Selling Kids clothes on Craigs list?

[dreamin_disney]

Ok I've been decluttering and want to make some $$. I have a lot of kids clothes to sell. I've only list one Lot of Large girls clothes on CL. I havent got any hits. I'm thinking of posting 2 more lots of different sizes to see if I get one interested. I've been watching CL and theres so many posting for kids clothes.

So those of you that have luck selling kids clothes..what do you recommend?

- do i keep posting Lots of certain sizes?
- do I post pictures of everything and have them email to set up a time to go through everything with everything a certain prices. I would only give out my addy to a few that email.

I sold a desk today . Almost sold my treadmill but his GF had already bought one her BF was going to stop by after work. Atleast he called to apologize. I have another person that is going to call tomorrow for set up time.

I'm trying to make room and i know the big stuff will sell but the clothes are what I want gone ASAP. I do ok when I have a yardsale but i hate having those.

Any tips or advice or tricks to get buyers attention on CL. Thanks

 

[FLmomof2]

I just sold 2 lots of clothes on Craigslist.

I usually take pictures of all the clothes and keep them grouped in sizes. My lots this time were sizes 4-6.

I also make sure I tell them they come from a smoke free/pet free home (if they do) and say that I am selling them as a lot and not as pieces.

We usually meet in a public place verses at home (I just get nervous about having someone come to the house).

I also go on at the end of each week and there is an option to repost it so it gets moved to the top of the list.

Good luck!

 

[zeferjen]

Ddo you have a consignment sale in your area? That is another optin for selling.

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

First time I sold baby clothes I had a TON to sell, I set it all up in the garage and advertised a Clothing Garage Sale on Craigslist, was open 8am to 2pm and just sold clothes and accessories... Made a few hundred dollars!

I find listing clothing in a 'lot' does better when it is very specific- for example I will list all my size 5 pajamas or just a certain brand (i.e. people might be fans of Gymboree or Hanna). Groups of complete outfits/similar brands do well. I always post pictures and also say things like "used by 1 child, smoke-free/pet-free home, etc..."

Does your town or neighborhood have a yard sale day? My town has a town wide yard sale day and I do well with that, I even have some women who are now on my Facebook and I let them shop my inventory the day before the sale. I always make sure to post my yard sale on Craigslist with brands and sizes of clothing that I will be selling.

Last, I take any remaining clothes to a resale shop that offers cash on the spot. You get less cash than taking it to a consignment shop or on Craigslist- but it is a lot less work! I make a 30 min appointment, they go through what they want and give me the cash. Anything left most likely has a stain I missed so it goes to Goodwill.

 

[Colleen27]

I've done far better with a local swap group on Facebook than I ever did on Craigslist. Between the sheer volume of ads, the larger geographic area targeted, and the growing reputation as a haven for scammers and creeps I think a lot of people just don't look for things like children's clothes on CL.

 

[dreamin_disney]

I just sold 2 lots of clothes on Craigslist.

I usually take pictures of all the clothes and keep them grouped in sizes. My lots this time were sizes 4-6.

I also make sure I tell them they come from a smoke free/pet free home (if they do) and say that I am selling them as a lot and not as pieces.

We usually meet in a public place verses at home (I just get nervous about having someone come to the house).

I also go on at the end of each week and there is an option to repost it so it gets moved to the top of the list.

Good luck!

Good tips. I did one picture of all the clothes laaid out. I think I will repost with the Lot broken down in section like one photo of all tops, all pants and short then one with outfits so it will be 3-4 photos of one Lot.

I didnt put on my add that the clothes come from a smoke from a pet free home.

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

Unlike many of the PP I don't sell in lots - I post things under a category like "science books for kids" with individual prices - a lot of times people will just buy everything but they have the option of picking / choosing.

I also post that they can search CL to see all of my listings (I give a specific search term) - often people will buy from more than one listing just because they're already meeting you.

I never have people come to the house (unless it's a large item) - dh meets them on the way to/ from work.

 

[IDoDis]

I've done really well selling things on Craig's List except for clothing. I used to sell on ebay and used to do very well, but it became too time consuming. A couple of summers ago I decided to get rid of all of the extra bins of the really nice clothes (mostly Gymboree) that I had been saving for ebay. I put the bins together by size, and posted an add on craig's list with a couple of pictures and the sizes I had for girls and boys. I got lots of emails and questions. Out of those emails, I had a few people set up times to come over to see the clothes. Out of about 10 people who set up a time to come over, only 2 showed up. The ones that showed up picked through the clothes and bought only a few outfits. One lady was here for almost 2 hours frothing at the mouth over the little girl's clothes. She looked at them over and over, laid outfits out, and made a huge pile of the stuff she wanted. Then she offered me $20 for everything. My prices were clear (shirts were $1, pants were $3 or $4, sweaters & jackets were more depending on what it was, and then I had outfits that I didn't want to separate (Gymboree) because everything went together including the socks and the hair pieces. The outfits I priced at $8.00.

Of course if someone had a huge pile of things, I'd add it all up and then take off a discount, but even with a discount, this lady picked out at least $100 worth of clothes (probably $130 without a discount). So she picked out $20 worth and asked me to hold the rest for her and said she'd be back the next day with more money. She never came back after wasting 2 hours of my time.

With all of the other no-shows and wasted time waiting around, I decided to take everything to a used kids' clothing store, sell what I could and then I gave the rest away.

Craig's list is great for almost everything else, but for me, the clothing part just wasn't worth it. Now if you do it like another poster did where you are basically have a garage sale with set hours on a specific day, that is doable.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

We've tried every imaginable way to move old kids' clothes. Our current best/favorite is for the Mrs. to take them to her work 1 bag at a time & sell them to co-workers. Anything that comes home goes to Goodwill.

 

[dreamin_disney]

I've done really well selling things on Craig's List except for clothing. I used to sell on ebay and used to do very well, but it became too time consuming. A couple of summers ago I decided to get rid of all of the extra bins of the really nice clothes (mostly Gymboree) that I had been saving for ebay. I put the bins together by size, and posted an add on craig's list with a couple of pictures and the sizes I had for girls and boys. I got lots of emails and questions. Out of those emails, I had a few people set up times to come over to see the clothes. Out of about 10 people who set up a time to come over, only 2 showed up. The ones that showed up picked through the clothes and bought only a few outfits. One lady was here for almost 2 hours frothing at the mouth over the little girl's clothes. She looked at them over and over, laid outfits out, and made a huge pile of the stuff she wanted. Then she offered me $20 for everything. My prices were clear (shirts were $1, pants were $3 or $4, sweaters & jackets were more depending on what it was, and then I had outfits that I didn't want to separate (Gymboree) because everything went together including the socks and the hair pieces. The outfits I priced at $8.00.

Of course if someone had a huge pile of things, I'd add it all up and then take off a discount, but even with a discount, this lady picked out at least $100 worth of clothes (probably $130 without a discount). So she picked out $20 worth and asked me to hold the rest for her and said she'd be back the next day with more money. She never came back after wasting 2 hours of my time.

With all of the other no-shows and wasted time waiting around, I decided to take everything to a used kids' clothing store, sell what I could and then I gave the rest away.

Craig's list is great for almost everything else, but for me, the clothing part just wasn't worth it. Now if you do it like another poster did where you are basically have a garage sale with set hours on a specific day, that is doable.

2 hours ! I would have been annoyed. I guess if i do decide to do that I better have a time frame. In the past when I have had yardsales I get people who get a pile and ask for a discount. I tell them my prcies are already fair. They ended buying it and then some. I usually sell jeans for $1 and tops for
.50 which is a very good deal compare to thrift stores around here

 

[dreamin_disney]

I just added another 2 lots of clothes. yesterday i put under the posting under baby & kid stuff. Today I noticed the clothing and accessories section so i put it under there. I wonder if it makes a difference what section to put it under. I'm hoping to get rid of the 3 bags if not i will have to do a yardsale

 

[dreamin_disney]

I posted the Lots of clothes . I posted 4 pictures for each post.
1st pic is everything laid out.
2nd pic all the tops
3rd pic all the pants and shorts
4th pic outfits
I also included good condition, smoke /pet free home
I've only got reply. Lady was interested and emailed her #. We called and she lives 45 mins away but had family close by. She was going to see if one of her family could come and pick it up but we havent heard back from her.

I have 3 lots posted so I'm hoping someone buys them.

On a good note we sold treadmill, tony lil gazelle and a desk.

 

[madelyn]

I have had some success selling my kids' outgrown clothing on Craigslist but I also spend a lot of time taking photos and listing descriptions. I take individual photos of each item/grouping of items and host those photos on Photobucket and that allows me to have more than 4 photos in my Craigslist post. If I am listing girls' clothing from 2 to 4T I will start with the smallest size first then on down to size 4. I will have a section for Fall/Winter and another for Spring/Summer. If I were making that listing now, I would place the Spring/Summer stuff in my posting first. But sometimes people buy off-season so I will include it all. I will number each photo and after each number I will include a description that includes the size, manufacture (Gymboree, Gap, etc), fabric content, like 100% cotton and then the price. I also mention that our household is smoke and pet free and I usually hang clothing to dry. I also have a clickable link that will display all my other for sale posts on Craigslist. When someone contacts me, I want them to ask for items by number and then I will meet them in a public place during daytime hours with those items so they can look over them in person. If I am meeting them I make sure I have a phone number from them. I used to let people have private garage sales on my front lawn but it would take way too much of my time and they might walk away spending $10. One person only spent $1. I also sell on Diaperswappers.com but that requires payment by Paypal and shipping. I don't bother selling clothing on Ebay unless they are names like Mini Boden, Hanna Andersson, etc. I noticed a few Gymboree items I listed got zero views. Selling this way requires patience. I have tried the local consignment sales twice. Once for each season. To me it was too much trouble to tag everything and meet with them to drop off everything and then pick up. Guess if I had the time to volunteer at the sales I would get a bigger percentage of the sales amount so it might be worth it. I have also sold at resale shops and that worked OK when I would take my money in store credit (and got a larger percentage). Now that my kids are older there is less selection in their sizes so I don't shop at resale shops as much. Things I don't sell I will give away to friends or on Freecycle.

 

[madelyn]

Also search Craigslist for WTB or WANT posts. There may be someone searching for exactly what you have for sale but they haven't found your post!

 

[sarahlovesmickey]

I have had good luck selling kids clothes on Craigslist in the past. I haven't done it recently but need to for sure! On my listings, I always put pics and group like items together (ie: shirts in one pic, pants in another pic, etc). I also say "Smoke free house" because I think for most people, that is a big deal. I know I wouldn't buy anything from a smoker's house.

 

[Disneylush]

I was in the same spot as you but then I started listing my stuff as an ebayer / consignment mom's dream. "I don't have time to list it and I want it gone. I will you sell you this bag of 25 Gymboree mix and match pieces with hair pretties for 50.00 you can double or triple your money by taking the time to list it out.

As soon as I did this... with the same bag of stuff I was just selling, with the same pictures, and the same price... The emails came flying in!!

It is all about how you sell it. Good Luck.

Also depending on what you are selling check Facebook groups. I know the Gymboree group has over 17,000 members and stuff gets sold very quickly!!

 

[dreamin_disney]

I also post that they can search CL to see all of my listings (I give a specific search term) - often people will buy from more than one listing just because they're already meeting you.

What type of search term do you use ? I have 3 Lots of clothes posted and probably have 2-3 more to sort and post

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

What type of search term do you use ? I have 3 Lots of clothes posted and probably have 2-3 more to sort and post

mine is #BESTDAYEVER some people use their name or phone number both of which I won't do....I just picked something that I thought most people wouldn't think of and of course searched my local CL to make sure nobody else was using that already - it's in all of my posts and it's amazing the combinations of things people will buy.

 

[dreamin_disney]

I sold the lots I posted on CL. I ended up posting all three lots as a huge lot. 62 pieces for $50.

I have some more clothes to post. Now i need advice on how to price brand new clothes with tags still attached. Those of you experts how do you figure out the price. At my yardsales i usually sell kids jeans for $1 and
kid tops for .50. The clothes are usually from khols, jcpenny, sears, a few from WW & target. people will buy several pieces at once. I wont let brand new clothes with tags for for $1 or .50. I'm in So cal if that matters. Thanks the advice in this thread has really helped me a lot