Secondhand buying is huge enterprise nowadays. On-line trend resale big ThredUp estimates the worldwide clothes resale market will probably be a $350 billion enterprise by 2027. The pattern is evident in quick trend, however even for technical ski merchandise, extra persons are turning to used. On-line out of doors gear reseller GearTrade bought 85,000 used merchandise in 2023, up 86% from 2021.
Shopping for calmly used ski gear is an effective way to refresh your setup for much less, however regardless of the recognition of shopping for used, there’s extra demand than provide.
Aaron Provine, President of GearTrade, instructed me, “The used market as a complete is rising. Inflation is pinching individuals. Youthful generations are extra sustainably oriented as are out of doors shoppers typically they usually notice there are causes outdoors of revenue for promoting your previous gear.” However he notes that they nonetheless have extra patrons than sellers.
That’s the place you are available.
Promoting your retired however nonetheless practical gear can put cash in your pocket, declutter your house, save the planet, and provides the gear a second life with somebody who will use it.
So why will we all nonetheless have extra ski gear?
For me, it’s normally the effort of promoting or donating. Thrift shops and consignment outlets usually refuse sure gadgets (particularly low season) and promoting is usually a headache.
“For sellers, friction factors are quite a few. {On-line labeled platforms} are depending on the vendor to supply context for the product,” says Provine. “As a vendor, you weigh ‘my time is value cash’ or ‘my gear is value cash’. You’re taking the images, you reply the questions. You meet them in a car parking zone.” (Not suprisingly, the GearTrade mannequin is geared toward minimizing that friction. Extra on that under.)
Fortunately there are extra choices than ever to unload your stuff with minimal effort and we’ve laid out the how, the place, and why for you.
Unloading used gear has advantages past placing some money in your pocket.
Why Promote Your Previous Ski Stuff?
Sure, eliminating your gear requires some effort and also you’ve seemingly been scarred by earlier experiences coping with Craigslist flakes or paltry consignment checks. However even when the payday isn’t going to fund your subsequent trip, there are many different causes to maneuver it alongside to a brand new dwelling.
Environmental Advantages
I’ve written on environmental points sufficient to know I’m not absolutely certified to evaluate the precise impression of promoting your previous ski shell on-line, however giving somebody the chance to purchase your current gear as an alternative of shopping for new eliminates the necessity for uncooked materials extraction and the power and water prices of manufacturing that new merchandise.
In a best-case hypothetical, you promote your previous jacket to your neighbor which creates no greenhouse gasoline emissions until he drives to choose it up. Contemplate the choice of him shopping for new which entails a worldwide provide chain manufacturing and transport course of. (The Sustainable Attire Coalition estimates international attire trade manufacturing created greater than a gigaton of carbon emissions in 2019 making up 2% of the world’s carbon emissions, not together with transport.)
Decluttering
Whereas it might be enjoyable to look in your closet and get to select from eight totally different pairs of skis and 4 totally different jackets, odds are you’re solely recurrently utilizing just a few of them. When you haven’t heard of Marie Kondo, you in all probability will quickly. She’s the face of a motion to declutter by organizing and eliminating possessions that don’t “spark pleasure” and she or he spun her best-selling e-book right into a Netflix sequence.
You don’t want to affix the decluttering cult to understand the advantages, nonetheless. Streamlining your equipment removes choices from every tour and clears house in your house. Whereas my programs generally get derailed by gear testing, I prefer to have a single bag for every sport. If I discover that my mountain biking gear not matches in my mountain biking duffel, I do know it’s time to streamline.
Cash in Your Pocket
The return on promoting your previous ski gear may not be a lot in comparison with what you paid for it, however it will possibly at the least soften the blow of latest (or calmly used) gear. No matter you get, it’s actually greater than you’re getting by letting it accumulate mud in your closet. No matter situation, the worth of substances goes down every time a brand new model is launched, so the perfect worth you’ll get for it’s proper now.
Used gear websites and shops will usually provide you with extra in retailer credit score than they are going to in money, incentivizing utilizing your gross sales to refill your gear closet. Some websites akin to Powder7 and DPS (DPS Revive) have trade-in packages that allow you to use your previous skis to get a reduction on new ones.
Alternative for Somebody Else
If cash and the way forward for the planet depart you unmoved, think about the poor! I’m always assembly aspiring backcountry skiers and snowboarders who haven’t gone on their first tour as a result of they aren’t capable of scrape collectively the 1000’s of {dollars} required for a brand-new backcountry ski equipment. Used gear is likely one of the few methods to place collectively a backcountry setup while not having just a few months’ lease/mortgage, however resale websites I spoke with all have extra patrons than sellers, so your gear is probably going helpful to another person.
The best way to Promote Your Previous Ski Gear
Step 1: Consider what you’ve.
Acquire all of the gear you realistically gained’t use sufficient to justify preserving, and for every merchandise assess:
Age: If older than 10 years, you’re unlikely to get a lot to your gear, irrespective of how pristine the situation. Even 5 years is a very long time for classes perceived to advance 12 months to 12 months akin to skis and boots. If it’s sufficiently old to be thought of “retro” or “classic”, say 25 years or extra, you could have luck promoting on-line by way of Ebay, Poshmark, or ThredUp with key phrases that point out it’s a throwback merchandise.
Situation: Something lower than “superb” situation in all probability isn’t value making an attempt to promote. This implies solely minor indicators of wear and tear and nothing that wants restore. A worn look is perhaps okay for a 1995 Mary J. Blige live performance tee, however isn’t going to be of curiosity to of us searching for dependable technical attire and hardgoods.
Estimated Worth: You possibly can skip this step in the event you simply wish to offload your gear and aren’t too involved along with your payout. Search the used gear websites listed under to gauge the present promoting worth. For me, an merchandise promoting for $40 or much less normally isn’t well worth the trouble to promote. I count on the merchandise will promote for at the least 20% lower than the listed worth, half will probably be misplaced to transport, taxes, consignment markdown, and/or charges, leaving me with $10 or much less in my pocket. Plus the percentage-weighted value that it may not promote in any respect–thereby losing my time–brings it down to almost zero. When you’re taking gadgets in bulk for consignment, the marginal value of including smaller gadgets is much less and may add up and be value it.
If none of those disqualify the merchandise, put it within the “promote” pile. Every little thing else will be put aside for donation, recycling, or trash.
Step 2: Determine how a lot you wish to work.
Not surprisingly, the extra effort you set into photographing, describing, and itemizing your gadgets, the larger share of the bought worth you’ll retain. Platforms that deal with the annoying soiled be just right for you typically take a better share of the value and even in the event you record on a no-fee web site akin to Craigslist, you’ll command a better worth, get extra curiosity, and cope with fewer questions in the event you put extra time right into a product itemizing.
If in case you have various gadgets to promote and that course of sounds painful or appears unrealistic for you, you’ll seemingly wish to use a bulk gross sales choice the place another person handles the itemizing and gross sales course of. An area ski store or ski swap is a simple choice on this vein, however there are on-line choices under with various levels of involvement as minimal as transport all the pieces in a field and washing your palms of it till you get a test.
The place to Promote Your Used Ski Gear
The place you promote, recycle, or donate your gear will seemingly rely largely on the place you reside. Mountain cities and outdoorsy cities akin to Denver and Seattle have a number of choices for consignment and donation drop-off in individual.
However in the event you don’t reside amongst a big pool of potential patrons of your previous ski stuff, you’ll seemingly have to leverage one of many on-line marketplaces under to get your items to somebody who desires them.
Native Retailers and Swaps
Maintaining it native when you may will prevent cash on transport prices, vendor charges, and carbon footprint. This is perhaps so simple as providing gear as much as neighbors and associates by way of social media or taking it to your native ski/board store or ski swap occasions.
REI accepts sure gadgets (no skis) in-person or by the mail by way of trade-in for brand new purchases by its ReSupply program. As a way to be eligible for trade-in, gadgets should be 6 years previous or newer, be one thing REI sells already, and be in good situation. You possibly can test eligibility and get a price estimate on the REI ReSupply web site.
On-line Classifieds
Craigslist and Fb Market are the preferred and each have the same mannequin in that they’re free companies however you’ll have to commit time to itemizing, communication, and coordination to get your gadgets bought.
Taking a number of high quality images and creating an in depth itemizing will reduce down on forwards and backwards, however you’ll seemingly nonetheless spend quite a lot of time answering dumb questions, driving to fulfill those that don’t present, and haggling over worth. These are the downsides.
When it goes easily, on-line classifieds is usually a good option to get a excessive return in your pricier gadgets because you don’t should pay a intermediary nor transport prices. It may also be one of many solely sensible methods to promote outsized gadgets which might be prohibitively costly to ship akin to skis and ski racks.
Freecycle is an effective way to unload gear at no cost regionally, however you’ll nonetheless should cope with a few of the similar communication and coordination complications as promoting by way of on-line classifieds and your neighborhood might or might not have an energetic Freecycle membership.
eBay
eBay is a step up from on-line classifieds with a much wider pool of patrons, however you’ll pay for transport they usually take 8-15% plus a bunch of optionally available improve charges. I’ve bought a good quantity of substances on eBay through the years and located it’s an excellent choice for higher-value gadgets akin to new or like-new ski boots, however turns into extra trouble than it’s value for low-value gadgets.
Itemizing isn’t too onerous as their platform helps you autofill quite a lot of key data, however you continue to have to take a number of high-quality images to present patrons confidence within the situation. You additionally should pack and ship gadgets your self and when you can specify no returns, eBay makes it troublesome to say no if somebody decides they don’t need your merchandise in any case. This doesn’t occur usually in the event you’ve been clear concerning the situation, however when it does, it places you again at sq. one, minus the transport you paid to get it to them.
GearTrade
GearTrade has been round since 1999, however its platform has developed and grown significantly over the previous few years and now has 1000’s of listings circulating always. The promoting course of additionally is likely one of the most hands-off that I’ve personally skilled.
You request a transport label, field up your gear, ship it off, and wait to receives a commission. (In addition they have an choice the place they’ll mail you a field and label.) There’s no requirement to determine your gadgets and their crew handles the photographing and itemizing and solutions purchaser questions in addition to the gross sales and transport course of. You get an electronic mail when the merchandise sells and when the payout hits your account and you need to use the steadiness for purchases on the positioning or money out.
The catch is that GearTrade takes a large reduce in comparison with websites akin to eBay in alternate for doing all of the work. The vendor charges vary from 30 to 85%, with higher-dollar gross sales providing you with a bigger share than smaller gadgets.
GearTrade President Aaron Provine says sellers get worth for these charges.
“We’ve tried to make it so there’s not quite a lot of effort concerned. If you can also make some money out of it, nice. However there are causes past revenue. Usually, most individuals are simply throwing these things away. “
GearTrade is a superb choice for individuals who simply wish to eliminate a bunch of substances with out tossing it in a landfill and would love a return for it, however aren’t up for the hassles of turning into an internet vendor. If I’ve an excellent pile of attire that I do know gained’t fetch prime greenback however nonetheless has a number of life left in it, I’ll field it up and ship it off to GearTrade.
Powder7 Ski Store
Powder7 is a Golden, Colorado-based reseller that does a brisk enterprise in calmly used ski gear and is a superb choice for purchasing and buying and selling in skis, particularly. I’ve bought just a few pairs of skis from the positioning through the years at deep reductions they usually do an incredible job of completely describing and photographing the situation of their used gear.
You possibly can’t promote Powder7 skis or different gear outright, sadly, however they’ve acquired a trade-in program that’s value a glance in the event you’re promoting to fund an improve. Alex Stettner, Content material Coordinator at Powder7, instructed me touring gear attracts a better trade-in worth due to the demand for backcountry gear from its patrons.
Different Choices
Out and Again Outside: Gives mail-in for consignment however solely drop-off for ski hardgoods at Public Lands shops.
Poshmark: This in style on-line thrift big makes a speciality of trend and normal clothes however is a good choice for attire.
Model-Particular Commerce-In or Recycling: Many out of doors manufacturers now have trade-in, restore, and/or recycling packages together with however not restricted to: Arc’teryx, Stio, Patagonia, DPS, Smartwool, and The North Face. When you’re trying to refresh with the identical model or at the least not throw your merchandise away, it’s value checking if that model has a trade-in or recycle program.
Articles in Frequent: This outdoor-specific start-up accepts donations of gently used out of doors gear that they promote or recycle– and promise nothing will find yourself in a landfill. It is a nice choice in the event you’ve tried to donate or recycle and are available up empty.
Received different methods to promote or in any other case unload your previous ski gear? Tell us within the feedback and we’ll add them in right here.
Justin Park is the Editor of Wild Snow. In 2009 whereas dwelling in Hawaii, he acquired invited on a hut journey in Colorado. He had no backcountry gear, discovered Wild Snow, learn up on backcountry snowboarding and purchased some body bindings for a pair of G3 Reverends so he didn’t have to purchase touring boots. He moved to Breckenridge, CO a 12 months later and in the present day he skis 100+ days a 12 months, most of them backcountry.
