A great sustainable way to save money online is to shop secondhand. The items are pre-loved, meaning that you aren’t contributing to the demand, and sometimes you can even find people giving away things for free! This is a handy guide to using secondhand apps like Carousell and Depop for all of your shopping needs.
One quick thing to mention is that people often ‘scalp’ on Depop and Carousell — meaning that they buy items cheaply and then hike up the price for online retailing, because they know people will pay a premium for something ‘vintage’, even if it’s a cropped t-shirt from the mid 2000s. Make sure you do your research, check the standard price of whatever it is you’re looking for and try not to buy things from people who seem to have lots of the same thing in stock.
The best thing about Carousell and Depop is that you can haggle with the seller in a private chat. You can often ask for discounts if you’re buying a bundle, or for free shipping if you live in the same country. Even better, some sellers will even meet you at a bus or MRT station if you don’t mind making the trek out to where ever works for them.
My favourite things to buy from Carousell and Depop aren’t what you expect. People on there tend to mark up trendy clothes, or video games, knowing that people will pay premium for that. My sneaky tip? Try buying things that you know only non-tech-savvy people will be selling, people who are a little bit out of touch with what things are trendy and what things are not. I once found an entire dinner service, plates and cups and teapot, for $6, because an old lady was clearing out her house. Things like books also go for very cheap, being heavy to store and somewhat replaced now by the e-Book.
I really wouldn’t recommend buying anything that you might want to use as skin care or makeup, though. Bacteria can transfer between people each use, so your brand new eyeshadow palette might give you a brand new stye. Make sure the prices line up, too! If a seller is claiming to be selling a brand new moisturiser, seal intact, for a third of a price, this might be because they got it from a sketchy fake retailer. Stay safe out there, and happy thrifting!
Photo by Sarah Pflug from Burst.
