How to Shop Resale

What is resale?

All shops which sell gently-used goods are resale shops. There are distinctions within resale: there are consignment shops, buy-outright shops, and thrift shops.
Consignment shops accept merchandise on a consignment basis, paying owners a percentage when and if the items are sold. Most pay consignors from 40 to 60% of the selling price, and have a policy of displaying goods for anywhere from 60 to 90 days, although there is a wide range of policies. Some consignment shops also purchase additional items outright from individual owners and/or wholesalers.
A resale store is the phrase most often used for shops which buy their merchandise outright from individual owners. 
A thrift shop is run by a Not For Profit organization to raise money to fund their charitable causes. These range from The Salvation Army/ Goodwill type to the small volunteer-run church thrift shops. These can obtain goods through outright donation or they could operate on a consignment basis. Some thrifts do both.
Why does this matter to you? It may not, unless you have strong feelings about specific charities. You can choose to support a favorite charity by shopping and donating to their stores, and of course the reverse is also true. Note: Understand how much of the profits are used in their charitable good works.

How to Shop Secondhand for the Holidays

The what, when and why of secondhand shopping  

By Elizabeth Weiss McGolerick

Whether or not you're feeling the money pinch during the holidays, it's always a good idea to consider shopping secondhand for decorations, gifts and especially clothes for growing children. But consignment shops and sales can be daunting. Where do you begin? How can you know what to steer clear of and what to snatch up quickly?

Shannon Wilburn, the president and co-founder of Just Between Friends, the nation's leading children's and maternity consignment sales event franchise, has some answers.

What you should buy secondhand

"Depending on the consignment store or sales event, you can find just about everything you need for the holidays, especially clothes," says Wilburn, particularly holiday outfits for boys and girls of all ages. "Because holiday outfits are something kids typically wear once, you can find 'like new' for 50 to 90 percent off retail," she explains. You could also get lucky and find clothing that's never been worn with the tags still on them. "Check the hem lines, look at buttons and seams and look closely at the colors."

Why the recent surge in consignment shops?

It's an age old concept: one person's trash is another's treasure. It's an idea that's exploded in consignment shops, and it works because everybody wins. Ordinary people have a venue to make money off items they no longer need; consignment shops take a percentage of that profit, and consumers get a bargain.

Customer Service in the Consignment Industry

In the consignment industry, a retail sector that's grown increasingly competitive as the slow economic recovery proceeds, offering top-notch customer service may be the most important operational concern behind providing quality products.

Many retailers and consignment stores may not realize it, but service quality can make or break a sale, and a new study from research firm Polaris provides a basis for this assertion.