Can I sell donated clothes

amother

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 1:08 pm

Don't bash I'm curious what you think of this a friend asked me. She has people in her neighborhood who have given away clothes for kids that they no longer want. Is it ok for her to sell whatever she isn't using to a secondhand shop? I mean technically the person could have sold it herself, but she didn't want the trouble so she gave it away instead. Does the new owner own it now, or is it just hers to use or pass on? Anon because I may be figured out

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 1:11 pm

Why doesn't she ask the person who gave them to her?

People give away handmedowns for two reasons that I can think of:
1) to get them out of the house (in which case, I imagine they wouldn't mind)
2) because they want their clothing to get more use from someone they care about (in which case, they might!)

amother

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 1:16 pm

op here- She could ask, it's just been a lot of random people, (she checks the local jewish yahoo group) and she doesn't remember who she got things from.

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 1:19 pm

if she's getting them from random people she doesn't know from a yahoo group, I'd say she can sell them.

That's assuming that THEY posted that they want someone to take them. (vs if she posted 'does anyone have....' and then goes and sells them - that seems wrong.)

Simple1

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 1:19 pm

Generally, it seems the right thing to do is to "pay it forward".

But if you're talking about people in an extremely difficult financial situation, and the donor is wealthy, it's possible she would be happy for them to make a little extra cash.

amother

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 1:20 pm

If they gave the clothing for her b/c she can not afford to buy them herself, then isn't this just a different way of her being able to afford to buy them?

33055

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 1:22 pm

Once you give them away, they are the person's to do with what they want. I found someone selling my things I gave them on ebay. I figure they need the $.

seeker

Wed, Sep 03 2014, 3:51 pm

1. Once they are given away, they belong to the recipient.
2. As a frequent recipient, my feeling is that it is nicer to pass along the favor.
3. However if I could really use the money and the item is very salable, I would sell it. The person gave it to do me a favor, and if this is the way I could benefit most from it, it's just as well.
If the item is worth very little I would not bother, I would stick with the original intention and give to someone who could enjoy not having to buy it. But if they handed down a bunch of designer clothes in like-new condition that I could sell for a significant sum total, I'd consider that the giver's kindness to me.
4. If it's possible, it would probably be nicest to ask the giver, "Thanks for giving me your clothes. There are a bunch I don't need. What would you like me to do with them?" And if they say "whatever you want, I just wanted to clear my closet" well, there you go.

Dina_B613

Wed, Sep 17 2014, 8:48 pm

I recently read a post on Slate.com, in the advice column 'Dear Prudence,' from someone who gave a friend her daughter's hand-me-downs, and then the friend sold the hand-me-downs and she upset... Just saying, people might not be too pleased.

amother

Wed, Sep 17 2014, 9:59 pm

Depends what kind of clothes. If generic clothing, not a big deal. If frum clothing (tznius and cute), that would bother me, because that kind of clothing is expensive and hard to find, and I would rather it stay within the frum community where it's needed. Same with the brand new items I occasionally give away (because my MIL's taste is different from mine); I would rather it stay within the frum community, where I know how hard many families really struggle to pay all their expenses, and having a brand new item for their kids that was free would be really nice. Even though I know there are many families in the larger world struggling with the same situation, I would rather it go to a Jewish family which has the additional stress of tuition and other frum expenses.

amother

Wed, Sep 17 2014, 10:18 pm

As a recipient of used clothing, I would sigh if someone just sold clothes that others were giving away.
This clothing saves me both the money it costs and the time for shopping- a bigger hassle with a baby.

ValleyMom

Wed, Sep 17 2014, 11:35 pm

Weren't the clothing given to her to repurpose and give to people who need clothing?

WHAT is she doing with the $$ she receives from selling the donated clothing?

Is she buying NEW clothing to GIVE to people in need of clothing??!

Is she using the $$ to buy herself a new wardrobe??

She knows what is appropriate and not appropriate-she is a mature adult that needs to live with the choices she makes.

I hope she sleeps well at night.

seeker

Wed, Sep 17 2014, 11:36 pm

ValleyMom wrote:

Maybe she's using it to buy food, because she has enough clothes since people can wear the same thing for several months but food keeps getting needed over and over. Why so harsh?