Opinions on 2nd Hand Babies/Childrens Clothes ???

[Fiona]

I was wondering how everyone felt about buying/selling 2nd had babies/childrens clothes. I am thinking of setting up a business doing this from a shop premises.

What do you all feel about buying 2nd hand kids clothes and toys, baby bouncers etc ??

I know that there is competition with ebay but sometimes you just don't have the time to photograph clothes etc, and it would be so simple to bag some clothes up, drop them off somewhere and get some money back for them. PLus some of the clothes get buy from ebay are never quite how they look in the photos

All opinions are very welcome , many thanks Fiona

 

[mary70]

i think its a good idea their are always people taht cant afford new so good quality second hand would be good

 

[Suzie and Faith]

I think it's a great idea. I'd buy second hand providing they were clean and not damaged

It's a waste to chuck baby clothes, they aren't in them long and so they are normally in good condition!

Go you!

 

[valentine]

I think its a brilliant idea - I'm never out of charity shops and most of DD's wardrobe until she's 3 or 4 I have already sourced from hand-me-downs or charity shops (its all packed away in bin bags).

You should PM Emmylou as I went to visit her in Derby and we visited a shop exactly like the one you describe. It had great quality clothes, all arranged in sex of child and sizes (0-3m, 3-6m etc) on rails and some great quality stuff (Designer Debenhams, Next, Gap, Monsoon) for great prices! Emmylou explained to me that the seller got a percentage and the shop kept a percentage of sale price (like an NCT sale I guess).

I am planning to have more but if I wasn't I would definitely love to get some money back for selling the clothes via your shop to get some more money to spend on clothes for my DD as she gets older. eBay is definitely a faff and sometimes not worth the hassle.

I hope this helps

Valentine Xxx

 

[pilkers]

There is a shop in Blackburn that does second hand baby stuff like prams etc. You can get some really good stuff.

There is also a dress agency locally that has a great baby section.

In fact....just last weekend me and my mum were discussing opening a second hand baby shop as she has an empty premises

go for it! you could always use Ebay to source some products to get you started!

 

[nickilubs]

2nd hand stuff is great. Like BabyBee said babes are never in them very long and as long as they are washed and not damaged then why not

 

[Jade&Evie]

We got most of our baby clothes from Ebay- they are barely worn and you get nicer things at much lower prices!

After baby has grown out of her clothes we will just stick them straight back on ebay so someone else can use them! I was the eldest so I had everything new but my cousins and younger brother lived in my cast offs!

 

[Krystal]

Brilliant idea, I have loads of smaller clother Jack no longer fits into that have only been warn once! Is a shame to let them sit in attic. Also I would buy good second hand clothes definately. I see no problem with this, in fact I think it's a sensible thing to do because they are worn so little

 

[zebrastripes]

I think it's a great idea. I got a lot of hand-me-downs- perfectly good too. The only thing we bought new was the pram and highchair- I wanted her to have at least some things new. I wish there was a really nice second hand baby shop here, there are so many things I'd love to buy her but I can never afford

 

[paradysso]

wicked idea. we had a shop in southampton doing this, they had buggies lined up outside, always attracted me in lol a newer buggy was always fun

 

[Red_Fairy]

Hannah and Emily have two older cousins, and thier mothers buy the most expensive clothing. (think oilalilly/gap/mode etc) And 99% of the things that have been given are new. honestly, they each have soo many clothes that before they get into them they have grown out of them. So Hannah has basicly been kitted out sinse birth.
Im not ashamed at all, the clothes are much better qualitly then what me and OH can provide. - And there so bloody gorgeous too.
We've also recieved, prams, walkers, activity centrer, vibrating chair, bumbo seat. All of which hannah has grown out of now. BUT ive kept them all for my Emily .
(poor Emily.. not second hand in her case, but third hand lol!)

 

[emeraldsroses]

It's a great idea. I don't know that many people who actually have the money to buy new clothes for babies, infants or toddlers, so this is a good way to provide them with good clothing which isn't damaged or soiled.

 

[Fiona]

Thanks for all your opinions girls - everyone seems really positive. and some great ideas girls.

I am only going to do good quality clothes and equipment - and thinking about offering sellers a certain price if they want the cash for the item or a higher price for vouchers to spend in the shop. What do you think ?

I know that I have had loads of things for Grace that even after I have finsihed with them they are still in really good condition. And with money tight for most new parents I reckon it might work really well. I already have a shop that I run a business from so would just make room there .. means that I could really keep overheads down and be able to pass that saving onto the customers.

Please keep your opinions coming or if anyone has any particular ideas on what they have seen that is similar that works or doesn't work, I am open to all suggestions.

 

[emeraldsroses]

I am only going to do good quality clothes and equipment - and thinking about offering sellers a certain price if they want the cash for the item or a higher price for vouchers to spend in the shop. What do you think ?

I don't know if this is such a good idea. I think one price regardless of what they wish to pay with is better. You may discourage them to spend vouchers in your shop and sometimes that's what shops want. It's a good way to spread word of mouth about your business. That's my opinion. Others may not agree with me, though.

Good luck with your new venture. It's still a fantastic idea!

 

[lisa&alex]

i agree noone will buy if u do vouchures.. i think its a fab idea sorta like cash converter but without the buy back...

 

[maybebaby]

I think it's a great idea, I buy a lot of Austin's clothes second hand. I think the vouchers are a good idea too, so people can almost trade in their 6-9 month clothes for 9-12 month ones! Just what you need. As long as there's not a huge difference in the prices you offer it's a great idea.

 

[Sherlock]

There are a few people/places round here that do this. One only tends to takes more upmarket clothing that has a good resale price. They also sell bedding, old ski clothes, uniform (mostly private school stuff) and so on.

Another sells pretty much anything second hand so long as its in decent condition but also sells new clothes from some good quality companies. They don't sell bedding etc though.

The only down side as a seller is that you take in say clothing to the shop etc that will resell for up to say £100, but it can take months to get even £25's worth back in cash. Depends on the season etc and also, especially for girls once past 5ish, fashion.

The places we have here only take in season so to speak, so you can't dump winter clothing on them in spring (they don't have storage either for all of it).

Check and see how many of these places are already operating in your area in case the market is already overloaded. And also consider the market you wish to cater for.

I'd say just pay cash and take your percentage. Or allow them to shop once they have a cash balance on the books from sales of their clothing. Vouchers would mean you might not see any cash from customers and on paper (and in your pocket) that would not work well.

 

[Nicola]

There is a shop EXACTLY like that near Brighton, it's called Poppets. They only accept quality bits so no overly washed/worn and tired looking vests and babygrows etc but things like shirts, jeans, dresses, coats etc they accept. I have no idea what they pay for items but it's cheap enough to buy from there. Some of my LO's clothing has only been worn once, a few bits still with tags on, I'm planning on taking a bag down there soon see what they offer me for it, even if it's not that much I have to think that listing on ebay, paying the seller fee's and people not willing to pay much for them then etc then even just a tenner for the whole bag would at least pay for a new top in LO's current size etc.....great idea. Go for it!!

 

[Fiona]

lots of advice - thanks girls........ The idea about the vouchers was that if someone brought some items into the shop to sell to me, they could either take the cash straight away - ie £10 for the items or else I woud offer them say £12 if they spent it back in the shop.. Perhaps in vouchers if they didn't want to spend it straight away or couldn't find anything they liked at the time.

Also, I know that some shops do sale or return but I think that that would be a huge amount of work, trying to log everything in and out the shop. I would rather decide what I wanted to take and offer a price for it.