Best Sites To Sell Your Wedding Dress On
by Saeed – Last Updated May 18, 2018
Where can I sell my wedding dress?
Best places/stores/consignment shops that buy wedding dresses near me.
If youve ever wondered about that, youre not alone.
Your wedding dress is something that you only wear once on your big day.
After your wedding day, it gets left in your closet where its essentially forgotten about.
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So, selling a used wedding dress is on the mind of many brides who already had their big day.
According to The Knot 2015 Real Weddings Study, the average cost of a wedding dress in 2015 was $1469.
Thats a lot of money for a couple who just spent $20,000-$40,000 for their big day.
Thankfully, there are some easy ways you can resell your dress and apply the cash towards your new life.
Although you can sell your gown locally , today were going to show you a few sites you can use to sell your dress for the most money online.
There are tons of websites that will pay you for your old dress as long as its in decent condition, and since they only tend to be worn once, most wedding dresses are.
So, here are
How To Sell Your Wedding Dress Online
I got married in a beautiful Alfred Angelo gown in 2013.
I loved my dress, but my new husband and I lived in a small apartment, and the dress took up half of our closet space.
We also needed some extra cash to start building our new life together, so I made what some people saw as a drastic decision: I decided to sell my wedding dress just six months after getting married.
Plenty of people told me it was bad luck to sell my wedding dress, but Im not superstitious. Im very practically focused, and the need for extra storage space and extra money won over any concerns that other people raised.
If youre like me and thinking of selling your gown, you have options. Heres how I did it and how much I netted.
Best Month To Sell Your Used Wedding Dress
Everyone knows that the most popular time of year for engagements is, of course, the holidays. But a little known fact is that most brides will begin shopping right away, or within 3-4 months of getting engaged. So, that means if you want to be successful selling your wedding dress the best time to get it listed is January!
Listing your wedding dress in January ensures that newly engaged Brides will be trying on the gown you purchased in the boutique and searching for it online at a better price. Which means they will be looking for the gown you have for sale! A win-win!
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Things To Consider Before Selling Your Wedding Dress
Often when brides ask us about selling a wedding dress, it’s because they’ve found a dress they love that’s outside of their budget, and they’re considering spending a little extra in the hope of making some of the money back after the wedding. It’s a good plan, in theory, but there are a few factors to bear in mind before you hand over that credit card.
- The kind of wedding dress you’ve got in mind – is it a popular style and size?
- The style of wedding you’re having – is the dress likely to be in good condition after the wedding? This is particularly important if you’re having your ceremony in a forest, taking your portraits on a beach etc.
- Your plans for immediately after the wedding – is there time to get the dress dry cleaned and put it up for sale? Many’s the bride who tossed her dress in a bag as she headed off on honeymoon, only to forget all about it upon return!
- How motivated you are to sell your wedding dress – are you an organisational marvel? Or the kind of person who tends to shove problems in the cupboard and hope they’ll go away
Before you buy an over-budget dress with the idea of selling it after the wedding, ask yourself if you afford to buy the dress if you don’t sell it afterwards? Things happen, red wine spills, dresses tear, dry cleaners mess up, dresses fail to sell. If, for whatever reason, you can’t sell your dress, can you take the hit for the full cost?
Photo by IG Studio via One Fab Day
How To Sell My Wedding Dress Online
We would like to say there is an exact science to selling your wedding dress online. But the truth is each and every dress is unique.
We have stories from Brides that their wedding dress sold within a few days and some that took months, or even a year. It all boils down to when you sell it, how you price it, and if it is a popular style that Brides are searching for now.
Think about it this way. If you got married 15 years ago and are now considering selling your wedding dress, you may not have as much luck as someone that is selling a dress from the most current wedding dress collections. Styles and trends come and go, so older wedding gowns may not sell too fast, where newer styles are in higher demand.
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Be Patient And Adjust Pricing If Needed
It can take anywhere from a few weeks to a year to sell a used wedding dress online. If its been a month or two and you havent received any interest, you might consider lowering the price, adding new photos or adding more information to the listing. If your dress doesnt sell in a reasonable time frame , you can always take down your listing and keep your dress.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, some of which may be sponsored by paying vendors.
Kim Forrest
Kim Forrest has been writing about weddings for over a decade, specializing in etiquette and… planning advice. Kim writes and edits much of the content youll read on WeddingWire, and also manages our team of freelance writers. Kims love of the wedding space first blossomed when she was an assistant editor at Washingtonian magazine in the mid-2000s . She became WeddingWires first full-time editor in 2012. Kim is originally from Long Island, New York and currently lives in Bethesda, Maryland with her husband and two children. She loves baking, yoga, ballet, theater, trying out the latest skincare fads, and listening to podcasts on a variety of random topics.
Local Wedding Consignment Shops
If you want to sell your wedding dress locally, the best option is a wedding dress consignment shop.
Since these shops specifically focus on selling wedding-related items like wedding gowns, accessories, and shoes, this is your best chance for getting your dress in front of local buyers looking specifically for a wedding dress.
One of the big downsides of local wedding dress consignment shops is that they charge fairly steep fees for helping you sell your wedding dress, similar to some sites on this list.
Many shops charge a commission rate in the range of 40% to 60% of the final sale price of the dress.
Related: How to Start an Online Thrift Store or Consignment Shop
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Other Resources You Could Check Include:
- Wedding Bee a forum focused on the wedding industry. This link leads you to a section where people buy and sell used or never-worn wedding dresses.
- Tradesy A general online marketplace for designer clothing and other goods. There are no up-selling fees here, but youd have to pay 19.8% commission.
Sell It As Soon As Possible
You know how volatile fashion is. A design that is trendy and stylish today, may seem dated in a years time. Wedding dresses are no exception. There are very few designs that are timeless, and will always be sought after. So, once you decide to sell your gown, it only makes sense to do so as early as is possible. The Green Bride Guide mentions that used gowns will have a good resale value for up to 2 to 3 years, after which their worth starts dwindling.
This means that you shouldnt leave it lying around in your closet for too long after your wedding, if you wish to get a good price off it. If you sell it within the first year itself, you can recoup most of the money you spent. Remember that selling off a gown when the style is still current means you will have more buyers looking at it, and this will potentially improve your chances of getting a good price. However, if you have a dress from the 80s or 90s to be sold, dont hesitate to do so. These are considered vintage and in great demand by brides who choose vintage wedding themes. Just spend some time to research the details, and you can decide on the price accordingly.
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The 5 Best Places To Sell Your Wedding Dress Online
If youre worried that your wedding dress is going to sit at the back of your closet and collect dust after the big day, why not consider selling it? If you have no intention of saving it for your daughter, altering it so that its more wearable, or framing it in your home like Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Adrienne Maloof, then chances are youll probably never take your gown off its hanger again. When it comes to selling your dress, the easiest, and most popular choice is online. There are many websites that make selling gently-used clothing a breeze and some even specialize in bridal. Flip through the slides below to discover the five best places to sell your wedding dress online and get a few essential tips on how to create a great listing that will entice possible buyers.
How Long Does It Usually Take To Sell A Wedding Dress
If you own a wedding dress, you know from experience that the sales cycle for buying a wedding dress is much longer than buying a pair of shoes or jeans. It is often a once in a lifetime investment that buyers want to ensure they get right.
Because of this, it can take a while to sell a dress. According to Pre-Owned Wedding Dresses, the average time a dress is listed on their site is 70 days.
If time is important to you, there are things you can do to accelerate the process. Setting the price of your dress lower than the competition could speed things up. You could even advertise your dress on multiple platforms, assuming the terms and conditions of the sites you use allow this.
If your dress is from a designer brand, it may sell faster assuming you have priced it well. Additionally, dresses that are in a popular style and a common size may take less time to sell than ones that are more niche.
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Give A Detailed Description
Make sure the description which accompanies the photos of your wedding dress is as detailed and thorough as possible.
Give the correct measurements , and make sure you name the designer, the dress number or style, the fabrics and describe any details. You will also want to mention how many times your wedding dress has been worn, dry cleaning instructions , and whether there are any marks or stains on it.
Know How To Price Your Gown
Setting a price is more of an art than a science. But there are some basic rules of thumb you need to know.
If your wedding dress is less than three years old, you can sell it for around 50% off its original price a bit more if the gown is from a well-known designer, such as Vera Wang or Monique Lhuillier.
The style of the gown can also be a big factor. If your dress is in a classic style thats sought after, it can still fetch around 50% of its price even if its older than three years old.
If a dress has never been worn, you can expect to sell it for around 80% to 90% of its original value, provided it remains pristine.
Include any fees you expect to pay, such as cleaning fees, listing fees, commissions, and other fees, in your computation.
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How To Sell Your Used Wedding Dress Online In 8 Easy Steps
Want to sell your used wedding dress after the big day? Heres an easy-to-follow guide to selling your gown online.
You fell in love with your wedding dress and wore it on your best day ever. Now that the big days over, you loathe the idea of letting your dream gown collect dust in your closetand the prospect of selling your used wedding dress sounds pretty appealing. Not only can you earn back some cash, your dress will get a second life. The process of selling your wedding dress online might seem a bit daunting, but by following a few simple steps, you can give your gown a better chance of selling quickly.
Best Places To Sell A Wedding Dress Online
Selling your dress online typically involves listing it on a clothing or wedding website and then shipping it to a buyer anywhere in the country. Going the online route gives you access to a nationwide audience, and many platforms have features that simplify the selling process. If you are looking to make money fast, this might be your best option.
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Best Places To Sell A Wedding Dress Online And Locally
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Wedding dresses are often the most expensive item of clothing many people ever buy. And why not? Brides want to look their best on their wedding day.
Wedding dresses often hold immense sentimental value. However, their high worth also means they are a popular item to sell when people want to earn some extra cash.
What you may not know is that there is a substantial market for used wedding dresses, and they hold their value remarkably well often selling for up to 60% of their retail price.
The biggest choice to make when selling a dress is whether to sell online or locally. Each option has pros and cons.
Here is our list of the best places to sell wedding dresses online and locally.
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