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“It’s always to fund the next purchase”: Meet the eBay sellers cashing in from pre-loved fashion

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH eBAY
PHOTOGRAPHER – CATHY MARSHALL
STYLIST – MOLLY JOHNSTONE
MAKEUP – MEG McCONVILLE
MODEL  – VICKY @ STONE STREET AGENCY
WORDS BY JULIETTE SALOM

“I can’t believe so many people don’t do it.”

With a rotating wardrobe of luxury designer items that cost her less than fast fashion, Millie Romanin has hacked the fashion system. Using not much else but the tools already at her disposal – her own wardrobe and eBay – Millie has turned rehoming her old clothes into a seriously profitable side hustle. 

“[It was] mainly to fund being obsessed with shopping,” Millie says, laughing. She’s reflecting on her early days as an eBay seller, a hobby which started soon after high school. But what started as a way of making some pocket money quickly turned into a savvy method of approaching fashion with a circular mindset. Now, Millie says, whatever she earns from selling old clothes on eBay provides the cash for buying new ones. “It’s always to fund the next purchase,” she tells me. “I keep it all as one sort of currency.” 


For more on the circular economy, head to our Pre-Loved section.


In other words, Millie’s current wardrobe is enabling her to build a new one, changing with her through the seasons and the trends. The money she earns from resourcefully selling pre-loved garments on eBay has created a steady income stream that she reinvests back into her closet. It’s the fashion industry’s worst-kept secret: consumers can be sellers too.

Millie’s rise to becoming a top seller on eBay is partly due to her familiarity with the platform as a shopper. “There are so many bargains,” she says, adding that she’ll often check eBay before buying something brand new, and sometimes find the same item for a fraction of the price. When the pre-loved items in her closet start gathering dust, she knows there’s someone out there on eBay, just like her, who will give them a new home. Often, at the same price she originally paid. 

“I recently sold one of my cardigans. I was like, ‘I don’t reach for it, I don’t like it on me, so I’ll sell it now’,” she tells me. As a seasoned eBay seller, she knew now would be the optimal time to sell a cardigan. The weather is still cool and items like knitwear and outerwear are in high demand. As a result, it sold fast. “I got close to retail [price],” she says.  

Charlotte Dallison, author of How to be Fabulous, says that eBay is one of the best places for sourcing secondhand items. An expert in pre-loved fashion, Charlotte researched and wrote about eBay for her book and discovered what users like Millie already knew. “It’s the original [reselling site],” Charlotte says simply. “It’s the biggest and most established, [offering] a real spectrum of stuff. I really think you can find anything on eBay,” she adds. 

Whether it’s a vintage, luxury designer dress or that pair of sneakers you can’t find anywhere else, Charlotte says if someone is selling it, it will be on eBay. “You can find something really rare and antique and expensive,” she says. “And you can equally find something that’s pre-loved and thrifted.”

What makes eBay so attractive to both buyers and sellers are the protections they’ve put in place for both parties, making them a leading figure in the resale market. eBay acts as the invisible middleman, letting you run your business while providing support if something seems suspicious. For Millie, eBay’s security standards are why she chooses to sell with them over any other platform. “The seller is protected and the buyer is protected,” she says. “I feel like eBay works because people respect the platform.”  

But it’s not the only reason. Functions like eBay’s pricing indicator tool help sellers determine the best price, based on what similar items have sold for recently. It takes out much of the guesswork and research often involved in pricing items. 

For Millie, eBay’s tools help her sell and move her items quickly. That, and having a keen eye for what it is that users are searching for on the site. “I think that heaps of people have an interest in Australian brands,” she says, referring to brands like Oroton, Scanlan Theodore and Zimmermann. “I feel like they never lose that much value from season to season.” 

It’s not just designer brands that move through the platform though. High street labels and unbranded vintage pieces are also in demand, meaning there’s a window of opportunity for any Australians who want to adopt a similar, circular approach to their wardrobe. It’s that easy, Millie says. “I can’t believe so many people don’t do it.”

When it comes to peddling your pre-loved items, Millie suggests being honest about the condition of each garment and including lots of photos. “I would tell people to be realistic about it being pre-loved,” she says. “I’m really impatient, so I often mark things down by quite a bit just to try and clear [an item], but I’ll justify it by cost-per-wear.” Millie says that if she’s worn a dress a few times and earns money back by selling it on eBay, “That to me is a win”. 

eBay is not endorsed by or affiliated with any of the brands referenced in this article.

To start setting up your circular wardrobe, head to eBay.

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