This company will pay you to clean out your closet
Did you know: over 50% of the average woman’s wardrobe goes unused? It’s not that outrageous to imagine if you really think about it, though. You’ve probably spent countless occasions leaning on your closet’s doorframe, huffing and puffing strands out of your face as you dig through clothes you haven’t worn in years – just to get dressed in the morning. It’s probably time for a purge.
But, doesn’t the thought of lugging bins and bags full of practically brand new clothes (hey, they could still be worth something) down to the dumpster sound tedious and wasteful?
Luckily, there’s a new service in London that knows this and is providing the perfect solution. The company is called Stytch and will do all the work for you, turning your clothes, shoes and accessories into cold hard cash. But, don’t worry your pretty green thumb. The company ensures the clothing are put to good use, promoting sustainability, by reducing the thousands of tonnes of clothing that would otherwise end up in landfills.
We sat down to chat with Stytch Founder Angus Hague to talk more about his new business – over coffee, of course. As it turns out, he is a huge coffee fan (which means he can absolutely be trusted with your hand-me-downs). We at YCB strongly believe that you can tell a lot about someone by his or her coffee order. His go-to caffeine cocktail? The flat white. And, even better: you can find him frequenting London’s independent coffee shops in his spare time (when he’s able to find it) with TAP coffee as one of his favourites.
“Since leaving university, I always wanted to set up my own business,” Hague said. “After talking things through with a number of friends, it became clear that a common problem was that they all had too many clothes, many still new or hardly worn.
But, they didn’t want to go through with the effort of listing on eBay or giving their clothes away to charity for free. In addition they also wanted to keep buying more clothes in order to keep up with the trends! With Stytch I aim to help fix both issues.”
Are you nodding your head, saying, “yes, yes, yes, exactly” while reading this? Because that’s what I was doing.
Stytch’s goal is to create a selling process that is as easy and frictionless as possible, allowing the customer to earn a little income and make some space in their wardrobe, while also being able to shop fantastic new and like-new pieces on trend at great prices. Hague said he intends to create an environment that feels more Net-A-Porter than Oxfam.
How it Works
It’s simple; that’s what we like most. First, you’ll order a free selling kit or print a pre-paid postage label from Stytch’s website. Choose the new or like-new items you want to sell and be sure they are freshly washed with no stains (or else they won’t be accepted). After that, package your items and post them to Stytch (postage bags and labels will be pre-addressed as well).
Then, the Stytch fashion team will authenticate your items, check for quality and send you an offer. After you accept the offer, you will be paid instantly, straight to your Bank Account, PayPal or in Store Credit account (to shop Stytch’s racks and shelves of newly submitted garments).
Lastly, the final phase involves the Stytch team steaming the clothes before listing it for sale, taking photographs, measurements and the actual publishing of the items for sale on the site at up to 90% off retail prices.
Any brands or items that Stytch is unable to accept, the company will donate to charity or post all of your items back to you for a small postage fee.
That seems fair enough. Now, about the cash…because I know that’s what you’re most interested in (that and saving the planet, but be patient, we’re getting there).
Pricing and Payment
When a customer is given an offer for their items submitted, the customer will receive it as a quote for the entire package of items as a whole. There is a difference in the amount you can receive if you do choose to receive store credit instead of cash. You can receive 20% extra if you choose to place the offer into your Stytch store account instead of accepting through PayPal or direct deposit to your bank account.
In order for sellers to maximise their earnings, Stytch has put a few standards in place. In addition to being clean and stain-free, items must be less than five years old and in season with no tears or rips – they should be pieces that you’d be happy to give to a friend.
“And lastly items must be from our approved brands list (we are currently working on which brands to include). Any items that we are unfortunately unable to accept we will donate to charity or if the customer declines their offer for a small shipping fee we can send all of their items back to them.”
Stytch’s in-house fashion team are the ones who decide how much each item is worth, basing the number on fashion trends of the time (popularity), brand and the previous selling prices of the same items in the store. In addition, Stytch will pay customers a premium price for clothes with tags still on them, and of course, in fantastic condition.
Helping the Environment
“Certainly, one of the main reasons for working in the second-hand clothes industry is to promote sustainability within fashion,” Hague explained. “Each year, thousands of tonnes of clothing end up in landfills, but whilst some of this may be due to wear and tear, there are often many good clothes that are new or like-new that go to waste. “
Hague aims to keep these new or like-new clothes in circulation through Stytch’s service. In addition, Hague is dedicated to reducing the amount of water used in the clothing industry, lessoning the negative environmental impact.
“It takes 2500 litres of water to produce an item of clothing, so by reusing new or like-new items, we are helping to reduce the need for new clothes and so reducing the amount of water used in production,” said Hague.
Top Items to Trade
Stytch will be able to pay a higher price for items in high demand. And, you want as much money back in your pocket as possible, right? In terms of what is always in high demand, Hague reveals that research proves bags are always on people’s wish lists so be sure to include those in the items you submit.
Stay in Touch
Stytch is currently still in development, anticipating a full-fledge launch very soon. To be the first to know when its online store doors open, sign up for their newsletter, follow Stytch on Twitter and connect with them on Facebook.
