Hi. I'm wondering what people's experiences have been with selling at once upon a child. They said they pay you 30-40% of their sticker price (maybe 40% for things with tags? If they give you that range, I wouldn't ever expect them to be on the high end). I just have this gut feeling that if I bring stuff in and do the math, I'll end up with 40 cents a piece even though most stuff sells for 3.50-4.50. I've seen people online complain about how little they got, but I don't know if it's because they paid $40 for something and only got a dollar for it or what. I'd be happy with $1 an item, a little more maybe for outfits or coats etc. I've been selling on craigslist this week but must stop. It's convincing me that people are inherently evil. I tried one of the big consignment sales, and I know baby gear sells well, but for clothes, it was a lot of time tagging and very little sold even though I priced low. I called Once Upon a Child today to see what they would pay for an arms reach co-sleeper mini classic. (i had been told they pay 50% of their ticket price for big items). She said she'd have to see it because they come in different sizes and it depends on the condition. Told her ir's the mini and what if ir's like brand new because it was never slept in. She said I'd have to bring it there...wouldn't even give me a range. So if I bring it and they lowball it, I'm supposed to take it because I don't want to lug it home again? (see what craigslist has done to me?)
You might try ebay. It is a pain in the but when it comes to shipping but at least you will get some money back.
Lots of new mums out there looking for a "deal". Sel 5 pieces at a time and call it a "lot of baby clothes, size NB - 3 months" then same with older stuff.
Good luck
I've sold stuff several times, and I won't do it again. The girls who work there act as if they are doing you a favor. They value brand names way more than what's in style, turning their noses up at all my stuff from Carters, even though they sell outdated, baggy Rocawear jeans for a 3 year old, just because they are a "brand name." They also have never given me a per item breakdown, even when I've asked. The attitude is "We're helping you, so take it or leave it."
I guess if you were going to donate it anyway, you might as well get $5 for a big box of your clothes. Frankly, I'd rather find someone who really needs it and give it to them.
It is very simple, of their sticker price. If you paid say 40 dollars for something last year it is now used and dated. So they may only be able to sell it for 5 dollars if it is in good condition, maybe less. So you will get a couple dollars for it. Sure if you sold it at a garage sale you could get more but then you have to do a bit more work than just throwing it in a basket and driving it down there.
I used to sell there when my kids were younger and I thought what they gave was very fair. I think some people just expect too much.
You should be on Ebay. Set up might take a little time but you can sell groups of same sized clothes in "lots" for a bulk price. If they're nice clothes in good shape you'll make a lot more than .40 a pc. A big box of nice kids clothes can bring $50-$60 or more easily. The key is to take good pictures and put brand names in the title so when people search those names your lot will come up.
If you put things in outfits and make them look cute you'll be more successful. Also put a couple brand name things mixed in with basics to sell them all at once. Craigs list is only good for big stuff you can't ship. Our family has a $50 Craigs List rule. If we can't make at least that forget it.
I have a small business that counts Ebay as one source of revenue so if you have more questions you can PM me.
I've had much better luck at the consignment sales (but some are better than others). If you have a lot of name brand things, you'll do better at Once Upon A Child, but honestly, my biggest problem was how unhelpful they were. I did not like dealing with them at all. If you just want to get rid of it, though, it's easy to take it in there, see what you get and then donate the rest. For me it's not worth the time unless it's over a certain amount, and with 3 kids, we don't get rid of enough to make it worth it!
K.
I love buying at this store, but I HATE selling. I tried to sell clothes once. They are beyond picky about what they take. I literally had bought an outfit there for my son that ended up being too small. SO, I threw it in the box with the stuff that I was selling 2 weeks later and they would NOT take it. They are very much about name brand stuff. They refused most of my stuff and gave me lame excuses why. I will NEVER try to sell there again.
I have sold to them and it is super easy, but I have also sold at a huge cosignment sale too. I made more at the cosignment sale by about 2/3's, but that also meant I had to price my items and drive them to the sale, take them in and hang them up. I did all the leg work. I however also felt the leg work was worth the extra money in my pocket not theirs. This way I could price my stuff for what I thought it would sell for. If it is over priced they have a 1/2 day the last day where everything is 1/2 and then that normally sells items pretty quickly too.
Either option is a great option just depending on how much time you have on your hands.
I got $5.30 for 5 sets of PeekaBlocks and $19.75 for one box of clothes. If you're just trying to get stuff out of your house, go for it. If you can sit on it for a while, I make big money on craigslist!
