, we’ll input the delivery details into our booking form, saving you valuable admin time.
DEPOP
Depop is relatively new to the marketplace scene, but it definitely shouldn’t be underestimated. Since its launch in 2011, Depop has grown exponentially and now has over 13 million active users. Amongst its sellers, there are even celebrities and influencers which has created a huge Gen Z following (one third of all 16-24 year olds in the UK are registered).
Unlike its competitors, Depop is completely app-based and has been designed to emulate the likes of Instagram and Facebook. Each seller has their own page where items are displayed in a photo grid and you can even follow your favourite sellers and their items will appear in your feed.
Gen Z are more price conscious and always on the lookout for a bargain which means high street items sell well on Depop. To get your listing noticed, you’ll need to employ the same skills as you would on social media. We recommend building your followers, taking great photos and using hashtags.
ASOS MARKETPLACE
When ASOS Marketplace launched in 2010, it had just 20 ‘boutiques’. A decade on and it’s now one of the most popular sites for selling vintage clothes online.
If you selling clothes after a clear out, this may not be the site for you as ASOS stipulate you must have at least 15 items listed at all times. There’s also a monthly charge of £20 which may not make it worth it.
However, if you have a regular supply of vintage clothes and are looking for somewhere to sell them, ASOS Marketplace is the perfect option and will help you to reach millions of buyers who are passionate about vintage clothes.
VINTED
Vinted is a Lithuaniain marketplace where users can buy, sell and even swap second-hand clothes and accessories. Boasting over 22 million active users, you are sure to find a buyer for your clothes here.
Vinted has a similar set-up to Depop, but is geared more towards an older audience. Premium brands, with a higher price tag, tend to sell better on this platform over Depop.
The main difference with Vinted is they charge a buyer protection fee instead of a sellers fee which is roughly 3-8% of the sale price. When you sell an item, your money is held in your Vinted account and can either be used to purchase items on the site or withdrawn to your bank account.
REBELLE
If you are looking to sell a designer piece then Rebelle is a great option. Their team of experts will check the authenticity and condition of the items before it is sent to the buyer. As the buyer isn’t taking a gamble when making the purchase, they are often prepared to pay a higher asking price than they would on other marketplace sites.
With Rebelle, you have two selling options. The first is like any other marketplace site – you take the photos, write the product description and set the price. The only difference is that instead of sending to the customer, you send to Rebelle who will check the item and send on. Rebelle also offer a concierge selling service where you send the item to them and they do all the hard work for you. As you’d expect, you’ll pay Rebelle a higher commission for this service.
When you send with DHL eCommerce UK, you get full tracking and £25 contents cover as standard. When sending designer items, we recommend taking out extended contents cover to the value of the item.
HOW MUCH IS IT WORTH? / SETTING PRICE
You may have a favourite piece of clothing that’s had plenty of wear - sometimes you can be lucky, as this gives that denim jacket a cool vintage look, but a lot of the time it just ends up looking tatty and needs to be thrown away, rather than sold. This is why it’s worth being conscious of the condition of clothing; your favourite old t-shirt or pair of joggers may be extremely comfortable and they may have great sentimental value to you, but it doesn’t mean they’ll be of use to anyone else.
Bear in mind that people are always in favour of buying designer brands for bragging rights. Well known labels can retain their value well (dependant on condition), so make sure to consider how much you initially paid for an item when setting your price.
DO THE RESEARCH
Don’t rush in to auctioning or selling off your items - finding out how much similar items are selling for already is time well spent. Just keep an eye on the initial bid and how much the item ended up selling for and use this as a basis for your prices. Regardless of whether your items are from Primark or Prada, they may still be of interest to the right person and digging around on sites like eBay will help in setting your asking price.
TAKE QUALITY PHOTOS
When selling clothes online, a quality photo can be the difference between getting no interest and selling something for a good price. Clothing that’s worn by a person in the pictures or presented nicely is always going to entice people more than untidy photos or even photos with bad lighting. A mannequin is the best way to present clothes if you have one, but if not, wear them yourself and have someone take a photo of you, or at least place on a hanger so buyers can see the clothing properly.
It helps for your potential buyer to visualise each item, so include pictures from all angles, including the back, and focus on any embellishments or details. Close ups of the material and the label will also make sure they know exactly what they’re buying.
Natural daylight is ideal for providing an attractive and honest representation of your item, but if you have to take photos in the evening, make sure you can see the product and colours clearly.
Finally, make sure your item stands out on its background; you don’t want a messy bedroom floor to pick up feedback over the item of clothing you are trying to sell.
USE DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS
If you plan to sell clothes online, the description needs to be as detailed as possible. Tell the potential buyer the brand of the shirt, whether those trainers are new or used and make sure to mention if those jeans are beginning to fray.
Provide details about the fabric content, feel and colour to build up a full picture of each item and always include measurements if you can – a size 10 can differ from one brand to another and not all may fit the same way.
The title for your item is particularly important, as this will be picked up by the search engine when your potential buyer is looking for certain products. Make sure to include the brand name, colour, size and type of item in the title.
This may seem like a lot of hard work, but by ensuring your customer knows as much as possible about the item they are buying, you can avoid bad feedback that could deter future customers.
CLOTHING PACKAGING TIPS
Clothing is one of the most popular types of package sent through the DHL eCommerce UK network, from both one-off sales and more regular businesses. To make delivery easy, avoid any damage and get great reviews from your recipients, we can’t stress how vital it is to package your items well.
Here are five steps for packaging clothing:
Step 1: Give yourself plenty of room for packaging your parcel – it’s tough to make things look neat when you’re working in a small space.
Step 2: Ensure the clothes are neatly folded for the recipient – no one likes to receive carelessly creased items.
Step 3: Consider wrapping your item in bubble wrap to add an extra layer and full protection – this is also great if it’s raining on the day your item is being delivered as it helps to keep it dry.
Step 4: Once your item is neatly wrapped, consider how it will need to be packaged. We would recommend a poly mailer but you could use a cardboard box depending on the size of the item.
Step 5: Book your parcel delivery and attach the printed shipping label (use a fair amount of clear tape to stick and cover the label to ensure water resistance and security of your overall item).
Please see our Packaging Guide for any further information.
POTENTIAL COSTS
So how much is each item likely to cost you to send? Before selling a piece of clothing, check the weight of the item, as courier costs are higher for larger or heavier items. You may be better off passing the cost to the recipient as a delivery cost, or perhaps consider building this into the overall asking price of the item and offer your buyer free delivery.
If selling items online is working out for you, a lot of packaging materials will need to be used going forward. When sending an item, think about the most cost effective, safe way of sending your clothing. If you are using a box that is too large for an item, you won’t only be paying for extra material but also you might get a higher cost from your courier.
Our Quick Quote will tell you how much it will cost to send your item to its destination. Just make sure you weigh and measure your item first for the most accurate price.
You can save money on the cost of sending your item by dropping your parcel off at any of our 3,500 ServicePoints. 90% of the population live within 10 minutes of a ServicePoint and our shops are open from 8am and until late so you can pop in at a time which is convenient for you.
HOW MUCH COULD I MAKE?
The key to making money from selling clothes is to optimise your listings, send your items on time and use a trusted courier. We always provide our customer and their recipients with the best quality service and we are proud to have earned a ‘Great’ review status on Reevoo.
Looking to send something today? DHL eCommerce UK offers fast, reliable and cheap parcel delivery across the UK and Internationally.