A wedding is an expensive enterprise. Expenses run into thousands of dollars and, in most cases, the wedding dress can be one of the most pricey details. For most women, the decision of what gown to wear is an emotional one, and hence it is laden with significance. However, after that special day, your wedding dress may just hang in your closet, gathering dust with nothing left to use it for. So, why not make the most out of your dress by selling it and earning some of that money back in your pocket?
In this guide, we’ll take a look at some of the best places to sell a wedding dress so you can sell your used dress and make some money!
Options for Selling a Wedding Dress
Weddings are expensive, so being able to earn a bit of that income back by selling your wedding dress can be highly beneficial. The selling process is actually quite seamless. There are quite a couple of options to explore if you’re looking to sell your wedding dress quickly. The first is consignment stores. Consignment shops sell used wedding dresses to potential buyers. Sellers pay a flat rate to have the wedding gowns put up. Eventually, when the dress sells, the owner gets the dress selling price. Furthermore, you can sell a gown locally or online.
Selling wedding dresses online is the easiest way to dispose of them and get paid handsomely. You can sell on platforms such as Wedding Bee. For some of them, you can also sell or buy wedding-related items like engagement rings. Selling online will mean that you would have to ship the dress with the appropriate shipping labels. To sell a wedding dress locally (still online, but to people within your area), you use traditional online shops such as eBay and Facebook marketplace.
Best Places to Sell A Wedding Dress
Selling your wedding dress online has some advantages over local wedding consignment shops. For one, it broadens the scope of options you have. It can also make the process of finding the best deal and getting your dress shipped out a little more transparent and simple.
When you are looking to sell a wedding dress on any of these platforms, including any that dubs itself the largest online bridal marketplace, you are sure to not run out of customers. There is also the ease that comes with selling a wedding dress online. However, before you settle on any platform, you need to pay attention to a few important details. Some of these include whether the platform has a strong social media presence, the amount of commission fees it charges, and so on. In any case, if you are looking to sell a wedding dress online, below are a few top places to check out.
Nearly Newlywed
Making it to the top of our list is Nearly Newlywed. Nearly Newlywed is a fantastic option because it does all the work for you. First, you need to pay the listing fee and fill a form with the particulars of the dress, including your preferred listing price. The platform takes it up from there. When they sell the wedding gowns, you get a notification and then ship the dress to them for onward movement to the buyer. The selling fee on this platform may be a little on the high side, and it does not sell wedding accessories or other wedding items. However, the fact that Nearly Newlywed handles the entire process for you is a great attraction.
Click Here To Get StartedStill White
Still White is an oldie in the industry. It is even considered to be the largest online bridal marketplace globally. So if you are looking to sell your preowned wedding gown, this platform is the best.
Still White offers two plans for sellers looking to use its platform. The first is the standard plan, where you pay a one-time listing fee of $20 and get to upload six wedding dress photos. The other is premium listing, and you have to pay a premium listing fee of $30. This plan gives you the option of leaving your wedding gown on the list till it gets sold. You will also be able to put up eight photos or a video of the gown on the homepage gallery for 7 days. The great thing with Still White is that it doesn’t charge you commissions apart from the plan that you pay for initially.
Click Here To Get StartedSmartBride Boutique
SmartBride Boutique is a classified ads site where people buy and sell wedding dresses and other wedding accessories. This includes wedding decorations and other wedding-related items. You need to set up an account to use the platform. However, except you are looking to upgrade from the basic to a premium plan, you will not have to pay any commissions or listing fees while selling your wedding dress using the platform. The premium account comes with features that increase visibility for the secondhand wedding dresses you want to sell.
Click Here To Get StartedWedding Bee
Wedding Bee is a one-stop-shop for everything related to selling used wedding dresses. It is a wedding blog where you can find information regarding various topics, including the best places to have your ceremony, prices for other wedding-related items, etc. Selling a secondhand wedding dress on the platform is quite easy and cheap. You do not pay for anything, except when you are looking to boost your ad. Thus, Wedding Bee only uses basic listing.
Click Here To Get StartedWedding Recycle
Wedding Recycle does not require you to pay a one-time fee as many platforms do. It also does not allow you to sell support products. Thus, since it does not charge any listing fee, it takes a 4% commission if you sell wedding dresses using its platform. Do not still forget that you will have to take care of the entire process yourself.
Click Here To Get StartedeBay
eBay is one of the best options for selling locally. Selling your wedding dress locally means that you will be selling to people within your immediate vicinity. This eliminates the need to ship the dress or pay for shipment. Selling your wedding dress locally also means that you most likely will be selling either to people you know or people you can easily identify. Thus, if there is any security challenge, you can easily sort that out.
eBay is a platform for selling almost anything, including used wedding dresses. You need to pay to use the platform, but not in the form of a listing fee. Instead, eBay requires a 10% valuation of the retail price of the used gown you want to sell. This might seem a little higher than what you’ll get on other platforms. However, the benefit of eBay is that you have the advantage of using an existing brand name to sell your product. Based on eBay’s reputation, you could be selling your wedding gown immediately after you put it up.
Click Here To Get StartedFacebook Marketplace
This is also another great option for selling your wedding dress locally. Facebook Marketplace is a great option because you most likely will find a buyer for the wedding gown, even though it may take you longer. However, the great thing is that you will not have to pay a one-time fee or even a commission. If you are looking to sell a used dress, Facebook Marketplace is a great option.
Click Here To Get StartedTips to Note About Selling Wedding Dresses Online
Apart from deciding on the online space to sell your used wedding gown, there are a couple of things you may want to pay attention to. We will discuss them in detail below.
Sell as Soon as Possible
It is always advisable to sell the wedding gown soon after your wedding. Generally, your wedding gown will still be quite valuable two or three years after you’ve used it. This is especially if it is from a designer brand. However, you must not forget that fashion is always changing. What you find appealing today might not be appealing in a few years. Thus, you will most likely be able to connect with potential buyers just a few years after your wedding, when the dress will is still considered fashionable. Do not forget that even designer clothing goes out of fashion. The earlier you put up the dress for sale, the better for you.
Be Fair with Your Price
A wedding dress is one of the most important decisions every bride makes. So, if they are looking to wear an old wedding dress on their wedding day, they honestly are looking for a fair bargain. Basically, you need to put yourself in the shoes of the bride when coming up with your final sale price. Also, you may want to check out what second-hand wedding dresses are sold for in the market. You do not want to put your price way out of what is generally accepted. But, again, even though it is a used gown, selling it for a pittance does you no favors too. In summary, when deciding on your final sale price, try to strike a balance between setting competitive prices and being fair to your potential buyers.
Set Up Correctly
Part of the selling process involves setting up the dresses correctly. This is not just to help you sell the dress as soon as possible, but it can also aid the buyer’s decision-making process. Thus, ideally, you should take up to four photos or more of the dress. The photos should cover the different angles of the dress. Furthermore, provide all of the information related to the dress. This includes the design, color, fittings, etc. Finally, if there have been any amendments to the dress, do not forget to include that. This is just one way to make sure you are sincere and upfront. Beyond that, anyway, you will be making the job of the buyer a lot easier.
Clean the Dress
You may want to get the dress professionally cleaned before you put it up for sale. In the first place, this communicates thoughtfulness to the buyer. People looking to buy wedding dresses will definitely be impressed by the thought and care your efforts at professionally cleaning the gown will exhibit. Beyond that, getting the used dress professionally cleaned also increases the possibility of a sale.
Conclusion: Selling Your Wedding Dress
If you are wondering what you could do with your wedding dress, here’s one suggestion: sell it. To do this, you could use any of the online sites discussed above. Some of the sites above give free stuff to incentivize buyers. More so, they are reputable, meaning that they can serve as a reliable middle man between the buyer and you. Two things you must note, though. The first is that you really want to sell. If you are still nursing the thoughts of gifting the dress to someone, your daughter, for example, then hold off from selling. Also, learn as much you can from the process. Before you choose any site, consider how long they’ve been around, the number and quality of dresses sold, listing fees, and listing price, amongst others. As soon as you’ve sorted that out, then you are good to go and sell your wedding dress!
