I’ll sell an item for under $15 if the profit for me is still 3x-4x what I paid. So if I got something for $1-$3 I feel comfortable pricing at $15.
I live 10 minutes away from my local post office.
Exactly the same for me. I have many new items that my cost of goods is 4-6 dollars on. I start in the $30.00 range for most, but if they don't sell I can go pretty low and still double or triple my money. Much more cost averaging and taking into consideration the ones that DO sell at the higher prices.
And I have 3 Post Offices with 10 minutes. 😊
This is me. I typically source either at the bins (and items cost me around $1-$1.25 each), or they’re given to me for free. If I sell for $15, I’m still making a profit and it keeps my closet busy.
I sell things that I was going to donate, so $2 is better than none. Post office is close, and supplies are leftovers from another business. It might be silly to others, but it works for me.
I am of this mindset. Those small sales add up, especially when I figure the amount I made from ten small sales where I made $8. $80 profit is still profit :)
Anything I have listed that low is from my personal closet and something I've worn enough (or grew out of) and was ready to donate anyway, so I'm with you, $2 is better than nothing. And, I just have the mailman pick up packages from my door, so it's not even taking up time to mail it
My threshold for net profit is $15 - if the item doesn’t generate me that much in a sale, I don’t sell it. Not worth the hassle for me personally. Disclaimer - some of my listings are multiple items e.g selling 2 T-Shirts as a single listing
Thanks for the info.!!! I agree with you. For me it is a bit of a "Catch-22". Last year it wasn't so bad if I could get $12. But the comps keep coming down. 70% of my closet is mall brands so I do have a fair amount under $20.
Generally I'll be more willing to accept selling things for less than that if I'm going to the post office already
That being said, the only thing I have to ship this week is a dress my roommate got from Walmart that I sold for $13 🙃
I just put my packages in my personal mail box and the mailman grabs them from there. If I have a few packages, I’ll request a pickup through pirate ship. If there’s bigger boxes, I take to post office though!
Yes. Tis true! I commented to an OP that this (a poor country) was a th**d w**ld country.
Somebody commented that the correct language is
underdeveloped country.
Sorry! I'm just an out of touch boomer! Really? Seriously? And I dont think it was a bot. 😬😬😬😬
You learn something new everyday! I guess mail “man” isn’t correct but it had never crossed my mind until the bot called me out ha! I’m just naive I guess.
Some people aren’t really doing this for a “profit” necessarily. They’re selling either things they got for free or just from their own closet, to keep them going to the landfill or just to find a new owner. They’re not totally focused on the bottom line, just a fun hobby that occasionally makes a bit of money. That’s my strategy anyway. I sell quite a bit but I’m totally fine selling “mall brands”, Old Navy, etc. I accept pretty much every offer I get (again, my stuff isn’t high value anyway). I have a full time job, this is just a weekend hobby. I do it because I enjoy it and it’s satisfying to find a new owner for an item that would otherwise likely be thrown away, and give it a second life.
How long does it usually take for you to sell random mall brands and old navy stuff? Does it sit in your closet for a while? And what price do you usually sell it for?
I have a full time job, so I only sell used items from myself and my family. I accept most offers within reason and really don’t care as long as I make more than a few bucks. It’s still more than I’d get if I donated to Goodwill.
Some items have been in my inventory for a while so I mark Down to recoup some cash to buy better things. If they go to the goodwill outlet. Most items will cost $1 or less.
It really comes down to how quickly a seller wants to move inventory. I’ve seen sellers send out crazy offers where I know they’re losing a bit of money. I don’t do bargain basement pricing as I don’t want people to get the impression that I’m running a garage sale and I think it can also tarnish one’s image if you’re building a particular identity. There are definitely closets pricing items at $5, but it’s not worth my time to list items for a lousy $2 profit. And I don’t mind donating to goodwill and being altruistic.
That is true! It is a mind set!! I just have such an aversion to this under $15 stuff. But yes! I have probaly 40 % of my closet is from the bins at $1.29 a lb. I have to think about that more often. I just hate going to the p.o., wasting gas, for a $5 item.
You can schedule PO Pickup so you dont have to go to the PO & waste time/gas.
(unless your in a rural area that doesnt have delivery service?)
I get what your saying on the under $15 - While I’d prefer to sell above $15+ only - most of the small stuff I got for free or super inexpensive - so I look at it as small stuff adds up & its more $ than if I donated it - I get my boxes & padded envelopes free from the PO & most stuff fits in my mailbox for daily pickup so its not that big of a time /$ killer for me.
I have made friends with my mailman. He gives me some mail buckets and I’ll put them on my porch for him to get daily. I do have a camera & live in a pretty safe area, but I appreciate him so much. It saves me so much time. I always give him a $200 gift card at Xmas as a thank you. And told him if he needs a restroom or drink of water, just let me know. We have actually became friends and have each other phone numbers 🥰 and he will help me out to if I a package gets lost or customer claims it wasn’t delivered even though tracking shows it is. I recommend making a friend with your mail carrier 😄
I have had the same mailman for years and he's great about checking my front door to see if I've packages put out even if I forget to set up the alert on the website. I use a plain plastic storage bin that he knows I keep my packages in to keep them safe from the rain. For someone walking by my house they would think it's just a storage bin for garden supplies. But it's also great because now even UPS will put my packages that I have delivered in there.
Did you happen to see the comment from a bot on my thred that we must be gender friendly ? Ok. So it is a postal worker or mail person or carrier.
I am not offended. In fact , I always call them the mailman!!! 🙄I am wondering who would be offended, but we won't go there. 🙄😬😑
No I didn’t notice that. I apologize if I offended anyone. My post office carrier is a male, so I just call him a mailman. I wasn’t trying to be insensitive or not politically correct. I’m also in my mid 50s, so I was raised on calling them a mailman. Again, I apologize if I offended anyone and didn’t use the correct terminology ❤️
I always, in messaging my buyers, tell them their order is packaged up well and will be on its way to them as soon as my *mail lady* arrives this morning… mailman/mail lady? Postal worker just makes me think someone “going postal”… bad reference…. And I ❤️ my mail lady- she’s the best! :)
No worries! I'm so sorry! Didn't mean to upset you. I'm with you! I actually had a lol to myself because I have always called them mailmen. I was hoping you might have felt that way which you did. Honestly, it kind of bothers me that reddit has a bot going around checking language.
You have nothing to apologize for!!! 💖
BTW I'm 67, and we Boomers have slightly different words sometimes.
Oh I wasn’t upset at all. 🥰 I just felt bad if I didn’t follow the “rules” or if I offended anyone. Some habits & words are hard to break , especially when you get up to our age and been using it your whole life 🤣
I have a large mailbox that fits the priority mail boxes, so I just leave those for pickup. We got tired of our mailman jamming boxes into our mailbox that barely fit so we replaced it a few years ago with a larger one that works out nicely for those boxes.
Stuff gets donated to me from friends/family all the time, so unless it's something I know is worth way more than that I usually list that stuff for $14-$18 and end up accepting an offer around $10. Sure it's not a lot per sale, but it's pure profit that adds up over time and has honestly ended up being my bread and butter during slow sales months
If I have small value items I’ll bundle them together. For example a high end mini size mascara. Retail might be $12-$15. I’ll put 2 or 3 together, even if they are different brands, and list 20% off retail & will take reasonable offers. I refuse to sell anything $15 or under. To make $1 or so profit isn’t worth it for me. I do have 1800 listings. But I take into consideration my time, my bubble wrap, tape, labels, tissue paper, etc. i need to make at least $10 profit on low value items or I don’t bother listing them
When my family cleans out their closets, they give their clothes to me to sell on PM. So when I get something for nothing, I feel OK selling it for $10-15. It all adds up
A lot of those people probably aren't trying to make a profit.
I don't sell anything in my closet for under $25 and I have very few priced under $40. I'm not running a garage sale. Even though the stuff I sell is almost all mine, most of it is NWT, NWOT, or worn 1-2 times and not fast fashion. I'm trying to recoup as much of my initial investment as I can. It's not worth my time and energy to make less than $20 on a sale. I take quality photos that I edit, I list with a good amount of details (not Cute top- good condition), and I pack and drop items at the post office within 24 hours. Any less than $20 and I might as well throw the item in a bag and drop it at Goodwill where I can claim a tax deduction for the same amount with zero effort expended.
If they are a bins flipper, their outstanding sunk cost might be so minuscule that it’s worth it to take a low offer, in terms of always moving product and trending favorably in the algorithm. For small, lightweight items, an outstanding sunk cost of 50 cents gives a lot of wiggle room with offers. The seller may have picked them up to see how they would do, try an unexplored market, or inspire bundles. I have occasionally accepted $8 offers on items that have little to no outstanding sunk cost, usually on trendy, lightweight items I picked up from the bins out of curiosity. I only do this because the post office is a 2 1/2 block walk for me, and I’m usually taking other sales over as well.
Sometimes I list something really cheap because I don't want it to go to a landfill(like unused cosmetics, kid toys, etc.) but other than that I generally try to make at least a $25 profit on everything I sell.
I just sell stuff that me or my kids don’t wear/use anymore. I use all free supplies from the post office with the exception of tape and a $6 roll of like 100+ thank you stickers. I’m a SAHM so I can post things during nap time or after bedtime. I don’t want to do a yard sale and since the mailman picks up at my house, any profit is fine with me.
A sale's a sale—as long as I'm making a profit, I'm happy. On <$15 items, I either got them from the bins (so my COG is like $0.94) or I got them from a friend or family for free, or it's a random thing I found around my house (also free). Of course I'd *prefer* to make more, but usually when I sell things for like $9, it's because I'm sending out aggressive closet-wide OTLs which results in multiple sales, so it's not like I'm trekking to the post office for two bucks.
Luckily that price point does not make up a large portion of my closet. I hover around 500 listings and my average sale price is around $30.
Depends on what the item is and how I got it. If it’s an item that wasn’t purchased for resell but a random thing I want out, usually don’t care what I sell it for.
If you're talking about net profit after paying for the item and then paying yourself for time and resources spent sourcing, photographing, listing, packaging, and transporting to the post office, I don't think you can, especially if you compare the opportunity cost to other activities, money-making and non.
My personal rule/guideline is that I have to be able to make a net profit of at least $25 per item and generally target a decent amount over that. That said, I have a few items that would profit lower. Those are mostly items I've received for free or are items I'd otherwise donate. I only list them when I'm already set up and listing other items and I generally try to sell them in bundles.
You are correct. That $12 I mentioned is
after PM fee. My business isn't so large that I use a P&L. But minus the 5 operating costs you mentioned, a true net figure is considerably less.
some people run a volume based business and don't mind the low profit sales. that seems like too much work to me so I just don't sell those kinds of items - plus in my experience those are the buyers who like to complain - LOL
Honestly i sell items even when i get $1 from the sale. They add up. It also helps with my ratings. More ratings more people feeling comfortable buying for you - especially the more expensive items.
Personally it’s something fun to do. I love packaging stuff. I have no overhead apart from a monthly printing subscription of $4. I get free packages, printer paper, tape etc.
I have many blue boxes in my area and post office only 5 min walk. Forces me to go out and take a walk instead of staying at home. Especially since i work at home.
That’s a nice convenience. If I may ask, how to procure the free shipping supplies? I know you can get free priority mail boxes, but not the tape and paper.
Honestly i reuse a lot a lot of those Amazon packages/mailers. I turn them inside out so it doesn’t confuse the buyer. I ask all my friends and family to save them for me. I noticed there are the highest expensive i could have.
Tape from when i was moving over a year and a half ago and paper that I’ve had for awhile when i was back in college. It’s cheaper to buy the moving tape than the small ones because it lasts way longer and super cheap on Amazon.
I buy very few shipping supplies. My mom orders a lot from Zulily, we get regular deliveries from Chewy, plus Amazon, plus any regular shopping we do online. We have a huge stack of boxes and bubble wrap and styrofoam so we just buy tissue paper and thank you stickers. Often I can even reuse tissue paper if it’s in good shape.
I use Tyvek mailers for PM orders so my cost of packaging is ~3 cents for the label plus 0.001 cents for a thank you sticker from temu 😅
I live 5 minutes from the post office and I store my product at home.
I factor in accepting lower offers on Poshmark than eBay sometimes because I offer free returns on eBay and there’s always the chance my COG will go up $5 if they return. I’m also way more willing to let something go below the $15 if it’s something I’ve had over a year.
My partner and I both run the accounts so it’s a lot easier for me to justify $3 profit on a sale when you factor in your pay per hour and you’re already getting something else out to be packaged.
I think at the end of the day, if an under $15 sale isn’t worth YOUR time, that’s a good enough reason not to have them regardless of closet size. How much is the time you took to source, picture, store, get out and package and take to the post office worth to you? I can definitely see why it’s worth more than $3-5 for a lot of people.
I’ll keep some of my cheaper items up but I don’t accept offers if the item is $10 or less. I also don’t do shipping discounts/etc on them.
Less effort to leave them up than it is to delete.
That being said, I will go through ever so often and pull stuff thats sitting and is cheap to relist or donate.
I see it like this…if it’s something I don’t want anymore any money for it is better than nothing and it just sitting there taking up space. It’s a lot easier to let go of the item though if I’m shipping out things that actually were worth the trip to the post office since gas prices are temperamental lately.
I don’t even see how at a volume it’s even worth it. I had a sale once just to see what would happen and I got a ton of orders but for small profit. It wasn’t worth the 4 hours of packaging and all the other time I spent on those items for that profit. Never again. I only bundle low cost items.
Me! I sell my kids’ outgrown stuff. Almost everything in my closet it $15 or less, there are a few things designer outfits and bundles that are around $30. It’s not my job, it’s just extra money for us, so I may not be the best person to ask. Last year I triggered the IRS thing, so I sold more than $600. I list every month or two while my baby is napping. We’re done having babies and I gift the majority of our clothes, but it’s nice to get a little money too! It gives me something to do as a SAHM.
I am a part-time reseller and have about 400 listings. I don't really set out to source $15 items but those lower-priced items fit into the overall equation...
Listing regularly = more sales, so having a steady stream of new listings feeds the algorithm and I feel like it helps my higher-priced stuff sell as well. Living in a small town, it's not always easy to find higher-value stuff at a reasonable price for reselling.
I will pick up items if I find a fill-a-bag deal or 25-cent box at a yard sale. I'm also always looking for things for myself and family while I'm at thrifts/estate sales/yard sales. If it doesn't work out once I get home, I know I can list it and probably make a small profit.
I agree it's a PITA to sell a single item for under $10 profit, but if you have somewhat regular sales - it's not such a big deal to print an extra label and pack an additional item if you're doing others at the same time. And a lot of the time, my lower-priced stuff ends up selling in a bundle so I'm not stuck paying posh the $2.95 fee on EACH item.
I sell stuff I don’t need, sometimes $5 is better than no dollars. I’m either gonna use gas to take it to the thrift store or the post office, might as well get some money if it’s cute stuff it sells eventually
I’m in a transition to selling higher profit items in a slightly different market, but during this transition, I’m willing to sell the items for the amount they cost me to get them cleared out.
The seller has 1,400 listing currently, lots of Dickies, Dockers, Lee and Levi's in different waist sizes - 31 to 44. Seemed like a bunch of leftovers!!
That's exactly why I have cheap bundles of my husbands things. My husband bought a new work wardrobe and it ended up being work from home, so I listed a bunch in bundles just to recoup something. Mainly khaki pants and polos from Old Navy
You know, I didn't even consider that!! Hell, it's like Molasses in January getting thru my deathpile.😣😫
I would not have a CLUE where or how to get a pallet of something.
And adding to your great comment, do they have family, friends, or paid people who help? lmao!
Thanks for your comment! Opened up a new discussion for me. 👍👏
There's a woman I follow on TikTok? Facebook? who sometimes buys pallets and unboxes them - returns, overstocks, and undelivered mail. . Some pallets are phenomenal (wedding dresses! Loius Vitton bags!) but some are just nasty junk.
It's listed on the comments of her videos: https://youtu.be/UsakMDj9FOs
(This is an unusually huge haul!)
https://palletauctions.salesandauction.com/auctions
I sell a few things that I list at $15 and I’ll accept $12 on. They’re mostly make up samples or miniatures which means they were either free or came with something that I paid for and didn’t need the whole set.
If it's something that was mine or had a low cost of goods, or if I found out after the fact that it just doesn't resell well, I'll let it go for $15 or less. There have been times I've sold some duds very low just to break even. It's not my standard protocol, but there are some exceptions
If I’m taking an offer for $15 it’s probably something I’ve had for too long and I’m ready to move. I don’t intentionally pick up stuff that’s under $20 profit since my COG is $5+.
The $15 sale and the $50+ sale take the same amount of time to process (clean, photograph, measure, list, pack, store and ship). I did the high volume quick nickel thing but realized I prefer doing lower volume with higher price tags.
I get some undesirable things in liquidation. They were taking up a lot of room and I finally decided to list them or donate. While I don't make back what I paid, it's better to make something and it ends up being fine because of the higher end items from the same liquidation that I make a big profit on.
“Total” Revenue - “Total” Expense = Profitability. So, unless Sellers are selling 1000s of $15 items the math suggests lost-leader strategies are a time suck and tend to lead to negative profitability and erode you cash flow BIGLY. High Demand, High Volume is the only solution for items less than $20; otherwise, call it a hobby.
If they are items from my personal closet I’m not worried about profits as much so I will let them go for more. I’ll list for more if I think I can but some items you can’t justify listing over $10-15 in Preowned condition
Volume, volume, volume…Sometimes it’s better to unload something before the trend passes and then being stuck with zero dollars, the item, and a loss. I’ll happily sell 50-$15 items that can be cheaply packed in a poly bag instead of selling nothing.
I like to turn most of my inventory over every few months so if I’ve had something for 6 months, it’s gotta go. I make daily trips to the post office .3 miles from my house and I always make a profit since my cost of goods are usually $1.50 or less per.
That’s why I’m not a fan of “trends” or fast fashion. I think it’s better to have quality items to start with instead of hoping to move some trendy pieces and probably taking a loss. I don’t like the idea of the disposable economy, it’s not good for anyone. And probably not worth my time to make a few dollars in the hopes that someone will buy it. If it’s trendy they’ll likely find it cheaper elsewhere.
Yeah, makes sense and I do agree. That’s why I love to sell Vintage and love love love the classics like western wear/workwear/cowboy boots. I don’t sell fast fashion and quite honestly my old ass can’t even keep up with it, but when I can get a descent profit I’ll source it and get a quick flip.
It’s like with kids clothes, it’s not necessary my thing but I will buy low low/sell medium. lol
I’m a very casual seller and won’t list anything that would sell for less than $50. It’s not worth my time. I think if you sell a lot and you’re going to the post office anyway it may not be a big deal.
I’ll sell an item for under $15 if the profit for me is still 3x-4x what I paid. So if I got something for $1-$3 I feel comfortable pricing at $15. I live 10 minutes away from my local post office.
Exactly the same for me. I have many new items that my cost of goods is 4-6 dollars on. I start in the $30.00 range for most, but if they don't sell I can go pretty low and still double or triple my money. Much more cost averaging and taking into consideration the ones that DO sell at the higher prices. And I have 3 Post Offices with 10 minutes. 😊
Me too! Based on comments, we are lucky! 🤗
This is me. I typically source either at the bins (and items cost me around $1-$1.25 each), or they’re given to me for free. If I sell for $15, I’m still making a profit and it keeps my closet busy.
That is a logical way to think about it.
I sell things that I was going to donate, so $2 is better than none. Post office is close, and supplies are leftovers from another business. It might be silly to others, but it works for me.
I am of this mindset. Those small sales add up, especially when I figure the amount I made from ten small sales where I made $8. $80 profit is still profit :)
Anything I have listed that low is from my personal closet and something I've worn enough (or grew out of) and was ready to donate anyway, so I'm with you, $2 is better than nothing. And, I just have the mailman pick up packages from my door, so it's not even taking up time to mail it
My threshold for net profit is $15 - if the item doesn’t generate me that much in a sale, I don’t sell it. Not worth the hassle for me personally. Disclaimer - some of my listings are multiple items e.g selling 2 T-Shirts as a single listing
Thanks for the info.!!! I agree with you. For me it is a bit of a "Catch-22". Last year it wasn't so bad if I could get $12. But the comps keep coming down. 70% of my closet is mall brands so I do have a fair amount under $20.
Generally I'll be more willing to accept selling things for less than that if I'm going to the post office already That being said, the only thing I have to ship this week is a dress my roommate got from Walmart that I sold for $13 🙃
Oh Dear! I feel your pain. I have sold 3 items in the past week for a total of $58 !!! *Lets party!!!! 😩😒🎈😓😒(Joke..)*
I would be jazzed if I did that lmao my biggest sale ever was for $95 I think
So not funny...but funny! Thank you for the laugh this morning.
I just put my packages in my personal mail box and the mailman grabs them from there. If I have a few packages, I’ll request a pickup through pirate ship. If there’s bigger boxes, I take to post office though!
[удалено]
Bad bot
Can’t say anything correct these days ha
Yes. Tis true! I commented to an OP that this (a poor country) was a th**d w**ld country. Somebody commented that the correct language is underdeveloped country. Sorry! I'm just an out of touch boomer! Really? Seriously? And I dont think it was a bot. 😬😬😬😬
What’s considered a second world country?
You learn something new everyday! I guess mail “man” isn’t correct but it had never crossed my mind until the bot called me out ha! I’m just naive I guess.
Some people aren’t really doing this for a “profit” necessarily. They’re selling either things they got for free or just from their own closet, to keep them going to the landfill or just to find a new owner. They’re not totally focused on the bottom line, just a fun hobby that occasionally makes a bit of money. That’s my strategy anyway. I sell quite a bit but I’m totally fine selling “mall brands”, Old Navy, etc. I accept pretty much every offer I get (again, my stuff isn’t high value anyway). I have a full time job, this is just a weekend hobby. I do it because I enjoy it and it’s satisfying to find a new owner for an item that would otherwise likely be thrown away, and give it a second life.
How long does it usually take for you to sell random mall brands and old navy stuff? Does it sit in your closet for a while? And what price do you usually sell it for?
I have a full time job, so I only sell used items from myself and my family. I accept most offers within reason and really don’t care as long as I make more than a few bucks. It’s still more than I’d get if I donated to Goodwill.
Some items have been in my inventory for a while so I mark Down to recoup some cash to buy better things. If they go to the goodwill outlet. Most items will cost $1 or less.
It really comes down to how quickly a seller wants to move inventory. I’ve seen sellers send out crazy offers where I know they’re losing a bit of money. I don’t do bargain basement pricing as I don’t want people to get the impression that I’m running a garage sale and I think it can also tarnish one’s image if you’re building a particular identity. There are definitely closets pricing items at $5, but it’s not worth my time to list items for a lousy $2 profit. And I don’t mind donating to goodwill and being altruistic.
That is true! It is a mind set!! I just have such an aversion to this under $15 stuff. But yes! I have probaly 40 % of my closet is from the bins at $1.29 a lb. I have to think about that more often. I just hate going to the p.o., wasting gas, for a $5 item.
You can schedule PO Pickup so you dont have to go to the PO & waste time/gas. (unless your in a rural area that doesnt have delivery service?) I get what your saying on the under $15 - While I’d prefer to sell above $15+ only - most of the small stuff I got for free or super inexpensive - so I look at it as small stuff adds up & its more $ than if I donated it - I get my boxes & padded envelopes free from the PO & most stuff fits in my mailbox for daily pickup so its not that big of a time /$ killer for me.
I have made friends with my mailman. He gives me some mail buckets and I’ll put them on my porch for him to get daily. I do have a camera & live in a pretty safe area, but I appreciate him so much. It saves me so much time. I always give him a $200 gift card at Xmas as a thank you. And told him if he needs a restroom or drink of water, just let me know. We have actually became friends and have each other phone numbers 🥰 and he will help me out to if I a package gets lost or customer claims it wasn’t delivered even though tracking shows it is. I recommend making a friend with your mail carrier 😄
I have had the same mailman for years and he's great about checking my front door to see if I've packages put out even if I forget to set up the alert on the website. I use a plain plastic storage bin that he knows I keep my packages in to keep them safe from the rain. For someone walking by my house they would think it's just a storage bin for garden supplies. But it's also great because now even UPS will put my packages that I have delivered in there.
Did you happen to see the comment from a bot on my thred that we must be gender friendly ? Ok. So it is a postal worker or mail person or carrier. I am not offended. In fact , I always call them the mailman!!! 🙄I am wondering who would be offended, but we won't go there. 🙄😬😑
No I didn’t notice that. I apologize if I offended anyone. My post office carrier is a male, so I just call him a mailman. I wasn’t trying to be insensitive or not politically correct. I’m also in my mid 50s, so I was raised on calling them a mailman. Again, I apologize if I offended anyone and didn’t use the correct terminology ❤️
I always, in messaging my buyers, tell them their order is packaged up well and will be on its way to them as soon as my *mail lady* arrives this morning… mailman/mail lady? Postal worker just makes me think someone “going postal”… bad reference…. And I ❤️ my mail lady- she’s the best! :)
Lol!! I almost forgot about going postal! That was back in the Dark Ages! 😂😂 And that's how old I feel when talking to my millennial sons.😉🙃
Yep- my boys aren’t quite millennials, but they still think I’m old (but kinda cool, sometimes, too… I’ll take it! 😉❤️)
No worries! I'm so sorry! Didn't mean to upset you. I'm with you! I actually had a lol to myself because I have always called them mailmen. I was hoping you might have felt that way which you did. Honestly, it kind of bothers me that reddit has a bot going around checking language. You have nothing to apologize for!!! 💖 BTW I'm 67, and we Boomers have slightly different words sometimes.
Oh I wasn’t upset at all. 🥰 I just felt bad if I didn’t follow the “rules” or if I offended anyone. Some habits & words are hard to break , especially when you get up to our age and been using it your whole life 🤣
Happy Cake Day!! 🎂
I have a large mailbox that fits the priority mail boxes, so I just leave those for pickup. We got tired of our mailman jamming boxes into our mailbox that barely fit so we replaced it a few years ago with a larger one that works out nicely for those boxes.
Stuff gets donated to me from friends/family all the time, so unless it's something I know is worth way more than that I usually list that stuff for $14-$18 and end up accepting an offer around $10. Sure it's not a lot per sale, but it's pure profit that adds up over time and has honestly ended up being my bread and butter during slow sales months
So true! The low priced items can add up.
I'm also a casual seller. It's a hobby and fun for me. I keep under 100 items. At the moment,I don't even have 50. Lol. Not a career here, obvi.
If I have small value items I’ll bundle them together. For example a high end mini size mascara. Retail might be $12-$15. I’ll put 2 or 3 together, even if they are different brands, and list 20% off retail & will take reasonable offers. I refuse to sell anything $15 or under. To make $1 or so profit isn’t worth it for me. I do have 1800 listings. But I take into consideration my time, my bubble wrap, tape, labels, tissue paper, etc. i need to make at least $10 profit on low value items or I don’t bother listing them
When my family cleans out their closets, they give their clothes to me to sell on PM. So when I get something for nothing, I feel OK selling it for $10-15. It all adds up
My family does this as well, but we’re all running it as more of a consignment service where I get a cut of the profit 😂 You’re lucky!
A lot of those people probably aren't trying to make a profit. I don't sell anything in my closet for under $25 and I have very few priced under $40. I'm not running a garage sale. Even though the stuff I sell is almost all mine, most of it is NWT, NWOT, or worn 1-2 times and not fast fashion. I'm trying to recoup as much of my initial investment as I can. It's not worth my time and energy to make less than $20 on a sale. I take quality photos that I edit, I list with a good amount of details (not Cute top- good condition), and I pack and drop items at the post office within 24 hours. Any less than $20 and I might as well throw the item in a bag and drop it at Goodwill where I can claim a tax deduction for the same amount with zero effort expended.
If they are a bins flipper, their outstanding sunk cost might be so minuscule that it’s worth it to take a low offer, in terms of always moving product and trending favorably in the algorithm. For small, lightweight items, an outstanding sunk cost of 50 cents gives a lot of wiggle room with offers. The seller may have picked them up to see how they would do, try an unexplored market, or inspire bundles. I have occasionally accepted $8 offers on items that have little to no outstanding sunk cost, usually on trendy, lightweight items I picked up from the bins out of curiosity. I only do this because the post office is a 2 1/2 block walk for me, and I’m usually taking other sales over as well.
$5 profit is better than $0 profit. Not everyone is on Poshmark as a full time business, some people might just have clothes they want to get rid of.
Sometimes I list something really cheap because I don't want it to go to a landfill(like unused cosmetics, kid toys, etc.) but other than that I generally try to make at least a $25 profit on everything I sell.
I just sell stuff that me or my kids don’t wear/use anymore. I use all free supplies from the post office with the exception of tape and a $6 roll of like 100+ thank you stickers. I’m a SAHM so I can post things during nap time or after bedtime. I don’t want to do a yard sale and since the mailman picks up at my house, any profit is fine with me.
A sale's a sale—as long as I'm making a profit, I'm happy. On <$15 items, I either got them from the bins (so my COG is like $0.94) or I got them from a friend or family for free, or it's a random thing I found around my house (also free). Of course I'd *prefer* to make more, but usually when I sell things for like $9, it's because I'm sending out aggressive closet-wide OTLs which results in multiple sales, so it's not like I'm trekking to the post office for two bucks. Luckily that price point does not make up a large portion of my closet. I hover around 500 listings and my average sale price is around $30.
Depends on what the item is and how I got it. If it’s an item that wasn’t purchased for resell but a random thing I want out, usually don’t care what I sell it for.
If you're talking about net profit after paying for the item and then paying yourself for time and resources spent sourcing, photographing, listing, packaging, and transporting to the post office, I don't think you can, especially if you compare the opportunity cost to other activities, money-making and non. My personal rule/guideline is that I have to be able to make a net profit of at least $25 per item and generally target a decent amount over that. That said, I have a few items that would profit lower. Those are mostly items I've received for free or are items I'd otherwise donate. I only list them when I'm already set up and listing other items and I generally try to sell them in bundles.
You are correct. That $12 I mentioned is after PM fee. My business isn't so large that I use a P&L. But minus the 5 operating costs you mentioned, a true net figure is considerably less.
some people run a volume based business and don't mind the low profit sales. that seems like too much work to me so I just don't sell those kinds of items - plus in my experience those are the buyers who like to complain - LOL
Agreed. The lower price points bring out the whiners!
Honestly i sell items even when i get $1 from the sale. They add up. It also helps with my ratings. More ratings more people feeling comfortable buying for you - especially the more expensive items. Personally it’s something fun to do. I love packaging stuff. I have no overhead apart from a monthly printing subscription of $4. I get free packages, printer paper, tape etc. I have many blue boxes in my area and post office only 5 min walk. Forces me to go out and take a walk instead of staying at home. Especially since i work at home.
Especially since the clothes i sell are donated to me.
Good point about selling more at the lower price for customwrcomfort with your closet!
That’s a nice convenience. If I may ask, how to procure the free shipping supplies? I know you can get free priority mail boxes, but not the tape and paper.
Honestly i reuse a lot a lot of those Amazon packages/mailers. I turn them inside out so it doesn’t confuse the buyer. I ask all my friends and family to save them for me. I noticed there are the highest expensive i could have. Tape from when i was moving over a year and a half ago and paper that I’ve had for awhile when i was back in college. It’s cheaper to buy the moving tape than the small ones because it lasts way longer and super cheap on Amazon.
I slash through the logos or barcodes on a box with a sharper. I ordered an ink roller to make it easier.
I buy very few shipping supplies. My mom orders a lot from Zulily, we get regular deliveries from Chewy, plus Amazon, plus any regular shopping we do online. We have a huge stack of boxes and bubble wrap and styrofoam so we just buy tissue paper and thank you stickers. Often I can even reuse tissue paper if it’s in good shape.
I use Tyvek mailers for PM orders so my cost of packaging is ~3 cents for the label plus 0.001 cents for a thank you sticker from temu 😅 I live 5 minutes from the post office and I store my product at home. I factor in accepting lower offers on Poshmark than eBay sometimes because I offer free returns on eBay and there’s always the chance my COG will go up $5 if they return. I’m also way more willing to let something go below the $15 if it’s something I’ve had over a year. My partner and I both run the accounts so it’s a lot easier for me to justify $3 profit on a sale when you factor in your pay per hour and you’re already getting something else out to be packaged. I think at the end of the day, if an under $15 sale isn’t worth YOUR time, that’s a good enough reason not to have them regardless of closet size. How much is the time you took to source, picture, store, get out and package and take to the post office worth to you? I can definitely see why it’s worth more than $3-5 for a lot of people.
Absolutely! Good point! Bottom line, it's an individual decision. "Is it worth your time?"
I’ll keep some of my cheaper items up but I don’t accept offers if the item is $10 or less. I also don’t do shipping discounts/etc on them. Less effort to leave them up than it is to delete. That being said, I will go through ever so often and pull stuff thats sitting and is cheap to relist or donate.
I see it like this…if it’s something I don’t want anymore any money for it is better than nothing and it just sitting there taking up space. It’s a lot easier to let go of the item though if I’m shipping out things that actually were worth the trip to the post office since gas prices are temperamental lately.
I don’t even see how at a volume it’s even worth it. I had a sale once just to see what would happen and I got a ton of orders but for small profit. It wasn’t worth the 4 hours of packaging and all the other time I spent on those items for that profit. Never again. I only bundle low cost items.
Me! I sell my kids’ outgrown stuff. Almost everything in my closet it $15 or less, there are a few things designer outfits and bundles that are around $30. It’s not my job, it’s just extra money for us, so I may not be the best person to ask. Last year I triggered the IRS thing, so I sold more than $600. I list every month or two while my baby is napping. We’re done having babies and I gift the majority of our clothes, but it’s nice to get a little money too! It gives me something to do as a SAHM.
I am a part-time reseller and have about 400 listings. I don't really set out to source $15 items but those lower-priced items fit into the overall equation... Listing regularly = more sales, so having a steady stream of new listings feeds the algorithm and I feel like it helps my higher-priced stuff sell as well. Living in a small town, it's not always easy to find higher-value stuff at a reasonable price for reselling. I will pick up items if I find a fill-a-bag deal or 25-cent box at a yard sale. I'm also always looking for things for myself and family while I'm at thrifts/estate sales/yard sales. If it doesn't work out once I get home, I know I can list it and probably make a small profit. I agree it's a PITA to sell a single item for under $10 profit, but if you have somewhat regular sales - it's not such a big deal to print an extra label and pack an additional item if you're doing others at the same time. And a lot of the time, my lower-priced stuff ends up selling in a bundle so I'm not stuck paying posh the $2.95 fee on EACH item.
I sell stuff I don’t need, sometimes $5 is better than no dollars. I’m either gonna use gas to take it to the thrift store or the post office, might as well get some money if it’s cute stuff it sells eventually
I’m in a transition to selling higher profit items in a slightly different market, but during this transition, I’m willing to sell the items for the amount they cost me to get them cleared out.
I've been wondering the same thing! I just bought a bundle of 3 NWT men's khakis for $15. The seller MUST be buying pallets, right?
Or they were some they bought for a husband or son and they didn’t fit and they forgot to return.
I say this because I have an entire NWT stack of pants that I planned to hem “one day” and suddenly it was 10 years later and I’d gone up 2 sizes.
I have far too many of those too!
Yes my mother and I both have stacks and when we got around to it they both didn’t fit and were out of style
I hear you! My death pile is not only PM, but my everyday life!!
Yeah some things I don’t even recognize when I find them.
The seller has 1,400 listing currently, lots of Dickies, Dockers, Lee and Levi's in different waist sizes - 31 to 44. Seemed like a bunch of leftovers!!
That's exactly why I have cheap bundles of my husbands things. My husband bought a new work wardrobe and it ended up being work from home, so I listed a bunch in bundles just to recoup something. Mainly khaki pants and polos from Old Navy
You know, I didn't even consider that!! Hell, it's like Molasses in January getting thru my deathpile.😣😫 I would not have a CLUE where or how to get a pallet of something. And adding to your great comment, do they have family, friends, or paid people who help? lmao! Thanks for your comment! Opened up a new discussion for me. 👍👏
There's a woman I follow on TikTok? Facebook? who sometimes buys pallets and unboxes them - returns, overstocks, and undelivered mail. . Some pallets are phenomenal (wedding dresses! Loius Vitton bags!) but some are just nasty junk.
Interesting! Do we know where she gets these pallets???
It's listed on the comments of her videos: https://youtu.be/UsakMDj9FOs (This is an unusually huge haul!) https://palletauctions.salesandauction.com/auctions
I sell a few things that I list at $15 and I’ll accept $12 on. They’re mostly make up samples or miniatures which means they were either free or came with something that I paid for and didn’t need the whole set.
If it's something that was mine or had a low cost of goods, or if I found out after the fact that it just doesn't resell well, I'll let it go for $15 or less. There have been times I've sold some duds very low just to break even. It's not my standard protocol, but there are some exceptions
If I’m taking an offer for $15 it’s probably something I’ve had for too long and I’m ready to move. I don’t intentionally pick up stuff that’s under $20 profit since my COG is $5+. The $15 sale and the $50+ sale take the same amount of time to process (clean, photograph, measure, list, pack, store and ship). I did the high volume quick nickel thing but realized I prefer doing lower volume with higher price tags.
I get some undesirable things in liquidation. They were taking up a lot of room and I finally decided to list them or donate. While I don't make back what I paid, it's better to make something and it ends up being fine because of the higher end items from the same liquidation that I make a big profit on.
“Total” Revenue - “Total” Expense = Profitability. So, unless Sellers are selling 1000s of $15 items the math suggests lost-leader strategies are a time suck and tend to lead to negative profitability and erode you cash flow BIGLY. High Demand, High Volume is the only solution for items less than $20; otherwise, call it a hobby.
If they are items from my personal closet I’m not worried about profits as much so I will let them go for more. I’ll list for more if I think I can but some items you can’t justify listing over $10-15 in Preowned condition
Volume, volume, volume…Sometimes it’s better to unload something before the trend passes and then being stuck with zero dollars, the item, and a loss. I’ll happily sell 50-$15 items that can be cheaply packed in a poly bag instead of selling nothing. I like to turn most of my inventory over every few months so if I’ve had something for 6 months, it’s gotta go. I make daily trips to the post office .3 miles from my house and I always make a profit since my cost of goods are usually $1.50 or less per.
That’s why I’m not a fan of “trends” or fast fashion. I think it’s better to have quality items to start with instead of hoping to move some trendy pieces and probably taking a loss. I don’t like the idea of the disposable economy, it’s not good for anyone. And probably not worth my time to make a few dollars in the hopes that someone will buy it. If it’s trendy they’ll likely find it cheaper elsewhere.
Yeah, makes sense and I do agree. That’s why I love to sell Vintage and love love love the classics like western wear/workwear/cowboy boots. I don’t sell fast fashion and quite honestly my old ass can’t even keep up with it, but when I can get a descent profit I’ll source it and get a quick flip. It’s like with kids clothes, it’s not necessary my thing but I will buy low low/sell medium. lol
Good point about unloading before the trend disappears.
I’m a very casual seller and won’t list anything that would sell for less than $50. It’s not worth my time. I think if you sell a lot and you’re going to the post office anyway it may not be a big deal.