The Thredup Hustle, Is It Worth It?

Can you make big bucks buying clothes at Goodwill Outlet and selling them on Thredup?

I've been wondering about this hustle for awhile. I love thrifting and digging for treasure. I love having a reason to hit the bins and I love making money. I was made for this hustle. Let's do this.

I Spent $37.92 on 24 items at a Goodwill Outlet.

It should have been half of that but this particular Goodwill Outlet does NOT give you the deep discount after 25 lbs. So that was super frustrating. All that digging, which I enjoy, but not being able to get the deal I had planned on was super disappointing. That haul should have only cost me around $18. 

I bought items suggested by Thredup. 

Their big sellers are exercise clothes and jeans. But, I also bought some heels, sweaters, a skirt, and hoodies.

White House Black Market is a big deal.

I would have NEVER guessed this, but everything I posted from White House Black Market sold and for a decent profit. If I had a bag of White House Black Market clothes I didn't wear, I'd send that puppy in. 

This sloppy Clavin Klein sweater was my stand out super star. 

It cost me $1.58 and Thredup paid me $11.40 making a whopping $9.82 in profit. If only each item where that profitable! 

Some items I was convinced would bring in the big bucks didn't even sell. 

Like this cute stripped pullover sweater by Ann Taylor. This casual green skirt by Talbots that probably cost a small fortune new. And, this nice pink plaid button down from J. Crew. I'm still pretty shocked by this. 

Some items they didn't even list, yet I thought were really nice. 

I'm so bummed I can't find the photos but there was a Ralph Lauren sweater in excellent condition that they never even posted. Where did it go? I have no idea. I really thought that one was going to sell big but they didn't even list it. Same with 2 Polo sweaters. As well as a pair of cute and colorful Nine West heels. They listed the tweed ones but never listed the cute colorful ones. Even though the colorful ones were in better condition. What a waste! And, those weren't the only ones, 8 items total didn't make the cut and most were brand name in "like new" condition and fit the guidelines of what Thredup was looking for. Do Thredup employees steal a few nice items from each haul? Why don't they take a photo of the rejected items and send that to you and give you an opportunity to buy them back? That part is just sooooooo sketchy to me. 

So, how much did I make?

A whole $45.97 bringing in only $8.05 in profit. If the Goodwill Outlet had been like a traditional one where you get the big price break at 25lbs and I only spent $18, my profit would have been $27.97. Better, but not a great use of my time. 

I could have manipulated the pricing to potentially earn more.

I follow someone on Instagram that always raises her item prices as soon as they list and she makes sales. I just got nervous. I really wanted to be sure items sold. Maybe I would have fared better if I had jacked up the prices? But, I kept them as Thredup recommended to keep my items competitive. 

Would I do it again?

Sure! It isn't worth the money but I love hunting through the bins. If I find a Goodwill Outlet with the 25 lb discount, then I'd happily do it again for fun. But, as an activity to make money, it just isn't worth it.