If your basement is crammed full of old highchairs, boxes of baby clothes and strollers that you haven’t used in months, get all that unnecessary baby equipment out of your house and make a little money while doing it! Here are five ways to easily re-sell your used baby gear and baby clothes.
Throw a baby garage sale
If you’re a garage sale shopper, you know that the items that go quickest are the baby clothes and equipment. Gather up some mommy friends with kids of the similar age as your own and throw a huge baby garage sale. Advertise in your local newspapers and online, listing specific items that you’ll be selling so that buyers who are searching for Graco highchairs or BOB jogging strollers can know to hit up your sale!
Organize clothes in easy to dig through bins that are labeled by size and gender and give a discount for buying in bulk — $5 for 10 pieces of baby clothing… or whatever you think is fair. If you have some higher-end brands, be sure to do your research on Craigslist to see what they’re selling for to price them appropriately.
Take the time to use eBay
eBay is a used children’s clothes and baby equipment mecca and with a little time and effort, you can easily make it work for you when selling your gently used children’s items. Before you start selling, peek around at other similar items to familiarize yourself with how things are selling and what they’re selling for.
For higher-end, name-brand clothing, you will have success listing item individually, but for more generic clothes, consider creating “lots.” For example, bundle ten pairs of size 12-18 month pajamas together in one listing.
Baby equipment can also sell well on eBay — just remember that you’ll have to box up that baby swing yourself and ship it. Don’t forget that quality pictures and detailed descriptions help items sell on eBay, so take the time to make it perfect.
Try Craigslist… with caution
Craigslist is a quick and easy way to sell clothes and equipment that your baby and kids have grown out of — they are all about connecting local buyers and sellers, so there is no need to fuss with online payments or shipping. Posting an ad on Craigslist is easy: Just register for an account, upload a picture (even just a quick cell phone photo will do) and write a short description.
Although clothes can sell well on Craigslist, especially if you have an entire newborn wardrobe to sell, for example, baby equipment is the hot Craigslist seller. In fact, if you are selling a name brand, high-end stroller or highchair that’s in good condition, be prepared to have multiple buyers!
However, there are a few things to be cautious about when selling on Craigslist — always meet potential buyers at a public place (rather than at your home) and beware of listing expired car seats or cribs with drop-sides on Craigslist — these items will get your posting flagged for removal.
Consign the good stuff
Consignment stores can be a tricky place to sell baby clothes because often times, they are quite picky about what they’ll take. Taking your baby and children’s clothes to a local consignment shop is a good match if you are meticulous about keeping your children’s clothes in good condition and if you have items to sell that are both appropriate for the current season and recently purchased at stores (not outdated).
Consignment stores can work one of two ways — either you bring in your items and are offered cash or credit on the spot for what they’d like to take, or you leave your items with the store and come back a few weeks later to see what has sold and get paid by cash or credit at that time.
Tip
Call the store before filling up your car with bags and boxes. Many consignment stores require you have an appointment to bring in items to sell.
Donate to make a difference
Don’t have the time to sell your used baby clothes and gear? Pass your items on to someone who can use the items. There are so many places in every city that need clothing donations for families in need. Ask around your neighborhood to see if there are any foster families — they always need a stockpile of clothes for when a new baby or child arrives at their home. Or, find the nearest women and children’s shelter to your home and call to see if are accepting donations.
Donating your children’s gently used clothing and equipment is a great way to give back to your own community and pass along the things that you loved for your own children to someone who could really use them.
Read more on baby clothes and gear
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