KIERAN Barnett swapped 5am shifts on a farm for rummaging in car boots and charity shops – and now makes up to £1,800 a month from his hobby.
Ex-farmer Kieran, 27, from Lincolnshire, now spends his days hunting for old clothes and trainers that he buys for a few quid, and sells them on for up to hundreds of pounds more.
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He turns over £60,000 a year – but pockets between £1,600 to £1,800 a month after his bills and delivery costs are paid for.
That means Kieran makes a profit of roughly £20,000 over the year – but he reinvests most of this back into buying stock for his re-selling business.
His passion for “flipping” – where you buy goods and sell them on for a profit – started back when he was just 12 years old, buying and selling on video games with his dad to earn pocket money.
Ten years later, an impromptu trip to his local charity shop on his lunch break led to Kieran quitting his job on the farm as he decided to try make it as a full-time reseller.
“I found two Arsenal t-shirts for £4 each, and I knew they were worth more than the shop was selling them for,” he said.
“I paid £8 for them both and got £110 in total for the two of them.
“They sold in three hours, and I made more selling those T-shirts than I would have by working on the farm all day.”
Two years later, and Kieran sells clothes and footwear full-time on Instagram, Youtube, Depop, and eBay through his business, RummageAround.
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He has noticed a “massive increase” in people looking to buy clothes second hand since the Covid crisis – and this trend is accelerating as millions of people grapple with a crippling cost of living crisis.
“The price of new clothing is astronomical – if people can get it half price on eBay, they’re going to,” he said.
Charity shops saw sales jump by nearly 7% between June and September last year, according to research from the Charity Retail Association.
It said sales were being driven by customers looking for more cost-effective ways of buying clothes and other essentials.
As demand for cheaper clobber grows, The Sun picked Kieran’s brains on how he’s been able to make a living out of reselling – and how you can too.
Sell your old junk
If you’re a newbie to the reselling game, Kieran suggested starting out selling your unwanted household items.
You can then get an idea for what sells well – for a good price and quickly – on selling platforms like eBay and Depop.
“Then, based on the items which sold for more money, you can hunt for similar items in car boots and charity shops,” he said.
We’ve rounded up 10 unused items you might find lying around the house that could make you £1,235 – your old phone could be £84 while Lego could fetch for a surprising £29.
Follow celebs and know what to buy
Celebs are used for advertising campaigns because they’re great at selling brands and goods.
You should follow big stars on social media to get an idea of what items they’re wearing – and what you should be buying.
“If Nicky Minaj wears crocs on her new tour, for example, you’ll see the price of these increase,” he said.
Even if less popular brands team up with a celeb and launch a new collaboration, you might find other items made by the company increase in value as a result.
“Now Kanye has collaboration with Gap, used hoodies are now £30 – even though the brand historically hasn’t been as popular,” he said.
Sell around Christmas
In the run-up to Christmas and other major events, you’ll see plenty of people wandering up and down high streets with panic in their eyes, trying to sort last minute presents.
Those on a budget also flock to online sites like eBay in an attempt to get a bargain present right at the eleventh hour too, Kieran said.
Budding resellers should take advantage of this time to advertise their stock online and cash in on the last minute festive rush.
“October, November and December is a massive deal for resellers because it’s Christmas,” he said.
“I make the most money from Christmas – men leave their shopping to the last minute and turn to eBay for last minute presents.”
Sit on limited edition items
When shops bring out limited edition items – which are goods you can buy for a short time only – you might want to hunt for them in charity shops and car boots.
That’s because they will usually rise in price as time goes by.
Don’t be tempted to sell them immediately, as demand for these items will grow and you can charge more.
“Things gain value over time, so I usually sit on [limited edition items] for couple of years,” Kieran said.
“Anything that is limited is going to get rarer – for example, if you have a certain amount of limited edition trainers made, many will get broken or used over time.
“That means there’s less trainers in good condition, and you can charge more as there are less in the market – and demand goes up.
“I paid £5 for a pair of limited edition football boots – when I bought them two years ago, they would have sold for £200.
“But now on eBay, they’re worth £1,000.”
Spot the fakes
If you think the price of that designer handbag is too good to be true, the chances are it probably is.
Scammers will take advantage of shoppers looking for a bargain and flog them fake items.
If you’re looking for cheap branded items to sell on for a higher price, there are ways of spotting a con, Kieran said.
“Go to Sports Direct, Flannels, and big designer shops and feel the products to get an idea of what the real deal is.
“When you’re in the field at car boots, you’ll then know what’s fake when you spot the same item.
“Look at stitching quality and glue residue on trainers – this wouldn’t pass tests in a Nike factory, for example.”
One savvy saver cleared his £12,000 debt by reselling car boot and charity shop bargains.
While one professional car booter has made it selling bargains for a living and makes £1,000 in just one morning.
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