A full-time eBay reseller who spent no money upfront explains how to start on a budget — and 2 worthwhile purchases for any reseller
Courtesy of Kendall VanGilder
- Kendall VanGilder turned her eBay side hustle into a full-time business in 2024.
- When she started reselling clothing in 2022, she avoided startup costs completely.
- She's made several strategic purchases that have helped her grow her business, including LED lights.
Reselling items like clothing and electronics is an effective way to earn extra cash. It could even replace your full-time income.
Kendall VanGilder, who started listing apparel on eBay in 2022, turned the side hustle into a full-time business in 2024.
"I have had months where I've exceeded what I've made from my previous job," the former Lululemon employee told Business Insider.
The majority of her income comes from her eBay store, Style Secondhand, but she also sells on Poshmark and makes money as a content creator. She's amassed more than 15,000 followers on TikTok, where she shares her thrifted finds and reselling tips.
VanGilder said she prefers to schedule her day "like a corporate job," and works on her business between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. most weekdays. But in the early days of her reselling career, "I was the most part-time that you could be. I was maybe listing five things a week. I was not consistent and lacked a little bit of motivation, just because I was working a full-time job."
Her side hustle wasn't a time suck, nor did it cost her any money to get up and running.
"I was taking photos on my iPhone, I used natural sunlight, and you can list everything from your phone, so you don't even need to have a desk setup," said VanGilder. As for inventory, "you can go into your closet or other places throughout your house and list things, and as long as you're making money on what you're listing, then you can take that money and reinvest it."
Courtesy of Kendall VanGilder
The first item VanGilder sold was a pair of Urban Outfitters shorts for about $13. While she still occasionally sells items from her own closet, she picks up most of her inventory from Goodwill, The Salvation Army, Plato's Closet, Uptown Cheapskate, and Style Encore.
"You can really make it so that you don't have any startup costs," said VanGilder, who also took advantage of free shipping supplies from USPS.
Worthwhile purchases for a reseller: LED lights and a thermal printer
VanGilder says two business-related purchases have been completely worth the money: LED lights and a thermal printer.
Before she purchased lights, she was limited to when she could take pictures of her items.
"I couldn't really photograph on days that were dreary," she said. "It was maybe $110, which is a lot but not the fanciest lights you can get. It helped that roadblock that I would hit when it was a rainy day, and I wanted to work on my photos, but I couldn't because I didn't have the sunlight."
Courtesy of Kendall VanGilder
Photos are a key component of any strong listing, said VanGilder, who prefers to photograph her items on a crisp, white background.
"Look at your listing as if you were a buyer: Would I want to buy that based on the photos and price?" she advised. "And if your answer is no, you need to figure out why."
Another item that's helped her buy back time as her business has grown is a thermal printer, which is designed for printing labels.
"Cutting and taping from a regular printer would become very time-consuming if I was still doing it that way," said VanGilder.