Frequently Asked Questions
IS IT FREE TO SHOP AT PRELOVED THREADS?
Yes! We do not charge a fee to shop during public sale days. With our new location inside the Showplex at the Just Between Friends (JBF) Sale, you do need to enter the JBF Sale first to find us. They offer free downloadable tickets and we will link them on our website homepage and Facebook page as well. Simply show the ticket on your phone to the staff at the door and you are in! We do offer early shopping at the PreSales which is $5 per ticket.
CAN WE TRY ON CLOTHES AT THE SALE?
Yes! There are dressing rooms at the sale. However, often get long lines encourage shoppers to wear a tank top or tighter fitting shirt and even leggings to try on items over the top if they do not want to wait for a dressing room.
WHAT HAPPENS TO EVERYTHING THAT DOESN’T SELL?
Two things happen to all of the unsold items once the sale ends on Sunday. We spend several hours resorting items by consignor number and consignors come back to the sale to pick-up any items they decided to keep that didn’t sell. Any items that consignors do not want back or to pick-up get marked for donation. We bring donations to a charity partner after the sale. We have donated to St. Francis House in Puyallup since our sale’s inception. It’s awesome that consignors are also helping out the community by participating in a Preloved Threads Sale.
WHAT KIND OF PERCENTAGES CAN WE EARN BY CONSIGNING?
Many physical consignment shops have a 40/60 split, but we have a 60/40 split. This means, you keep 60% of the sale price of your items. If you also volunteer at the sale, you can earn 65%, 70% or even 75% depending on the total number of hours you volunteer.
WHAT IS THE CONSIGNOR FEE?
The consignor fee is charged to each consignor when they register for a sale. The consignor fee goes toward helping to bridge the gap in rising venue and rental costs, software for registering and tagging, advertising costs to promote the sale, and other costs like equipment (racks, tables, registers, etc.). The consignor fee is non-refundable. If you change your mind about consigning, you will not receive a refund of your fee. Currently the consignor fee is $20 per consignor account (not per person, but per account. If you have more than one account, you will be charged a consignor fee for each one).
WHY DO WE HAVE TO PAY THE CONSIGNOR FEE UP FRONT?
There are many up-front costs for preparing and operating the sale including software subscriptions, venue rent, advertising, and more. The consignor fees help pay some of those up-front costs, whereas the consignor percentage we retain pays for the remaining costs and expenses between sales. Additionally, it is really important for planning to have a commitment from those who plan to consign. Folks sign up to consign with the best of intentions, and sometimes find they don’t have time to participate after all. This makes it difficult to know how many items we must make space for, what size the venue or floor space needs to be, and how many total number of consignors we can accept. It also takes spots that others could be signing up for. Those paying a fee up front are less likely to no show. Plus, we pay fees for equipment and software based on total number of consignors, so if you cancel we are not able to get those fees back.
DO WE HAVE TO VOLUNTEER TO PARTICIPATE?
No, you do not have to volunteer at the sale, but you can earn a higher percentage if you do! View the consignor/volunteer earning details here. However, if you are choosing to pick up your unsold items at the end of the sale and have consigned over 150 items in total, you are required volunteer for one tear-down/sorting shift at end of sale. Sorting items after the sale ends is most time-consuming part of sale and the more items longer it takes.
CAN I SEND SOMEONE IN MY PLACE TO DROP OFF/PICK UP/SHOP?
Yes, if you cannot personally make it to drop-off or pick-up, it is OK to have someone do it for you. At pick-up, they must know your consignor number. If you are unable to or don’t want to shop the presales, you can also give your “spot” to someone else who will need to give your name and consignor number at the door!
DO YOU OFFER REFUNDS/RETURNS?
All sales at Preloved Threads are final. We do not offer refunds or exchanges once purchase is made. We highly encourage shoppers look of items they intend to buy before getting to the registers. Unfortunately, sometimes we miss small stain or tear during inspections, but we want to make sure you don’t purchase them either! If you notice item is damaged after you get home, we encourage you to reach out to us by bringing it back to the sale to discuss or email us at admin@prelovedthreads.com before the sale ends. We will investigate these on a case-by-case basis. Once the sale is over, however, we cannot provide any monetary refunds as all payments are made and the sale is officially closed.
ARE THERE ANY LIMITS TO HOW MANY ITEMS YOU CAN SELL?
Due to space constraints, we do limit hanging items to 150 items and a total of 200 items are allowed. If you are bringing more than 150 items in total and are picking up unsold items instead of donating them, you are required to volunteer for one tear-down/sorting shift at the end of the sale. Sorting items after the sale ends is the most time consuming part of the sale and the more items there are the longer it takes. If we must sort a large amount of your unsold items, we require you to help.
WHAT HAPPENS OF MISSING AN ITEM THAT DOES NOT SHOW UP AS SOLD ON MY REPORT?
We try very hard to ensure your items are safe and secure while at the sale. There are times (maybe 5-10 items we are told about out of 13,000 items per sale) that unsold item does not make back to its owner. This could result of being misplaced, a volunteer accidentally sorting it under another consignor number that is very similar, being stolen (very, very rare), or other possibilities. When selling with us, you do take the risk that could happen. Please be sure to read your consignor agreement carefully to understand the risks you are agreeing to. We work very hard ensure nothing happens to your unsold items, but it occasionally does. We also do everything to investigate any reports of missing items. Sometimes we are able to reunite with their owner due to simple mistakes like consignors taking home by accident, etc. If you have a missing item, you must email admin@prelovedthreads.com within one week after the sale ends for us to investigate.
DOES PRELOVED THREADS HAVE AN ACTUAL STORE?
No, we do not have a physical location year-round. We only operate as a pop-up sale, usually twice a year.
DO YOU HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS WE DIDN’T ANSWER HERE? EMAIL US AT ADMIN@PRELOVEDTHREADS.COM OR JOIN THE CONVERSATION IN OUR PRELOVED THREADS FACEBOOK GROUP!