Everyone is extremely motivated at first. The reality is though, that often we try to compete with everyone else in the business. AKA We burn the hell out QUICKLY. Find your rhythm & do what works for you. Everyone is different.
You may be selling the wrong items. I operated on observing other sellers, listening to Youtube videos, and selling just clothing. I’ve found clothing though to be extremely expensive to purchase (in my area), anxiety causing competitive, and all around miserable for me at this point. Start your selling strategy with what comes easy to you. I needed variety because I felt like I was suffocating under a stack of coats.
Customer service is a thing. How you treat, respond, and package items for your customers goes a long way. Your closet could be amazing but if your attitude sucks, so will any selling strategy your are trying to implement.
What you are trying to profit off each item (minus all fees and cost of goods) may be too high. You have to try & fail though to realize something does not work. Adjust what you are wanting to profit until you find an amount that works.
Organization. If you do not come up with a system to organize your inventory then I promise, you will be in a world of hurt. Even if it is just grouping similar items in the same place, it will make a difference. You will think more quickly and be able to locate your items when customers purchase them.
These things listed above are simply my opinion. Your journey may take you in a totally different direction. I write my advice based on my personal experiences and mistakes. Whatever you are doing, do what works for you. Never be afraid to think outside the box and get creative. Pinterest is a great resource for all kinds of ideas! If you would like to check out my Pinterest Boards Please Click Here.
I’m currently listening to GraceV to help me relax on Youtube. For those that suffer from anxiety, check out her ASMR channel. I’m coming down from a workout that I managed to push through at 10:45 PM. I walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes while listening to loud Taylor Swift Songs on my headphones. If you are struggling with exercise, I highly recommend music. Whether it is the radio, record, Alexa, phone, etc, it really helps. I wanted to write about today, because I have another one of those thrifting stories ….
I went to my favorite Goodwill today to do a little sourcing (cough…$80+ worth). With the way I scour the shelves at the thrift store, people must think I am checking for dust. I can’t tell you how many times I find things underneath, between, or behind items. The other day, I found a Pink TI84 Silver Calculator for $2.99 that I sold in 24 hours for $46 on Ebay. If I could just sell calculators, I totally would. I’ve only ever found one though so that is kind of an issue. Anyway, back to my story. While I was on my shelf scouring mission, a woman came up to me holding a glass object and asked me what I thought it was. I told her it could be a small planter. She then replied, well I was thinking of putting a candle in it. I told her I could see that. This intro conversation lead into a long conversation about her Christmas decorations & reselling. I know better than to tell people I am a reseller. Yet, today, clearly I forgot. As soon as I mentioned I resell on Poshmark I got the very common response of “I was thinking of trying that!” You mine as well sign away the next 30 minutes of your life. Brace yourself, an avalanche of how to get rich quick questions are going to be shot at you.
I gave her some tips and told her some items I personally choose to resell. She looked at the items in my buggy like she was not that impressed. I was just getting that vibe. Anyway, it lead into the very awkward question that inspired this blog: “Can you actually make a living at reselling?” That is such an inappropriate question to ask someone that has just told you they resell full time. Like, do you actually think I am going to tell you what I make? Who even are you? Please tell me your profession so that I can broach the subject of your income in the middle of the store. Ok I had my vent…. moving on… I told her that YES it is possible to make an income on Poshmark. You can make an income selling rocks (the pet rock was a thing in past). It all just depends on the items you have to sell, time you dedicate to it, etc. She seemed to want to make money but not so much put the work into selling the items. Again, I was just getting that vibe. Don’t get me wrong, she was nice. But the kind of nice that I do not trust. Ever talk to someone that asks you so many questions you almost tell them your blood type? And yet, looking back, you know that stranger would not make time to buy you coffee. Yeah, it was that kind of thing. Don’t come for me (as Stephanie Harlow says), I’m just being real with you.
Moving past my thrift store trilogy for today, I want to explain to you my level of insanity when I become exhausted. True Story. The FIRST trip in Goodwill I loaded up my cart with a good amount of breakable items. This is never a good situation when you plan to pack your buggy full. After what I think was a few hours, and a line of about 10 customers that were ready to kill me at checkout, I escaped with $58 ish dollars less on my debit card. I methodically loaded everything into the car, tied the bags, and let the ceramics ride copilot. They did not exactly “ride” for a while though. Upon taking the buggy back inside, I went to look for a SECOND TIME quickly (right…) at the linens. This is a section that up until recently, I have not taken a lot of interest in. I’ve discovered though that you can find some really nice baby blankets, lace, pillowcases, etc, over there. However, placemats my friends, is what occurred tonight. 16 of them that is. I kid you not, I just typed pillowcases. Then I sat here thinking, did I really get 16 pillowcases. That can’t be right. Oh Lord.
The reason I got the PLACE MATS is because they looked vintage & were elegant looking. To me anyway. Tomorrow, I may have a totally different outlook. I tried to decide if I wanted just 4, 8, or all of them. I was going to leave them to walk around but I know better than to do that. People swipe things faster than you can blink off shelves around here. Even if you are the only one in the store, take your item while you ponder it. I’m never alone. I think I am and I turn around and it’s literally like a swarm of bees (shoppers) throughout the store. I told my husband I got 16 placemats. He was like SIXTEEN? WHY? I told him I didn’t know. I was tired & my car was stuffed with bags. He relaxed when I told them that they were 42 cents each. My insanity cost us about $8. We then joked about the different combinations that could happen with the placemats. Like, we could keep 4 and sell 12. (I just typed 8 – Reasons I did not go into accounting). Or we could keep 8, have backups, and sell the other 8. I swear that I am going to look back and really laugh at the craziness of the lack of judgement in these buying decisions one day. It’s a good non fiction story though right ?
If anyone needs placemats, I’m your girl. For everything else, please ask someone else (just for tonight). If I can’t math, am buying mass linens, and worked out too close to midnight, my brain is fried. My chihuahuas current state is that she is snoring in her bear pillow basket. If you need a basket for your dog or cat, look at the thrift store. I found her a nice wicker one that she loves for I believe under $2. My cat, Snuggs, has taken up residence in my lap while I am trying to work. Therefore, I of course had to get him another basket. BOTH of them are snoozing in their baskets right now. They are rotten.
Today is Valentine’s Day. I should be feeling more romantic than ever considering the amount of conversation hearts I stuffed in my mouth last night. I was having killer cramps & trying to find some form of sugar in our house at 1 AM. I’m sure my PMS greatly affected my mental stability when it came to thrifting items yesterday. I clearly had sweets on the mind when I went to Goodwill because the largest plush I found was a Peeps Candy Bunny. My friends, had he been marshmallow filled, he would have been eaten before I got to the register.
I’m assuming that the previous Peep bunny owner also donated the other plushes I found. Each stuffed animal I plopped into my buggy was unusually soft, sparkly, and multicolored. If you ever find something you like, always look for a second. I can’t tell you how often I find matching items if I take the time to look. This is what happened when I discovered both of the mini llamas. I knew immediately I wanted to sell them together, as they were basically twins. Unicorns also still seem quite desirable. I’ve learned that animals, other than horses, can be unicorns too. I found a sparkly owl and pig in this category. It’s confusing but I have learned not to try to make sense of anything in life. Sweet purple Easter egg looking hippo also had to come along with us. Just because, how often exactly do you see a pastel hippo plush?
The last two items in the buggy are Chocolate Lab Pillows. The ladies that worked at Goodwill joked with me as I considered those pillows. There was a Poo Poo pillow that one of the ladies recommended going along with the two puppies. I definitely knew that was going to be a nope. I have never understood the trend with fecal matter. Who decides what becomes popular and plastered all over every retail item possible? I mean really. The puppy pillows are very sweet though. I am selling them separately but am hoping they will be sold together. I’ve definitely sold throw pillows on Poshmark. If you take a quick trip over to Marshalls you will realize how insanely priced one single pillow is. I bought a Christmas dog pillow there last year and still cannot believe I paid what I did for it. This is why everything I own is from a thrift store. It keeps me from having a life threatening anxiety attack when I go to the register.
I have acquired a few more cute items to add to my Poshmark Closet. I must admit that it is hard to sell some of these items because they are so adorable. My goal is not to hoard so, alas, I must sell. The Easter bunny seesaw above is a vintage piece. Rarely, I find items that come in their original boxes, but this one was an exception. This rabbit playground figurine looks festive & whimsical. This would be beautiful sitting on an Easter coffee bar.
I may be jumping to conclusions but I would say that this narwhal is an artsy extravert. His wardrobe is not only colorful but creative. I found this long guy when I went to shuffle through the plush animals. A child was originally holding him but he ultimately got thrown back in. Immediately, I knew he needed to come home with me. I know that someone needs a cuddly, soft, and sweet looking narwhal in their life.
These fun cactus pillowcases have been sold from my Poshmark Closet. However, I definitely wanted to include them because they were an unusual find. This was my first time seeing smiling succulents that were dressed for a New Orleans Mardi Gras. These pillowcases are definitely going to cheer up the new owner’s bedroom. My advice to picking up bedding is to keep your eye out for really unique patterns. I’m interested to find some llama pillowcases, considering llamas are on everything from coffee mugs to landscape. These pillowcases were a lot of fun to sell.
Lately, I’ve been keeping my eye out for farmhouse items. From what I have observed, there is definitely a market for this category. I saw this galvanized metal letter holder for $2.99 on the bottom of a shelf. This is one of those pieces that I did not look up the price on. Sometimes, it makes sense to sell things that are just my style. I enjoy seeing animals and home decoration in my Poshmark Closet. This item was easy to photograph and added some rustic charm.
A few year ago I discovered some Youtube videos about how to resell on Poshmark. I watched and listened as people explained how you can make a profit by selling items from thrift stores. Since I loved thrifting, I decided to create my new business immediately. I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit that often acts before having any dam idea what I am doing. I started going to the Goodwill bins, where they weigh the clothing per pound, and loading up with plus size items. My knowledge of brands, style, or really anything involving clothes was pretty much nothing. I had a plan though and if other people did it, so could I. Fast forward over two very broke years……
Today, I am still a reseller. I sell on Poshmark, Mercari, Ebay, and when I am feeling adventurous I add on Etsy too. Learning to resell, price, list, organize, thrift, ship, etc, has been an absolutely roller coaster for me. Nothing has come naturally or worked as I planned. Reselling is not easy, as the unbelievably annoying commercial for reseller apps make it sound. There is such BALANCE involved that no one talks about. One must learn to balance their life with their business. You may have to choose between listing items and spending time with your significant other. There is a lot about reselling that has no easy answer.
Stop doing what everyone is doing. Right now. STOP. Spend some time thinking about colors, photographs, lighting, business names, etc, that you are in love with. Let me tell you, you need to be in love to put up with seeing these things every day. Don’t be afraid to step outside the box of your “competition.” It is only a competition if you are competing. I witnessed two women bicker over a couple of metal lawn mosquito ornaments the other day. One woman was going for them but another beat her to the punch. You better believe she let everyone near her in Goodwill know that a set of mosquitos was unfairly taken from her. Don’t be that woman.
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