You Can Make North of $4000 Monthly by Reselling Thrift Clothes; Here’s How This Woman Does It

The financial upheaval that followed the pandemic is forcing many people to step out of their comfort zones to lead a comfortable life. Many have stopped eating out while others have cut down on recreational activities to save money. Some are now considering multiple streams of income to be able to spend on the things they want without second guessing. One of the most common side gigs is finding thrift items at yard sales or thrift stores and later selling them online for a higher price. Sophie Riegel, owner of Poshmark closet (@sophie_riegel), recently spoke to Yahoo Finance and talked bout how she earns around $4,200 per month from her various side gigs.

Riegel is a 23-year-old mental health speaker and coach who runs a Poshmark closet and flips fashion-related products online. She started her flipping journey by clearing out her closet and selling it for extra cash while she was in college.

"A lot of my time is spent running my thrifting/reselling business," said Riegel. That time includes finding, photographing, researching, organizing, cleaning, and shipping the items. "In addition to being a reseller, I’m also a professional speaker, certified coach, and author. I speak all over the country about my experience with mental illness and have written three books related to that topic," she continued. Riegel shared that her digital shop brings in around $4,200 per month alone while her income from the side hustle is not fixed.

In the interview with Yahoo Finance, she revealed that she first started selling on Poshmark because she needed the money badly. She later took time to learn the ins and outs of reselling clothing and realized that there was potential to make money. In the year 2020, she started visiting thrift shops to find items that she could then sell on Poshmark. Now, she has also found her unique selling proposition, "I specialize in selling adult shoes, clothes, and accessories. Athletic shoes are always in demand since they have a high retail price and are used in every season," she says.

She talked about her entire process of thrifting right from spotting a valuable item to selling it online. "I go to thrift stores or yard sales, buy undervalued items, and sell them online," she said. As per Riegel, she finds good quality inventory at thrift stores. "Any time I travel, I go to the local thrift stores and I find great items. While some areas I have been to have better inventory and prices than others, I think wherever you are, you can find high-quality items." She also talked about how she steers clear of consignment stores because the prices are too high for her to hit her desired profit margin.

Riegal recommends getting started on a fashion reselling platform. She thinks beginners should start small and not invest a lot of money at once. She also stresses how one can make quite a lot of money by selling their stuff. Apart from Poshmark, Riegel recommends platforms like eBay and Etsy.