What a day (or two)……

The last two day have seen some very significant finds. There’s not a lot more to say but to list everything I’ve found. Here we go!

Diane von Furstenberg jacket, The White Company leather skirt, Privatsachen jacket

Doriani jacket
Eskandar jumper
Alembika dress
Ralph Lauren down gilet
Marks & Spencer cashmere jumper
Pure Collection cashmere jumper
Privatsachen top & jacket
Privatsachen jacket
Comptoir des Cotonniers peacoat
Spirit of the Andes cardigan
Anne Fontaine shirt
Merinomink jumper
Chesca cashmere jumper
Diane von Furstenberg jacket
The White Company leather skirt
ME+EM t-shirt
Kew Fair Isle jumper
Whistles cashmere jumper
The White Company Fair Isle jumper
Equipment shirt
Avec ces Freres sweater
Agnona cashmere jumper
Carven dress
Theory dress
Yacco Maricard coat
Yacco Maricard shirt
Sweaty Betty coat
Marks & Spencer cashmere cardigan
White company top
Zoe Karssen trousers
Hush leggings

Cashmere!

It takes a bit of practice but you can learn to identify cashmere by feel so that you can quickly go through shop rails and find those cashmere sweaters.

Don’t worry too much about bobbles – pure cashmere (or any fabric that’s not a mixed fibre) should brush up quite well using a bobble comb. As long as you’re not going to resell the item, it’s easy to fix snags and holes using a couple of stitches, they soon blend in.

Shirin Guild shirt and Max & Moi cardigan

Yesterday I bought:

Shirin Guild shirt
Max & Moi cardigan
AllSaints shirt
AllSaints top
RVCA bomber jacket
Pure Collection cashmere jumper
COS jumper
Mint Velvet top

Buy it Now or Auction?

I’m a huge advocate of auctions. In most cases you will achieve a higher price by auctioning an item than you will by setting a fixed price. I’m no psychologist but I think buyers get caught up in the competitive, almost gambling nature of an auction and will often nudge their budget just a bit higher in order to ‘win’.

I also like setting auctions to start from 99p. This encourages lots of lower end bids. When a buyer sees that an item has attracted several bids already, it makes the item seem more attractive. Of course if you can’t afford to let an item go for less than a certain amount, then don’t risk it!

Baum und Pferdgarten dress and American Vintage t-shirt

Today I just popped into one local charity shop and picked up the following:

American Vintage t-shirt
COS dress
Patagonia shirt
M&S cashmere jumper
Baum und Pferdgarten dress

Another first time find

Really pleased to find this &Daughter jumper on an otherwise not very successful day.

In addition I found a Nicole Farhi belt, a Gudrun Sjoden shirt and some ISCHIKO knitted trousers.

Note that it’s always worth making time to have a rummage among the belts and scarves in charity shops because you can find some real treasures there, usually for just a couple of pounds.

Found something fantastic? Let me know!

‘Of the brand…..’

Not much bought today but I did find a super cute Cath Kidston London bus cardigan.

It’s easy to snap up items just because of the label, but often things don’t sell for much unless they’re very ‘Of the brand’ – like this Cath Kidston cardigan. A Cath Kidston garment without a cutesy floral print or retro pattern won’t interest many buyers.

Likewise, when people search for Moschino they usually want something brash and bold. A plain pencil skirt won’t sell for much despite its high original price tag.

On the other hand, a buyer looking for Margaret Howell or Jil Sander will be after understated elegance, or something more utilitarian. This theory applies to lots of high end brands. Bear this in mind before purchasing and you’ll minimise losses.

Style and ski wear

Despite the atrocious weather I still managed to find some little gems today………

Real fur Zara bomber and Sweaty Betty ski leggings

Diane von Furstenberg lace dress
Sweaty Betty leggings
rag & bone jeans
Zara fur bomber
AllSaints chunky jumper
Custommade cardigan
Rene Lezard quilted coat
Elisa Cavaletti shirt
Free People one piece

So a really great mix of items, found within about an hour and a half of shopping. Most of this will appear in my eBay store so take a look. If you’re thinking of selling your own clothes on eBay let me know if you have any questions. Happy bargain hunting!

Advice for potential sellers

A very lean buying day today so no bargains to share!

For anyone interested in starting a fashion retail business I thought I’d share a bit about customer service – a really boring phrase but vital for growing your business.

Fashion resale has a poor reputation for its customer service – just google reviews of any of the major reselling sites. There are problems for both buyers and sellers, particularly when there’s a dispute.

So how should you deal with a complaint? Simple. The customer is always right! Even if you strongly disagree with their complaint, take it on the chin and refund them in full without any grumbling.

Why do this? Well it’s the age old cliche of turning a negative into a positive. Buyers will be impressed with your quick and positive response, therefore much more likely to visit your store again, and recommend it to others. You might make a small short term loss but trust me, it’ll be worth it in the long run!