Friday, March 26, 2010

Guaranteed Clothing Sales for the New EBay Seller: What sells best in the spring/summer?

A follower of My Dear Trash sent me an email with a request.

Can you please feature what clothing brands sell best for you on Ebay?” she wrote.

Of course I would love to, but the writer in me can’t do anything simple. By all means, let me make it complex by breaking it down into a series I’ll call “Guarented Clothing Sales for the New EBay Seller.” Now that’s a challenge I can dig my teeth into. Seriously, I have years and years of EBay photos. It’s a blast looking through them & pulling out my best sellers. Every article of clothing has a story behind it. Some are stories of success and others are stories of failure. It’s freaky how I remember what individual items sold for. When I’m old and gray, I’ll be shouting out clothing measurements and listing prices in my sleep.

I find the change of seasons brings a whole new wave of shoppers to the EBay market. People want to put away their parkas and breakout a Hawaiian Print shirt. Summer vacations are being planned and most women in American are on some sort of diet to look great for swimsuit season. Guess who will sell them their summer dresses?

Over the years, I’ve found some brands that sell great for spring and summer, so let's get started.

In Arizona, I find a lot Fresh Produce clothing at thrift stores. There clothes are fun and light with great prints and easy care. Just throw this dress in a beach bag and you're ready to go. This dress sold for $17.50.
Here are a few other Fresh Produce finds.
Tommy Bahama is a great investment for EBay listings, but it doesn't sell well in the winter. These shirts are hot in the spring and summer. Hey, men want to look good too. The more colorful, the better. TB silk Hawaiian shirts usually sell in the $25.00 range.
I'd never heard of Jam's World until I started selling on EBay. I remember the first time I found one of these prints. To say they're bold is an understatement. I wasn't sure if I should invest in such a loud shirt or not, but I can tell quality when I see it. JW clothing usually sells in the $25.00 range. If you can pick them up for $1.00, then you've got a great product.
I also really like Patagonia. Their clothing is high-quality and usually organic with simple lines and earthy colors. I don't find Patagonia often, but it's always a thrill when I do.
Hot Cotton is 100% linen of pure summer; also with bold colors and fabulous quality. They sell in the $20.00 range.
I also sell plenty of short overalls, anything linen and lots of summer dresses. But don't think you can pass up looking at coats and sweaters. The summer is the best time to start shopping for the Fall/Winter season. I store bags of clothes in my garage for the next season and it really pays off.

8 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for sharing your thrifty adventures with the rest of the world! I stumbled upon your site over a week ago and went thrift shopping afterwards. I only got my hands on a couple decent pieces to try out. My auctions ended last night and 9 out of 10 auctions sold. Some had little profit, some had a couple dollar profit. I am very excited about this and I thank you both for sharing once again. Any little money counts! I'm a student and not currently working so this is helpful. =)

    What I noticed is that its much harder to find decent clothes at thrift stores because people will try to sell their clothes first before donating..and most of the time the donated stuff is not the good stash. I am going to go garage sale hunting tomorrow instead and see what I can find!

    Have a great weekend to all..

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  2. I just found my first Hot Cotton. Can't wait to see how it does. I could alwasy raid my own closet and sell my Fresh Produce, but never! I love it to much

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  3. Thank You so much for the list. I have to share a little happy moment. Last Friday I found a vintage charm bracelet with state charms at a garage sale. It was $15. There was just something about it. I figured I would keep it. I got home and checked it out on ebay and one just sold for $286. I put it online and so far I have 1 bid for 99.99 and it ends tomorrow. Crossing my fingers for a big finish. Thanks for your help
    Jaime

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  4. I jjust found you from the link back to *Remodelholic. I love the concept of your blog and I'm now following.
    I'm curious, do you ever sell in major re-sale events or do you find that cuts into your profit too much? I have participated in 2 local children's resale events and made over $400 in each but the sellers take 30% and the time I spend tagging and hauling makes it seem much more time-consuming than selling on e-bay. I'm definitely interested!

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  5. Just found your blog through the link at Remdodelholic and spent a looong time reading through the posts. I have lots of things saved to sell on Ebay and have been inspired to get some things listed this week! I have a question about selling on Craigslist (I've only bought from there so far.). I have one of those Barbie houses (the ones that are several feet tall) with all the furniture and several Barbie's. I want to sell it on Craigslist, but I don't know what to list it for. It's in good condition except that one drawer-front has come off; however, I can reattach it. Any suggestions as to what you think I should list it for? Thanks so much! (Sorry so long...I would have emailed but couldn't find any contact info with an email addy.)

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  6. Hello Jennifer,
    So nice to hear from you and thanks for your question.
    One thing Kelly taught me is to start high and see what happens.
    I'm not sure about Barbie stuff, but personally, I'd probably start at $45.00. I'd give it a go. I'm always very descriptive in my listings. The item appears more valuable that way.
    Let me know. We'd love to feature some of your sales and then you'd inspire others too.
    Take care, my friend.
    Laura

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  7. Thanks for sharing! I've found that Patagonia is a great one to find too. I usually find one or two a month. I've found that Nike and Under Armour sell great, and of course, North Face. Best of Luck :)

    http://stores.ebay.com/Best-Deals-On-Clothes-and-Plushes

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  8. Great list.. Thanks! Just sold my first Fresh Produce item a few days ago thanks to your list.

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