Trying to sell anything is impossible

[Lifeofthepartay]

I am doing a big clear out that includes clothes, furniture, all in great condition. Clothes and trainers barely worn, asking very little (around £1 per item) on Facebook marketplace and local pages, no one is interested....piece of furniture, a few years old but absolutely solid, no rips , tears or stains. It would be around £2k new, asking for a little over £100 , no one is interested and only person commenting is saying she knows of a place that MIGHT take it if I don't find a buyer, they'd want it delivered too as I know for a fact they don't collect because I have donated stuff to them before. I've seen other people doing this to countless other sellers, trying to get some money for their items but instead they get asked to donate to this or that. We KNOW that there are tons of places asking stuff for free. There are also tons of people asking things for free and even those waste your time as no shows. Is it too hard to understand that if I am listing for sale is because I want some.mo eye for it? Rant over 😂 at this point I would honestly rather taking it to the skip than suffer more time wasters.

I am very interested in this post as in exactly the same position as you (OP) and all the other people posting. I need to downsize and I will get local council to take away old furniture as no one wants it from what I can see. I have literally hundrds of mens shirts and all are in nearly new or brand new condition. I've donated so many winter ones to charity hospices and they can't take any more so I'm thinking of using Vinted as many people here have said how good it is. Could I ask what you charge for a short sleeve summer shirt/top please as I have no experience of this. Most are M & S or Tu and all modern styles. Thanks for any advise. Sadly having to clear out after a bereavement and it is so hard.

When my DC was small, people would happily pay £70 for a second hand cot-bed etc. usually via the NCT sales. When I decided to off-load all my baby stuff after lockdown no one wanted to buy anything anymore. Even before Lockdown the NCT sales no longer had the crowds of people rushing in to grab equipment or toys. I ended up being grateful people took the stuff at all.

People seem to expect things for free now. You can't sell your old sofa because people know someone will be offering one for nothing. I also suspect people don't have money to spare either.

Yes deffo seen an increase in giving stuff away.
I don't think people can be bothered trying to sell, either that or they are generous.

I've started to use Vinted for the 1st time this year. Used EBAY very happily for years. I've started with my son's children and teen clothing. I sorted vigorously, looked in good daylight, anything that was stained or bobbled straight to a RAG bag, which sadly subsequently has just gone in the black bin. Any supermarket clothing or light wear straight to the charity shops. I've listed brands such as Boden, next, gap, lands End & marks. I've sold steadily at £1-3 per item. Have done much better with good quality ladies shoes and bundle offers. But boys long sleeved shirts have not sold at all. Short-sleeve T shirts have. There are organisations that look for work wear for unemployed returning to work. I wonder if that might be easier to clear in quantity. I do have pets, so possibly that puts some buyers off.

I don't think it very surprising people don't want large items of furniture if they need to come and collect it. They have to go through the hassle of sorting out a vehicle to collect it and on arrival they might find they don't like the furniture after all.

It seems very wasteful to be trying to get rid of stuff that's nearly new and ironic that you're complaining that other people don't want to buy your stuff when you don't want it either even though you chose it out of hundreds of items in a shop.

ironic that you're complaining that other people don't want to buy your stuff when you don't want it either even though you chose it out of hundreds of items in a shop.

Exactly this!

No but they're just quite basic and so will struggle to sell secondhand because there are so many of them to be had for free or very cheap. People buying secondhand want something better (as well as cheaper) than they could buy new usually.

I’ve sold 100’s of items of clothing on Vinted and very rarely have anything that takes more than a couple of days to sell.

I thought people bought second hand because they can't afford to buy new!

I think it makes more sense to grab the free sofa than pay for one if you are skint. I do think people are taking on board that there is a disposal cost to items. Every garment that is sent to landfill, a sofa sent to the recycling costs money to dispose of. Everyone pays those costs through council tax. If an item has life in it I’d rather hive
it away for reuse than drag it off to the tip.

Some do and some don't. I could afford to buy new but I buy secondhand everything because I can get much better quality items for usually a much lower price and I love a bargain, hate feeling ripped off and always want to get the absolute best value for my money. We spend so little on everything, we can have a really good standard of living and get pretty much everything we want on part time working and quite low wages (we have no access to any benefits whatsoever, before anyone starts) so it's a lifestyle choice primarily for us.

Some buy secondhand for ethical/sustainability reasons too primarily.

Secondhand shopping can also be more convenient for some as you may be able to pick up items quickly in your local area or have them delivered to your door depending on what suits you.

I am amazed some people still buy mostly new when there are so many secondhand items to be had now. Seriously, the market, especially for clothes, has become very saturated lately. Anything you want, wait a week and it will be on Vinted, brand new with tags and at least half price or better.

I think, because of the cost of living crisis, a lot more people are selling rather than dumping or donating or giving away items. This is good for buyers as it increases choice and lowers prives but bad for sellers as there is so much competition.

Yes and there are so many more people selling or giving away items (I think due to the cost of living crisis) now so if you wait a few days there will probably be one cheaper or for free available.

It's also good sense because in my experience the free are usually of better quality and in better condition than items offered for sale. I think this is because those that can afford to give away rather than sell their unwanted items often have more to spend on them in the beginning and are more likely to be getting rid of only lightly used or unused items.

You should do a car boot sale if you want to get rid of high volume at low prices like 50p-£2, they can be quite fun, especially on a sunny day, too.

The problem with low value items on Vinted is, once you've added on delivery and the buyer fee it's more like £5-£7 for a £1-£2 item which feels too expensive, especially for children's clothes.

That is true I’ve had some fab old bits made of solid wood that have been sitting somewhere for years. They are given away as moving or whatever. In brilliant functional condition though and will probably outlast me. Compare that to a cheap bit of mdf that may not survive the car journey!

What area are you in?
I can never find a sofa or a wardrobe on eBay that isn’t a scammer!

As I thought Easter brought out a handful of time wasters so I ended up dismantled some items and they’ve gone to the tip.

I’ve been there. I had a few good years on eBay but still had a whole spare room full of things that wouldn’t shift no matter how many times they were listed. I gave it all away in a free lot to someone doing boot sales in the end. From then on I got very strict about what comes into the house!