Clean your closet for cash and feel good doing it

By Megan Ebreo

Fast fashion has devastating environmental impacts and is one of the largest contributors to carbon emissions. While cute and trendy, fast fashion apparel comes at a high environmental expense. According to The Vancouver Sun, in Canada, that expense is approximately 500,000 tonnes of apparel waste annually.

Instead of discarding clothing thoughtlessly, consignments stories offer a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative. Consignment stores offer sellers compensation for the consignment of their pre-loved apparel items, which the store then resells for a small profit of their own. 

Consignment stores are becoming increasingly popular as consumers’ interests and priorities shift towards environmental awareness. If you want to clean out your closet while making some easy cash ethically, here is a list of great Toronto locations to consign clothing and accessories to.

Fashionably Yours

Fashionably Yours is a luxury consignment store located on Queen West that carries refurbished luxury goods from brands like Louis Vuitton, Celine, and Hermes. 

They offer several options when it comes to consigning items, including connecting by email or Instagram. Fashionably Yours is currently offering curbside drop-off, contactless local pick-up, and prepaid delivery. 

Pricing is based on factors like condition and demand while also undergoing appraisal by a consignment specialist. Consignment sellers usually receive around 50 to 70 per cent commission on items donated. The store accepts various types of pieces such as shoes, purses, outerwear, and sunglasses.  

VSP Consignment

VSP Consignment is an expertly curated designer consignment shop located on Dundas St. West in Toronto’s west-end. 

VSP is the largest-scale luxury resale company in the Canadian fashion market. It offers multiple consignment services such as drop off in-store, home pick-up, or mail-in services for out-of-province consignors for pieces like high-end purses, wallets, outerwear and bottoms.

VSP Consignment partnered with New Circles Community Services, a Toronto-based not-for-profit agency, to provide necessities to low-income communities. VSP Consignment donates items at the end of the season to GLOW (Gently Loved Outfits to Wear), the largest clothing bank in Toronto. 

I Miss You Vintage 

I Miss You Vintage is a vintage designer label resale boutique located on Ossington Ave. in the Queen West shopping district. 

The boutique accepts high-end designer goods such as clothing, purses, shoes, fine jewelry, scarves, and watches. Items are accepted on a seasonal basis, with spring and summer items bought from February to July and fall and winters purchased from August to January. 

The boutique also includes I Miss You MAN, a high-end men’s resale store called I Miss You Vintage’s “brother” store. 

Consign Toronto

Consign Toronto, located on Queen St. West, carries designer and contemporary labels for all genders in a wide range of sizes. 

Contemporary labels that the store accepts include Rick Owens, Balenciaga, Vetements and Miu Miu, and designer brands such as Jimmy Choo, Roberto Cavali and Prada. 

Appointments are not necessary. Sellers can bring their products to the flagship location and have their items inspected the same day. Consignment periods include a 3-month term. 

Rerun Toronto

Rerun Toronto is a streetwear and sneaker store located in Toronto’s Kensington Market. The store buys and sells modern and contemporary streetwear items from labels such as Off-White, Supreme, Stone Island and Bape. 

All items sold are verified for authenticity and carefully inspected by staff before. ReRun accepts a variety of streetwear items such as outerwear, footwear, sweaters, and accessories. 

Hotbox Toronto

Hotbox Toronto is a contemporary buy/trade/sell streetwear-based store with one location on Yonge St. and the other located in North York. 

The streetwear-based store accepts brands such as Anti-Social Social Club, Vlone, Palace and Jordan. To sell products, consignors must download the app “HOTBOX” and upload photos of their items. 

The Hotbox team provides custom suggested price offers, known as “quote ranges,” that include cash and store credit after consigners bring in their items to be evaluated and verified for authenticity. 

Plato’s Closet

Plato’s Closet is a retail-resale company with more than 460 locations across North America. 

The company targets teens and young adults by offering gently-used brand name apparel for all genders. The company frequently accepts clothing and accessories from brands such as Abercrombie and Fitch, Brandy Melville, Aeropostale and American Eagle. 

Plato’s Closet accepts clothes from all seasons with no appointments necessary. Sellers often get paid on the spot after the approval of items. 

As consumers become more aware of the detrimental effects of fast fashion and material consumption, the process of upcycling and repurposing used clothing items to create refurbished looks is becoming popular as a sustainable alternative. 

For shoppers looking to reduce their carbon footprint, sustainable and eco-friendly habits like selling clothing to consignment stores and buying repurposed garments is a great way to create a positive and lasting impact in the fashion industry.

Next time you want to get rid of old clothes, consider a consignment store – you might just receive a satisfying amount of cash in return.