For shopaholics everywhere it really is a great time of the year to score some amazing deals at pretty much any store. And for resellers this is no exception. Any reseller forum, group, hashtag for the last week or so (and probably for the next week or so) is about retail arbitrage. Sounds like something fancy right? Nah, its just a different flip, a different hustle. Retail arbitrage is shopping retail stores clearance sections and reselling for profit. This can include all stores and all types of products. Pretty much anything is flippable. From discontinued candy and hair products to Loubitins and anything in between. Especially popular among fashion/clothing resellers is Nordstrom Rack and the elesuvie one cent items. (People have had clearance items ring up at ONE CENT. It seems to be random and I think unmarked but what a fun surprise, right?) This time of the year the most talked about in reseller circles are the trio pictured above, the trinity of yellow tags: Ross, Marshall’s, and TJ Maxx.
Don’t get me wrong, there ARE amazing deals to be had in all categories of the store. This is a good time of the year to refresh your home for the new year. I always hate my house after all the pretty holiday decorations come down. (Full disclosure: most are still up in my house.) Good time to get new leggings because nothing quite fits right after the holidays. Just me? ok.
Many resellers use these mega clearance sales to score NWT (new with tags) inventory. If you are able to find truly unique and sought after pieces, I say go for it! But please consider this: they’re on mega clearance because they didn’t sell. The reseller newsfeed has so many of these clearance haul posts that honestly are all starting to look alike. There I said it. An abundance of Wildfox sweaters and Kate Spade accessories. Super cute stuff by the way. But if Instagram is already saturated, how will the platforms look soon? If you do hit the clearance racks just be very selective. Keep your COG (cost of goods) low but try to find truly unique pieces or brands.
I also speak from experience. I tried this and have not been successful. But because I got caught up and got what a lot of other resellers got too. I lost money on individual items and barely broke even altogether. I haven’t tried to flip retail arbitrage in almost a year. Just not my thing, I guess. I’ll focus on my strengths; finding the coolest and prettiest vintage shit in town. Y’all can have the NWT. I’m out here looking for the deadstock. (Deadstock is new with tags vintage items. Usually pretty rare, but I do have a few deadstock pieces of lingerie in my Poshmark closet)
And on the subject of being careful, please be careful about the reseller advice you consume. Yea, even mine. Take it with a grain of salt. Ultimately you will find your own reseller lane and find your THING. I say sell what brings you joy and feeds your WHY. Whatever the reason you resell, your WHY you sell. For some it might be for extra cash, savings for a vacation, or paying bills and supporting your household. We all have different reasons why we do this. I love the flexibility of working for myself. After being a stay at home mom for so long, I LOATHED having a boss. Fuck that guy. I love my boss now, ME!
I’ve noticed several resellers on my newsfeed with maybe these posts of soon to be saturated retail arbitrage seemingly encouraging others to also source and thus further adding to the saturation. (That was a mouthful. Sorry, I type like I talk. But more hand gestures.) Then buried deep in the comments a couple have casually mentioned that they source based on how it will look in their closet (the aesthetic as the kids say) and don’t really care if it sits forever or sells for less than they paid. Blew my mind because I guess I’m all about maximizing my profits only. Their why is totally unrelatable to me and I quickly unfollowed. I am trying to fill my feeds with people in the same mindset as me. That particular reseller’s and my lanes/ WHYs are obviously going different directions. I’m not doing this for extra cash. so I should pay attention more to those in similar lanes. Not just for the aesthetic.
Pay attention to the advice you consume. I’m trying to build an empire here. And pay bills. Shopping with me really is helping the American dream. Shopping small really helps individuals not corporations. And if you have ever shopped (or hopefully will shop-links above) I am truly and genuinely grateful. You have helped small, local, sustainable, woman owned, latina owned business. Good for you! And good for me and my family. We thank you really.
Now on to better habits thanks to Poshmark! Back in October, I began to track daily sales and new listings. Nothing fancy, just a scribble in my planner. I wanted to see trends and analytic type shit. ( If anyone at Poshmark reads this, we would love a real dashboard!) Tracking sales and keeping on the numbers was a habit I wanted to have in place by the new year. I’m glad to say that the habit stuck and I upgraded to a desk calendar for the new year to be able to see my numbers BIG and in my face. Keeps me more accountable too. Because I SEE it there and its quite hard to avoid. It works for me. There are many pretty stylized versions of listing and sales habit trackers available from many Etsy sellers. I personally needed a big space to write with my big handwriting.
Right at the New Year, Poshmark a huge giveaway, The Love It or List It Challenge. Check the Poshmark blog for full details and that is also where you can download the free listing tracker. The tracker is perfect if you’re trying to get into the habit of consistency in your business. (LIke my last blog post, that is my main focus now: consistency.} I like seeing progress and seeing progress motivates me to work harder. Filling in the bubbles in a bright color visually shows my progress, or lack thereof, at a glance. And the Love It or List It Challenge is just in time for another wonderful time of the year- a closet purge. Sell what you don’t love anymore, make cash on those items that no longer spark joy. Cash sparks joy, right? If you’re new to Poshmark, use my code SILVERSIRENA when you sign up and get $10 off your first purchase on the app. Then get to selling your old shit so you can buy new shit! Then you can say you shop sustainably. Because you are! Look at you saving the planet, one pretty dress at a time.
That’s enough of me. I’d love to hear your WHY and tell me about your reselling lane? Are you trying to form better business habits this new year? What about your business new year resolutions? I wanna know! Here’s to continuing the habits we stated at the new year!
Silver Sirena 