Your Buying/Reselling Dreams Come True

So you’ve downloaded Depop. Whether it’s because you got fed up with Poshmark’s clunky interface, or you got tired of unreliable Instagram buy & sell pages, you eventually took the plunge down the teenage thrifter’s tunnel.

With an explore page filled with avante–garde pieces and a search engine that will literally scour every listing for your word search, you wonder: “How am I ever supposed to find what I’m looking for?”

Surely a Beginner’s Guide to Depop would be helpful.

Well my friend, you’ve come to the right place. As a fashion enthusiast who enjoys giving a second home to another’s tired pieces, Depop has become an addiction like no other.

Although Depop can be intimidating at first, it takes only a couple tips before you are navigating your way through grandma’s overpriced vintage mules and past someone’s cheap Forever 21 clearance finds and into the land of Bongo jeans and Liz Claiborne sweaters.

Size It Up (not your competition, your clothes)

Looking for a certain size of something? Depop’s search filters won’t be of much luck. Because a lot of items listed on Depop are vintage pieces, the sizing of these pieces will be different from what is expected in modern sizing.

Not only this, but sellers tend to not include a size to begin with, since different buyers are looking for different fits of items. What could be an oversized sweater for one buyer, might be a perfect fit for another, so some sellers prefer to not include a size in order to appeal to more buyers.

Sizing for pants and skirts is another issue entirely, since sizing differs by brand regardless if it’s a vintage or modern piece. More often than not, sellers will list an item based on the measurements that they take.

It’s common for a seller to list the waist, hip, rise, and inseam measurements for a pair of jeans, but the way in which they measure also matters. I know, I know, it never really gets easier. Ask the seller if they measure the waist with the jeans lying down or while they’re held taut- trust me, it matters.

And while you’re at it, make sure to take your own measurements instead of guessing you’re a certain size. Better yet, find your fav pair of jeans in the entire world and look up the size chart for that brand to skip the whole measuring process in the first place.

Curating the ~Perfect~ Search

So you’re looking for a sweater, no preference for color, brand, fabric, etc. just a plain old sweater, any sweater really.

With thousands of listings coming up with a simple search for a sweater (717,937 to be exact), how is one ever supposed to get through them all?

Here’s my advice, go onto Depop with a look in mind. If you find a sweater that you like but the price isn’t quite right, refine your search to include similar adjectives as that listing. If you find a sweater that’s your size but not quite your style, or your style but not quite your size, browse through other listings by that same account and see if they offer other listings more accurate to what you’re looking for.

Some accounts act as a boutique in that there is a seller behind the scenes who’s thrifting all these pieces and reselling them for a markup: but they try to brand their pieces under a specific style of clothing.

Other accounts act as an individual trying to get rid of some old pieces, in which they are selling items from their own wardrobe, and all of a similar size.

At the end of the day, try to prioritize something while you are searching for any particular item, and you are more likely to find other things that fit what you’re looking for.

Welcome to the Negotiating Gang

So if you’re anything like me, not only are you shopping on Depop for the sustainability factor, you’re shopping on Depop for the cheaper price factor.

That is, until you stumble upon the sellers who thrifted one pair of Levi jeans and took it as their claim to fame to mark up their prices 300%. You and I are both rolling our eyes.

Besides those stingy sellers who are keen on selling their items for the prices they’re listed, everyone else is pretty flexible.

That being said, it’s best to approach a negotiation with caution, because lowballing on Depop is a big fat no-go. Lowball your first offer and the seller is bound not to even give you a courteous reply.

My advice? Start a direct message to the seller and compliment the item or item-s you’re interested in purchasing.

My classic phrase is a:

“Hi! I absolutely love this piece.”

Then, figure out a valid price that isn’t undermining the current price.

• If it’s a single item, do the math and ask for 10-15% off the current price.
• If it’s a bundle you’re looking to do, sellers are happy to be getting rid of more of their stuff in the first place, and will be more than willing to give you 20-25%, maybe even 30% off.

Follow your first message with a:

“Would you be willing to do $__ shipped?”

As it’s taking into account the shipping charges and making sure you and the seller are on the same page for what the final price will be.

Your Online-Shopping Endgame

At the end of the day, Depop will change your entire online-shopping life.

Don’t believe me? Before long, you’ll be closing your eyes ready to go to bed and all of a sudden you’ll have an itch to check Depop for new listings.

Several hours later and too many items added to your bag, you’ll forget how you ever lived without it.