We might be The Broke Generation, but we’re also the materialistic generation – basically, we’ve got a lot of stuff. I’m used to be a sucker for fast fashion – it warmed my soul to take myself shopping and buy $20 tops to wear out that evening for a night of drinking alcopops and dancing to 2012 pop mixes. But the stuff never has any longevity. If fashion’s not your thing, you’ve probably got another vice, which means you churn through stuff and end up wasting money in the process.

Planning your clear outs in advance can give you time to think about items you might want to sell. When clearing out your garage, wardrobe or storage cupboards, I’d recommend sorting into 4 categories:

  • Definitely

  • Maybe

  • Sell

  • Chuck

Your definitely pile is the stuff you know you’re keeping.

The maybe pile is stuff you’re not sure about. For the items in this pile I recommend giving them one last chance. Set yourself a deadline If you don’t use/wear it in the next 3 months, it’s gone.

Your sell pile is, well, the one with stuff worth selling. Be careful here, as some things that you might think are worth selling might not actually have much resale value. Brand name clothing and good quality appliances sell well, whereas older clothing and outdated homewares may not. Remember, you’ve got to put time and effort into selling them, so make sure it’s worth it.

Where can you sell your stuff?

eBay

In Australia, postage is often more expensive than the bloomin’ item itself, and Australia Post is about as reliable as tying your parcels to a balloon and hoping the universe wills it to its destination. Basically, it kinda sucks.

For that reason, eBay isn’t the best selling platform. I used to live in the UK and I sold shit loads on eBay, but postage within the UK is super fast and far cheaper. If you are selling on eBay, opt to list your brand name clothing (Gorman and Mister Zimi do very well), items that are new with tags and sought-after pieces. Start your auction low to entice buyers, but don’t forget to set a reserve price if it’s a high value item.

Facebook

Facebook Marketplace has grown in popularity over the years. You can list items for free and use Messenger to interact with future buyers. It’s handy in that you can generate a lot of demand in a short space of time – and do it for free. The downside is you often have to meet the buyer in person, and may find yourself faced with time wasters. If you’re selling via Facebook Marketplace, make sure you’re being safe. Meet buyers in public spaces, and don’t disclose your personal information lightly.

Also on Facebook, sales groups in your local area can put you in contact with buyers even more local to you. This makes meet ups much easier, and it can make you feel more secure knowing that your interested buyer is part of the local community.

Apps

Apps like Carousell and Shedd are great for selling women’s fashion. You can arrange meet ups or arrange postage – but make sure you’re not tempted to shop for yourself if you’re trying to make money!

Melbourne Facebook groups for selling your stuff

Buy Swap Sell Bentleigh East and Surrounds is good for unwanted family items, homewares, tech and some clothes. My Stuff = Your Stuff is a great group for selling high quality, unusual pieces of furniture, plants and homewares. You can’t post items outside of the guidelines, so make sure you read those first.

Also try Buy Swap Sell Western Suburbs, Buy Swap Sell Northern Suburbs Melbourne and Buy Swap Sell Mornington Peninsula. Typing your suburb into the search bar with the words buy and sell will bring up a ton of groups with potential for hungry eyeballs on your items. If you’re selling Gorman and Mister Zimi items, or another notable brand, see if there are groups specifically for selling those items. Often there are packs of keen buyers just waiting to snap up your unwanted garms.

Be prepared for listings to hang around for a while. Items of tech and furniture often sell quickly, but if you’re selling clothing or accessories, buyers can pop up in a few weeks time because they’re actively searching for items like yours at that point. I had a Michael Kors bag listed on the site for over a month before it sold, but I got the full asking price when it did.

Selling old stuff at markets in Melbourne

If the offline way of selling appeals to you more, Melbourne is packed with markets where you can sell your old bits and pieces. Here, though, you often have to sell items very cheap in high volumes to make a profit. That said, if you’ve got 100 items of clothing between you and a couple of mates, selling each piece at just $2 would see you pocket $200.

Camberwell Market – cost per stall: $65

Fitzroy Market – cost per stall: $66

Bentleigh Sunday Market – cost per stall: $15 for a mini stall, $29 for a car boot site

Footscray Finds – cost per stall: enquire for information

Suitcase Rummage Melbourne – $25 for one patch

For shopping addicts and not-so-savvy spenders (like me), selling sites and markets can be DANGER ZONES for more spending. You’re in that mindset of ‘oh I just made $50 and this is suuuuuch a bargain omfg gonna wear it out tonight YOLO treat yo’self etc etc”.

STOP!

There’s no point selling your old stuff to come back with a load more. Be strong and think of the dollarrrrrrrrr.

Do you have a great way you sell old stuff? We want to know about it!