A lot of people are not completely clear on what exactly consignment is. We usually have the idea of a second-hand shop where the shop actually buys or collects used clothes and then sells it. Well, with consignment things function a bit differently. With consignment, the owner keeps ownership of their item until it sells, if it sells. Of course, the owner of the item needs to pay a small fee to the shop as compensation for them selling the item in question.
So, buying from consignment means that you are buying directly from the first owner. And this is especially important when buying clothes as you are going to put them on your skin, and it is always better if you know where exactly they came from. Now, if you are thinking about consigning clothes or buying from consignment here are some additional things you should know.
Understanding the concept of consignment shops
Most consignment shops are small local businesses that offer their own terms and conditions if you want to sell your clothing items there. The good news is that you can probably bargain and get the price of their commission down a bit, but the bad news is that they typically have a limited number of customers so your clothing might not get the desired exposure and it might stay at the shop for a very long time. This is where the internet comes in handy, choosing you can use a consignment online shop and get a lot more exposure for your items.
In most cases it requires you registering, paying a small fee and putting up images of the clothing items you want to sell along with their description. In today’s world, where everything is just a click away, the online option might be the fastest way for you to hand down the clothing items you are finally willing to part with. Just remember to count in the shipping price for each item.
Consider payment options
One of the reasons people choose consignment is either to either save money by buying well-preserved items for a much lower price, or to earn some extra money by selling items they do not longer want to wear. But in order to achieve the best price in both cases it is important to decide which payment methods are acceptable. It is similar to choosing the perfect credit card, you need to read carefully and see what benefits each package offers.
You can choose to pay for clothing via credit card or PayPal if it is an online purchase, on the other hand, you might want you have the option of making a simple cash exchange with the owner of the consignment shop after your item has been sold. It all depends what you are most comfortable with, and if there are certain benefits and savings possibilities for each of the options.
Maybe start a business
You can always consider starting a consignment business if you have a lot of items you want to sell or know people who want to supply your shop. Of course, the online option is the fastest and the cheapest way to get things off the ground as you won’t have to rent a space and pay for utilities, you can run it from the comfort of your own home. And as for the current market you will be happy to know that millennials are driving the re-sale clothing boom by choosing to pay less but still loving the brands.
You will see them frequenting vintage shops, a lot of which are actually consignment shops or bragging how they got that perfect Vera Wang dress for one-third of the price from the first owner. So, if you are considering this type of business now is the right time to go for it. The starting investment won’t be that big and all you need is to have a stable supply of clothing items from people willing to sell their clothes via your website. The profit won’t be too far behind.
So, if you want to consign clothes or buy clothes from consignment, or even start your own consignment shop, you live in the perfect day and age for that. The fact that more and more people are deciding to do this means that there is a lot more choice out there. You could run into great deals on high-quality couture items or be happy that you have found the most perfect-fitting skirt for just 5$ the options are limitless.
Consignment as movement has taken momentum as shows no sign of shopping, it allows people with a limited budget to wear expensive clothing items and at the same time earn some additional funds by selling off options clothes they don’t intend to wear any longer.
Article written by Sophia Smith
Sophia is a Beauty & Style blogger, Graphic designer and Style editor at highstylife.com
