Fashion, before graduating high school, was not a concept I thought about very much. I went to the mall with my mom, I liked a pair of overly priced black skinny jeans at a retail chain and my mom bought me said skinny jeans. I would wear the same pants with the variety of band shirts I owned and it was that simple.
My two all-time favorite actresses, Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, starred in “The Devil Wears Prada,” a fashion based movie and, gosh darn it, I was going to watch it despite my lackluster opinion regarding fashion. Nigel, played by the great Stanley Tucci, said the greatest thing: “And what they did, what they created was greater than art because you live your life in it.” So, why pay outlandish prices or fade into the crowd instead of becoming your own walking masterpiece? Shop online anywhere with the thrifting app ThredUP.
Do not get me wrong here, I enjoy casually strolling through the mall and seeing what is out there, but my need to be thrifty always takes over before spending $40 on a crop top. I have the tendency to think, “I bet I can find this cheaper on ThredUP.” And usually, I do.
What if you could get all your favorite brands, at a fraction of the cost, wherever you are? You can simply upgrade your wardrobe without having to upgrade your budget; however, you may need to upgrade your closet space.
ThredUP was launched in Cambridge, Massachussetts by current CEO of Netflix, Reed Hastings, and former CEO of EBay, Brian Swette. This fashion resale website can both stock your closest or clean it out. After creating an account, the user is a part of the recommence industry of buying and selling second hand garments.
Companies like ThredUP are part of a larger collective known as the Collaborative Consumption movement. This sharing economic philosophy has been around since flea markets sprung up. ThredUP’s ideology is to encourage consumers to live in a more united and communal economy.
Although they may be reused clothing, they are not hand-me-downs. The garments ThredUP resells are gently used to still with original tags.
Upon creating your account, you then choose your sizes for dresses, pants, shirts and shoes. You can pick two options for each category. This simplifies your shopping because you then can filter your search based on your fit preferences.
Shopping is the easy part. Step one, hit play on “Thrift Shop” by Macklemore. Step two, set your personal budget. Step three, fill that shopping cart so full you know you will be contributing to the delivery drivers eventual worker’s compensation case for a hurt back trying to carry your haul to your doorstep. But seriously, shopping for your favorite brands is that easy. You will find brands from Forever 21 to Prada in the this virtual thrift store. You can purchase single items, or really create a new wardrobe.
Be careful with waiting to check out because most of the apparel gets bought out from under you. You can hold an item in your cart for 24 hours before it goes back on the market.
If you find that the fashionista you want to be does not align with your current clothing tastes or you do not trust yourself enough to choose for yourself, you can let ThredUP do the shopping for you. “Goody Boxes” are a collection of clothing picked out by the ThredUP team, customized for you from their inventory and based on your selected sizes. If you find that there are a few bad apples in the goody box, simply send back the items you do not fancy and you will only be charged for the items kept.
Now that I have grown up and what I wear matters to me, I have found myself being a bit of a hoarder. I have a very difficult time parting from my clothes despite them not fitting me anymore. Some items have just transcended from a different style realm than my current trend appetite. ThredUP can send you its handy dandy polka dot bag to liberate your bogged down closet and allow new pieces to infiltrate it.
The best part about selling clothes with ThredUP is eliminating the traveling to a resale store, waiting around for your total and being disappointed with the results for the amount of effort you put into it. This donation bag arrives at your residence and you can send it on its merry way at your convenience.
ThredUP offers a variety of selling methods, including upfront payouts for clothing or items that are considered to be on trend. Consignment payouts are for items which are typically considered to be out of season, in great condition or determined at ThredUP’s discretion as an item that would take longer to sell.
ThredUP is not a “get rich quick” way to clean out your closet, yet you may be able to do some good by utilizing their “Donation Clean Out Bags” option. The donation clean out bags are an option to send ThredUP a bulk bag of clothing and handbags to be donated to charity. ThredUP will then sort through items and resale gently used items for which the proceeds will be transferred to their charity partner.
Comparative to other private seller websites, like EBay, your garments are already at the ThredUP facility. This takes away the sellers responsibility to find time to ship their items to the buyer. A benefit of using ThredUP is that everything is quality checked so there is no ambiguity with your purchases. Eliminating the guesswork establishes a more solid bridge between buyer and seller and elevates customer satisfaction.
If there is ever a problem with a garment you bought, whether it is fit or you are just not into it after seeing it, ThredUP takes back recent purchases and funds you store credit.
Here’s a list of what shopping should not be: Time consuming, overcrowded, chaotically organized, lengthy checkout lines. Do not deny yourself this leisure because you think the closest mall is the only route you can take. Downloading ThredUP eliminates the daunting headache and tedious task of riffling through racks of clothes.
