Sometimes, we wake up to find that we have so many items cluttering our homes that we don’t even really use anymore. But it would be such a waste if you were to throw these things away in the trash when someone else might be able to make use of them, so you’re left wondering what your options are. Fortunately, there are apps like ThredUP where you can buy and sell all kinds of items.
However, if you’re not familiar with this app, it’s understandable if you’re hesitant to try it out in case it’s a scam—this is probably why you’re browsing ThredUP reviews on the internet. Now, you can put an end to your search because this article will break down everything you need to know about ThredUP, including its positive and negative aspects.
What Is ThredUP?
Before we fully dive in, let’s discuss what exactly ThredUP is first. ThredUP is essentially an online consignment store; you could even call it an online thrift store. This website allows you to buy and sell secondhand clothes and accessories. You can either be a buyer, a seller, or both. If you’re trying to make more sustainable choices, then ThredUP could be a good option for you since you won’t be purchasing brand-new clothing.
How Does It Work?
As mentioned, you don’t have to be both a buyer and a seller at ThredUP. But if you do decide to be both, you can just use the same account. ThredUP is accessible on several platforms, so you can either access the platform through your smartphone (iOS and Android) or the official website.
With that out of the way, let’s talk about how buying and selling work in ThredUP.
Buying Process
Buying on ThredUP isn’t that different from online shopping from other websites. The process is simple: choose which items you want to get, add them to your cart, and then hit check out once you’re sure.
Selling Process
Now, ThredUP’s selling process is a bit different. The items you want to sell on the site are called a “Cleanout Bag,” and in order to start the process, you first need to order a “Cleanout Kit” from ThredUP. This kit comes with a pre-paid shipping label, which is what you’ll need in order to send your items back to the company.
Once you receive the Cleanout Bag, you can put in all the items you want to sell on the site. However, there’s a limit to what you can sell on ThredUP. You can check out ThredUP’s support page for a list of all the prohibited items. Once ThredUP receives your Cleanout Bag, the team will thoroughly review your items, choose which ones they can sell, and then return the rest to you. This comes with a fee, though, so be sure that whatever you send to ThredUP can all be sold so that they don’t have to return anything.
Seller Fees
From the get-go, it’s important to know that ThredUP isn’t a peer-to-peer reseller app where you’re the one who sells the items yourself on your account. With ThredUP, the company purchases the apparel and accessories from you in bulk, ultimately selling the items themselves with their own pricing system.
It’s clear to see that ThredUP is convenient, however, this kind of service comes at a price. You have to pay the processing and shipping fees yourself, and you won’t know how much you need to pay until you order the Cleanout Bag.
How Much Do the Clothes Sell For?
The prices for the items you consign to ThredUP depends, and there’s no set pricing. However, there are common patterns we’ve noticed. For instance, women’s clothing such as bottoms, tops, sweaters, coats, dresses, and the like are usually sold below $10. It’s not common to find any of these items priced above $30. Women’s shoes, on the other hand, are usually priced around $20 to $40. But depending on the size of the shoes as well as the brand, they could get as low as $10 or as high as $150.
Accessories such as tights, glasses, bags, scarves, belts, and the like are usually sold starting from $5, while some items could get as high as $100 and above. Boys’ and girls’ clothing are sold around $3 to $50; these include tops, shirts, jeans, and other similar apparel.
Last but not least, women’s jewelry like earrings, necklaces, watches, and bracelets don’t usually have prices beyond $50. These items can usually be bought for cheap, so much so that you can even find $6 accessories. ThredUP doesn’t sell men’s clothing, however, so you’ll have to check out another store if that’s what you’re looking for.
Refund & Return Policy
Knowing a company’s refund and return policy is incredibly important, especially if your order has some kind of issue and you want your money back. Well, you need to know right now that any handbags you purchase from ThredUP are non-refundable, so it’s best if you think long and hard before checking out this kind of item. You also can’t get a refund for discounts and promotions. That said, anything else you purchase from ThredUP, given it’s from the United States, can be refunded via money or store credit.
However, there’s the company only accepts refund requests as long as you return the item in the same condition you bought it in. This means the tags and labels attached to the item should still be attached and intact.
Pros
Positive Reviews
If you’re fond of checking the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see whether a company has a good standing, you’ll be glad to know that ThredUP got a score of A at the time of writing.
Convenience
You don’t have to do much with ThredUP, unlike other peer-to-peer apps where you have to do all the work such as selling and shipping. Since ThredUP will be the one to do all the hard work, this means you don’t have to worry about getting scammed. As you can imagine, getting scammed when you’re just trying to have an honest online business is one of the worst things that could happen.
Cons
Poor Customer Service
Unfortunately, ThredUP’s customer service isn’t that great. So if you have a problem you want to discuss with ThredUP’s customer service team, you’ll just be left frustrated. Even though the website claims to have a LiveChat feature, this almost never works.
You Earn Less
From what we’ve gathered, those who sell on ThredUP receive less money than if they just sold the items themselves on websites like eBay or Craigslist. And if you do decide to take back your items because you’re unhappy with their pricing, you’ll have to pay for shipping, which is an additional cost on your part.
Conclusion
If you’re just a buyer, then ThredUP may be worth a shot. It’s a safe and legit platform to some extent, but you may want to think twice if you want to sell. It’s best not to take the product descriptions at face value too, since ThredUP has a tendency to claim that an item is “Like New” even though it’s far from it. It’s clear to see that as a seller, you no longer have a say in anything and you just have to accept whatever price they offer you—even though the item you’ve decided to sell is worth more than just a few cents.
