There are few things as frustrating as a home full of things you know you will never use again. Clutter is also often an aggravating reminder of money you may have misspent or maybe the clutter just consists of items your children have outgrown. In any case, your scarcely used items can become someone else’s treasure, while putting some dollars in your pocket. To find out how to sell your kids’ items we turned to Ankur Dhawan, the founder and CEO of markid, a parent marketplace to buy and sell children’s gently used items.
Momtastic: What children’s items and brands have particularly good resale value?
Ankur Dhawan: Generally speaking, resale value is dictated by product quality, demand and its relative condition. Kids items follow the same rule, in that gently-used, high-quality and high-demand products have the best value. Parents are intentional in their purchases and tend to show strong brand affinities, which guides pricing.
Trusted brands like Uppababy, Nuna, Babybjorn, Halo and Snoo have good resale and typically sell at 30-50% of their value. Kids items that may be used only for a short duration do sell fast. Cleanliness and the condition of the item are also big contributing factors in the resale.
Momtastic: What are items parents shouldn’t bother trying to sell?
Ankur Dhawan: A good rule of thumb to follow: don’t sell anything that you wouldn’t buy yourself! Damaged or stained items, old clothes, expired car seats (not legal), or cribs and other items that require a lot of work should be sustainably discarded. Sellers should also check if items have been recalled as they may be a safety hazard.
Momtastic: How should parents approach pricing?
Ankur Dhawan: Be reasonable – typically deduct 25% from the original price for every year of use. This is not universally true and really depends on product demand and condition. Do your research and see how other parents have priced similar items. If time is a constraint, consign the item and let the experts price and sell it for you.
Momtastic: Can you highlight what you think are the best places to sell your kids’ items?
Ankur Dhawan:
- The Swoondle Society: an online member marketplace for trading fashionable children’s clothing and accessories.
- markid: an app and marketplace designed by parents, for parents to buy and sell kids’ preloved items. We also recently launched reNewed, a white-glove consignment service, which simplifies the process even further for parents by scheduling at-home pickups, taking listing photos, and sanitizing and packaging bulky items.
- Kidizen: buy and sell gently used kids’ clothes and shoes.
