You may have heard of Threadflip, a website that enables women to sell items directly from their closet – except in far less steps than eBay. Wanting to make some extra cash from my closet, I decided to check it out and report back to SFFT.

As someone with a surplus of stylish yet gently used clothing that I no longer wear, Threadflip helps me solve a problem. I finally have an alternative to lugging bags full of clothes to the nearest Crossroads Trading Co., and having 95% of the contents rejected. Like my J. Crew twinset. It’s in perfectly good condition, but not trendy enough for my local clothing exchange shops. I’m willing to bet there’s a woman somewhere in the United States who might want it at a fraction of the price. Additionally knowing that I keep 80% of what I sell (as opposed to 30% at most brick & mortar clothing exchanges) inspires me to sell more. As icing on the cake, Threadflip takes care of the shipping. The main reason I never tried eBay is that I never wanted the responsibility of packing and shipping. With Threadflip, once a buyer purchases from me and I confirm the ‘flip’, they send me postage and packing supplies. It doesn’t get any easier than that.

The only downside I’ve experienced thus far is the minimum price per item. There are items I’d be willing to part with for less than $17 – and that buyers might not consider worth that amount – but that’s the minimum price Threadflip has set to make sure they’re getting enough out of the deal.

From the buyer’s perspective, the layout has you shopping right away. As soon as you log in you see a dynamic display of items ready for a new home. From indie and vintage, to items from the Gap, to Louis Vuitton and Hermes, women are selling a wide range of items at an even wider range of price points. Once you fill out your profile you see a curated selection on the homepage. Threadflip now knows my size, favorite colors, and a few keywords for how I describe myself (elegant, bohemian, etc), which ensures that I like nearly everything I see; even better – everything fits. That’s a smart way to get your customers buying.

There is an element of “gamification” for both buyers and sellers. You can ‘heart’ your favorites, and see how many other people love what you want to buy (or what you want to sell). As a buyer, that’s impetus for me to commit to a purchase before someone else does. As a seller that creates a valuable feedback loop. If a lot of people love my item but nobody buys, that indicates I need to bring the price down.

Threadflip isn’t without ‘re-commerce’ competition. There’s Poshmark for iPhone users, the Cools, eBay of course; and brick & mortar options. If you have experience selling from your closet through any of the above means, or another way, I’d love to hear about your experience in the comments.

Photo via T Magazine