Shopping for vintage and secondhand clothing is one of the most fun parts of running a reselling business, but we all know it can be hard to find those quality pieces that will bring buyers in and have them return for more. Here at Fleek, we can help make that process easier. With hundreds of verified wholesalers at the tip of your fingers on our website and app, it couldn’t be easier to buy quality secondhand and vintage clothing in bulk. This blog will talk you through the wide range of options out there for sourcing your stock and how you can get the best supply for your business.

1. Goodwill

Pros: Everyone loves Goodwill. Spending hours browsing those endless bins of secondhand clothing is truly a vintage lover’s heaven…and a bargain hunter’s too. Goodwill stores are easy to find and easy to love: with cheap prices, convenient locations, and a wide variety of items, it’s no wonder that Goodwill is a popular place to source. 

Cons: Everyone loves Goodwill. Stores are often crowded with people fighting over the best picks (literally). People are on the HUNT for those stand-out finds at a low cost and it can be extremely competitive. Plus, with so much variety and unpredictability of stock, it’s hard to find a lot of just what you’re looking for – such as a 20-piece bundle of vintage Levi’s 501s made in USA in all the sizes you want.

2. Estate Sales

Pros: Estate sales are a hidden gem. You never know what people have stuffed at the back of their closet or boxed up in the loft. Vintage grandad coats? Quality leather jackets? Estate sales have it all. Every vintage seller thrives off discovering that special rare piece, and estate sales are the perfect place to find them. 

Cons: Estate sales are competitive for a different reason. They can be exclusive and invite-only affairs, they don’t happen all that often, and there isn’t always a ton being sold. After all, how many designer handbags can one person have? There will be plenty of secondhand sellers like you looking for those precious finds and you might miss out. While estate sales can be great for sourcing those rare vintage picks, you may want to find a more reliable source that won’t come down to just pure luck.

3. Local Thrift Stores

Pros: Heading to your local thrift store is another great way to buy cheap secondhand clothing and give back to the community at the same time. Smaller than Goodwill and less likely to get you caught in a battle of band-tees, local thrift stores can be an ideal place to find secondhand clothing for less.

Cons: Local thrift stores tend to be too small without much stock, and what they have isn’t always the best quality or most desired items. You may end up spending a lot of time for just a few pieces that won’t get you a great return on your investment.

4. Buy/Sell/Trade Stores

Pros: Buy/sell/trade stores have an enormous variety of stock, and someone else’s trash might just be your treasure. Some people might not recognise those timeless trends like you do. And while you’re at, you can trade-in your hard-to-sell inventory for cash and/or other items that are more suitable for your reselling business. 

Cons: While buy/sell/trade stores have an incredible variety to choose from, it’s just as competitive, if not more, than anywhere else. Most importantly, it can be difficult to turn a profit from the secondhand finds at these stores as they mark up their prices once someone trades them in. Remember – they’re running a business too. Be smart with your funds and find an option that keeps costs down.

5. Friends & Family Closets

Pros: Possibly the easiest option of all – you might not even need to leave your house. We’re all guilty of hoarding clothes we don’t wear anymore…when’s the last time you saw your mom wear that 90s denim maxi skirt you used to love? Visit their house for a closet-raiding mission, you might even be doing them a favor!

Cons: Even though it’s tempting just to search your brother’s closet and call it a day, he still needs some clothes to wear. While convenient, this option doesn’t scale up and you will eventually run out of the good finds. This, however, is a great way to get your reselling business started, and you then can graduate to more scalable and reliable sources.

6. Online (Poshmark, Depop, eBay)

Pros: There’s not much you can’t find online these days, with hundreds of websites selling almost anything you can think of when it comes to vintage and secondhand clothing. It’s easy to stock your business without even having to leave your home, and it can be fun browsing the latest trends on these sites. There’s a whole world of secondhand clothing on the internet, you just have to take the time to look for it. 

Cons: You can find good stuff online, but it’s rare you can buy great products in bulk. Besides, there are so many online stores it can be overwhelming. And just like buy/sell/trade stores, you’re buying from resellers, so expect a markup that will make it difficult for you to make that money back and even more when you resell. It’s expensive and time-consuming spending hours scrolling through those websites … if only there was just one perfect place you could buy stylish AND reliable secondhand clothing in bulk at a low price, all from the comfort of your couch…

7. Fleek

Pros: Fleek is a one-stop-shop for all your wholesale secondhand and vintage sourcing needs. With our convenient website and app, it couldn’t be easier to find what you’re looking for and buy in bulk from verified sellers. You also get peace of mind through Fleek’s buyer protection policy that protects you on every purchase. Forget spending hours sifting through stores or fighting over those sought-after picks – they’re all in one place at Fleek. Take away the hassle with our easy search bar, hot deals and virtual handpicks with verified sellers to find exactly what you need without even leaving the comfort of your home. 

Cons: We can’t think of anything…check us out and come see for yourself!

Fleek is here to make sourcing wholesale vintage and secondhand clothing for your reselling business a breeze. Whether that’s virtual handpicks with verified sellers or shopping for trending stock in bulk with full buyer protection, we are a safe and trusted way to source your vintage and secondhand clothing business. See How it works and take a look at our FAQs to find out more. Or just drop us a line and say hi – we check all our messages! hello@joinfleek.com