The Frugal Files: Consignment Shopping

I've had three shopping bags full of old clothes in my trunk for months. Nick and I tried to take them to Buffalo Exchange one Saturday, but with a donation line out the door, quickly reconsidered.

Out of being just plain fed up with the clothes taking up so much room in my car, and feeling like I just couldn't give bags of Seven jeans to Goodwill, I finally got my Google on yesterday to look up lesser known consignment shops.

For those who are unaware, I'll take some time to explain the consignment process. One brings their unwanted, "kindly used", clean apparel to the shop which is then thoroughly inspected by the consignment taker-inner (technical title). When he or she deems it resalable, they mark it in your account to be tracked. If/ when the item is resold, the original owner gets some of the profit, usually 30 - 40%, dispersed in a check or store credit.

I've learned three things from this process.
One: Clothing for the shear purpose of investment has a very low return. I usually rationalize my purchases by dividing the price into the amount of times I think I will wear said item. This seems to be a better method of determining investment value instead of knowing a $250 pair of jeans can be sold at $35 in one year.

Two: I have a strange suspicion that watching the rejection process of a formerly adored clothing item by the consignment shop feels a lot like having your child not picked for the school's sports team. "Why don't you think these True Religions will resell?!? That isn't my wear, they CAME that way. Trust me, I used to work for Neimans, those jeans are very much still in style... Did you want to take a second at that Banana Republic top? I know it's not a huge name brand, but the style is a classic. Yes, I agree that orange is a bright color for pants, but fashion forward trend setters will love them!" This went on for about 20 minutes.

Three: There are A LOT of cute things in designer consignment shops. I didn't allow myself to look in depth, but I spotted some great vintage and newer trend items including cocktail dresses and Italian shoes. Maybe when my consignment "credit" has wracked up, I'll re-invest in the store's economy.

In total, I was able to hand off 18 items, taking back 5 pieces that were then given to the neighborhood thrift store. At least these pieces weren't thrown away (textiles account for nearly four million tons of solid waste every year), and maybe, just maybe, I'll make a buck or two off these old threads.