EBay or Vinted. Tips for selling. How do you post or use the lockers.

[loosethepounds]

We are hoping to downsize at the end of the year. I thought I'd make a start on the spare rooms.
Can't face the actic, garage or shed yet.
We have accumulated lots of stuff over the time we have been in this house. 28 years.
There are lots of clothes in different sizes I've been. Shoes, handbags, old crockery, glassware, records etc.
Don't think anything will sell for a lot of money but something is better than nothing.
Can you give me tips on selling. Which is the better site.
Is it best to post via royal mail or use the lockers I've seen in the supermarket.
How do they work.
Do we need to pay tax on any money we get.

With regards to tax, there is nothing to pay for just selling your second hand items

If you buy to sell then that would be trading, and taxable if you earn enough
Certain items may be subject to capital gains

If you do earn enough to be taxable then you submit a self assessment to HMRC, (taking account of your related costs) and HMRC tell you what is owed

@Tomikkawith all the stuff we have upstairs don't think I need to buy to sell.
Thanks for your help

I joined Vinted a couple of weeks ago and it’s ace. I’ve lost a lot of weight so I’m selling my larger sizes to fund my smaller sizes. I put a load of swimsuits on thus afternoon and 2 have already sold. It can be a bit of a faff when I’ve sold 8 items but have 5 different drop off points (e.g. post office, evri shop drop, InPost boxes etc) but I take them to work and drop on my way home. It’s lovely to get ‘free’ new (old) stuff!

@ToddlerMummaI will try Vinted.
It's the posting I need to work out. Which place to post and how it works.

Hello I’ve been doing Vinted for a few weeks now and have got a nice little sum from it!
I invested in some parcel bags from Amazon - different sizes.

Postage on Vinted seems to be small (scarf say) , medium ( shoes, jumper etc), large (e.g. suit)

The buyer decides the postage type not you - however I went into my profile and deselected Royal Mail as an option as a friend told me they weigh it and you can end up adding to the postage.

The label clearly says what they’ve chosen - Evri/DPD just take to post office and they’ll give you a receipt - find out where the nearest in post locker is to you ( you just scan the parcel and pop it in a locker ( I have been ridiculously excited over this process -waiting for the door to open 😂)

Hope this helps -I’ve become slightly addicted 😂😂

For postage, if you have a printer then that is easier, but for most options you can use a QR code and have it printed
(Every now and then someone can have a problem with cabinet drop offs that get mislabelled in bulk when the carrier mixes them up - so if you can use your own printer or use a drop off that can print there when you drop off)

I’m lucky that there is a post office counter at the garage near me, so my Royal Mail and Evri go there by default. The next garage along the road has a Royal Mail locker so that’s my next option when the counter is closed. InPost and others are dotted around near me

On both Vinted and eBay’s “simple postage” there are choices in your account details. If something won’t work from you then untick it, otherwise the buyer has their preferred choice.

Bear in mind that Vinteds Royal Mail does not generate a label, but pays you the postage charged. They charge the lowest price for the size you specify on the listing, so if it is a bit heavier than the minimum then you pay the extra from your sale price

Remember to take into account that things need to be packed, so allow for it to be a bit bigger and heavier than you think - if in doubt then package the item as if you were about to post it

For packaging I reuse all the packing I receive plus cereal boxes etc
My friend has a shop so I get bubble wrap, soft packaging etc from her and also take quite a few of her delivery boxes - they are too big 99% of the time, but I cut them up to fit
My packaging expense is a lot of tape and decent bin bags to wrap the homemade boxes

Ask local independent shops and they are usually happy to give away their delivery packaging (it costs money for commercial waste)

I used to use Vinted for clothing and eBay for everything else. I have scaled down my Vinted
It wouldn’t hurt to list items on both (as long as you remember to take it down from the other service once sold elsewhere) or to try different items on the different services

Don’t forget local Facebook sales groups etc - but that means dealing with people so I can’t be bothered

You wait until you have cleared out but have become addicted to selling

I started going an auction with a couple of friends, bought a couple of things to sell, bought things to use for events …… and now have a self assessment tax return to do

The lockers are easy to use. I would definitely recommend printing the labels at home if you can, otherwise you’re in danger of putting the wrong item in the locker compartment or the courier putting the wrong label on when they empty the compartment.
Print your labels, when you get to the lockers you scan the barcode on the label, a compartment door will open, put the parcel in and shut the door. That’s it.
You should get an email immediately to confirm you’ve dropped it off.
Use a separate compartment for each package.

@NoLongerATeacher@Tomikkathank you for the information.
There are 3 post lockers, an evri drop off and a small post office within walking distance.
Yes I'm excited to start.

Vinted does make it easy to list and you don’t need to faff around weighing and working out postage.
Try and take decent quality photos and it really helps if your first photograph is of the brand size label inside your clothes. This is because Vinted will only let you list a size range ie L/ 12-14 which doesn’t always tally with actual sizing, and someone might want a 14 but not a 12. By showing the label first you’re not wasting anyone’s time and I do think it helps your listing stand out a bit.

Be honest with your description.
When you list Vinted will advise on the likely postage so “Will fit in a shoebox”.
Have everything ready to bag up, label, and post.
Don’t list things the day before you’re going on holiday as if they sell you need to get them sent off promptly.

It’s very easy once you get going, and very satisfying. The first time I listed I couldn’t believe how quickly things sold, as fast as I got back from the lockers I was already getting notifications of more sales.

Is there a best time or day to list.

Does Vinted give you suggested prices like eBay does?

I Wouldn’t say there’s a best time of day to list. If you can post a few per day rather than all at once as it will push your listings to the top.

@B0Dyes Vinted gives suggested prices based on what similar listings are on for.

Thanks!

Then you can have these options on your profile. I prefer Inpost, because there’s a locker en route to work, so it’s faster for buyers/me. I have a box of stuff, like you, I’m clearing our house prior to moving later in the year, 20 odd years here. I sold big sizes very easily, trying to sell 14s is a bleeding trauma! I print labels then scan the bottom barcode at the locker.

I’ve been ruthless and charity shopped 3 massive bags of stuff at the weekend. I couldn’t be bothered to keep trying to sell stuff after several months.

I was determined to tackle the loft and was delighted to mostly empty it, but then I’ve had to put stuff in there to thin out the items in the house for viewings/painting. Be brutal, some stuff is sunk costs, don’t worry about selling everything, just get rid.

So excited. By 6.45 I'd listed shorts and a pair of sandals.
Shorts have sold at 9.15. Going to the lockers in the morning.
I do have a printer at home.

Yes there is. Peak traffic is 7-9pm so I s hedule mine for then. Usually a few items in the morning, two at lunchtime and rest in the evening. I don't touch vinted myself I just use eBay. I find it more professional and if someone makes an offe4 it's binding. I use royal mail to post as it's closest to me.

@loosethepounds
@Doggymummar has highlighted a key point about “offers”

In eBay an offer is an offer - if the offer is accepted then eBay takes that as a sale, but in Vinted it’s part of a conversational format, eg “would you accept £5?”
If you click to accept it might result in a sale, or it could just sit there

When I first used Vinted I would get the item out and wrap it once I had an offer ….. and then nothing

I’m not proactive with my Vinted, so my listings will
disappear until someone hits it with a search
Regular listings will help the Vinted algorithm and make your listings more likely to pop up to people

I’ve sold 2 things! Just got to work out shipping

I’m getting lots of offers, it seems to be the norm on Vinted. I’m thinking I should price things higher now

Something else just sold !

I’ve bought on Vinted a few times but generally sell on EBay

what are the steps to get paid? On EBay it goes to my balance and then transfers after a month to my bank?
thanks

Did you read the guide on Vinted at all?

In Vinted your money sits in your “Balance”, either as “Pending” (awaiting confirmed delivery) or “Available”

The “available” amount can be spent on Vinted or withdrawn - to withdraw you must first confirm your identity etc

eBay also holds a balance with a period of pending. You can manually initiate a withdrawal, or it will ultimately automatically transfer to your bank periodically, and depending on your status can change the frequency of payouts

@Tomikka
Thank you, I’m finding all the tips on this thread are really helpful