When you think of Depop, chances are you think about somebody selling a boys t-shirt dubbed “baby tee” for $60. Or maybe a Carhartt jacket that looks like it was found buried in the mines for $400. These are things you will run into on the site. However, it’s a great way to make some money on the side. I have been selling for about 4 years, and I’ve sold over 180 pieces. The hardest part of it all is taking the photos and creating the listings, and dropping it at the post office. There are definitely worse side hustles out there. So, how do you get started?
1. Download Depop and Make An Account
This step is super easy. You just need an email and a username. For the username, you can be creative (always encouraged) or just use your name. You’ll also need to link a bank account so you can get paid.Â
2. Determine Which Clothes You Want To Sell
I started out just selling clothes I didn’t wear anymore. Nothing is off-limits. There’s always a buyer out there. However, I don’t list anything for less than about $10, because the effort put into selling the item isn’t worth less than that. You also have to keep in mind what is trending, so that it can sell quickly. In the past couple of years, I started going to the Goodwill outlet, where the clothes are only $1.69 a pound. I try to be semi-ethical and not go just to immediately resell. I look for myself, friends, and family. Anything that doesn’t fit or they don’t want, I usually list it.Â
3. Posting The Items
This is the most intricate and time-consuming part. Making the photos look good so that people will click on them and any articles will recommend you edit all the photos to have the same background, usually white. From my experience, this doesn’t sell items any faster. All you have to do is make sure the lighting is good and the piece of clothing fills up the square. I usually lay my photos on the floor and shine a lamp on them, and then edit the brightness afterwards. I also highly recommend adding measurements to each listing, otherwise you’ll have to answer a bunch of messages about it later on. Many people appreciate try-on photos as well. The last part is making a good caption. Short and sweet with relevant hashtags is the way to go.Â
4. Selling An Item
Being prepared before an item sells will save you a lot of stress. I recommend buying some plastic poly mailers to ship the clothes in. I’ve found that 12×15’’ is the best size to get, as it fits most pieces of clothing. For shoes, you’ll want a box. This can be an old shoe box, or any box that fits shoes. I’ve used a cereal box before. After the piece is all packed, you’ve got the label. For the longest time, I would print out the label with my printer and then tape it to the bag/box. Turns out, you don’t need to waste time and ink by doing that. Depop uses USPS to ship. So if you go there and scan the QR code for the label, they can print it out for you and slap it on. Then you just scan that and send it off. Â
5. Rake In That Dough
After all that, you just watch as your Depop balance grows, and it gets deposited to your account once the package is delivered to the buyer. It won’t be enough to live off of. But it’s nice to have some extra cash in your account for relatively little effort.Â