Wednesday, March 18, 2015

{featured} Reviewing Material Wrld Designer Trade-In Service

*This post is a collaboration with Material Wrld. I was not paid for this post, but I will receive a commission if you sign up through my link (you'll get an extra $25 on your first trade in)*

Let's talk about closet clean-outs. No one likes doing it because the process takes a long time and you have to part with pieces that may be sentimental. But, what if you could give your clothes a new life AND get gift cards to your favorite stores for trading in your unwanted pieces? That's exactly what luxury fashion trade-in service Material Wrld wants to do for you! Some background information on the company is as follows:
Material Wrld’s mission is to create an ecosystem where we can enjoy shopping quality products with the comfort of knowing that each item we chose to buy can always find a new home. We are reinventing the shopping experience for consumers and retailers alike by making it as easy to trade-in as it is to shop new, while extending the fashion lifecycle of high quality pieces and reducing its environmental impact.

Material Wrld makes it easy for busy women to instantly refresh their closets and shop new at their favorite retailers and brands, including Bloomingdale’s, Saks and Barneys.
Our complimentary trade-in service with high-touch concierge offerings and upfront retail partner gift cards make it seamless for our customers to:
  • Refresh their closet and make space for new clothing 
  • Extend the luxury fashion lifecycle and reduce its environmental impact
  • Do Good While You Shop: MW matches a percentage of each gift card offer as a contribution to your charity of choice.
I tested out the easy three-step process and am pleased with the outcome. My only issue was the accepted brands. I realize items need to be super luxury, but I only had a limited amount of designers to send in. This won't be a one-stop trade-in for most people, but definitely a good choice for those higher end designer pieces! If you want to try it out for yourself sign up through this link or use code MEGANB989 to get an extra $25 on your first trade-in!

Three days after my items arrived at their destination I received an offer of $119, they would take 6 of the 12 items I sent in. Not bad! I knew I was DEFINITELY going to lose money on some pieces, but that's the price I pay for being blinded by labels/pretty clothes and buying them even though I know I'll barely wear them. Here is the breakdown

  • Burberry Dress (Vintage Purple Pleated Long Sleeve Dress)
    OFFER: $25 
  • Miu Miu Blouse (Purple Floral Print Cotton Shirt)
    OFFER: $16
  • Jean Paul Gaultier Top (Beige Red Floral Print Camisole)
    OFFER: $15
  • Proenza Schouler Top (Deep Purple Pleated Short Sleeve Knit Top)
    OFFER: $28
  • Theory Dress (Purple Tiered Sleeveless Ponte Dress)
    OFFER: $15
  • Salvatore Ferragamo Skirt (Vintage Umber Orange Suede Flare Skirt)
    OFFER: $20
  • Marc Jacobs Denim Jacket (not accepted)
  • Valentino Knit Camisole Top  (not accepted)
  • Marc by Marc Jacobs Dark Navy Tee  (not accepted)
  • Marc by Marc Jacobs White Print Tee  (not accepted)
  • Equipment Purple Blouse  (not accepted)
  • Balenciaga Pants (not accepted)
FINAL OFFER: $91
(rounded up to $100 because I chose Shopbop and they only give gift cards in $10 increments)

In the end I decided to keep the Proenza top because I still like it and can make myself wear it. Maybe in a few more months I'll be willing to part with it for the $28 (assuming I get the same offer a second time.) I was unsure about letting go of my Theory dress since I still think it's really cute, but I only wore it twice, so in the end had to let it go. Hopefully it will find a new owner who gives it more love than I did.

I also decided to donate one of my pieces rather than having it sent back to me, this way Material Wrld can donate it to Dress For Success or Goodwill. They also match 1% of each fashion gift card’s value in donations to a deserving charity.

What's really great about this process is that even though I gave up items they will have a new life and a new owner rather than ending up in a land-fill. Material Wrld call this "extending the fashion lifecycle."  See their illustration of that idea here:
image via Material Wrld

To learn more about their charitable work and why you should trade-in, visit this page.

After accepting my offer it took 2 business days to get my gift card emailed to me, easy as pie! Can't wait to spend my gift card at Shopbop, going to think long and hard about what to get so I don't end up trying to sell it in a year or two. The items that were not accepted are due to be returned today. After all is said and done the whole process from sending in items to getting them returned will have taken 8 days.

All in all, the process was simple and I got a fair price for the items. I wasn't expecting big money because the pieces I sent in were quite unique. While I may have made more money selling the items myself on eBay, the ease in which I was able to get rid of the items through Material Wrld is worth losing a little bit of cash, if only to get the items out of my closet sooner.

Enjoy this quick video I made showing the process! 


As a farewell, here are some photos of the pieces in action (except the JPG top which I was never brave enough to wear)

15 comments:

  1. This is so interesting, I have never heard of this, thanks for sharing your code, I am going to read about it now!

    XO Chelsea www.shesaidhesaidfashion.com

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  2. I don't think this would work for me, as I hardly have any designer things, but it's always great to clean out your closet and get a little something extra!
    Chic on the Cheap

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  3. Great post!!!!!
    I try and clean out my closet every year but sometimes I don't. I did clean it out twice this past year so it's all organized.....
    Hope you're having a great week!!!!
    Hugs,
    Shannon

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  4. At least you have a choice… I have finally found ONE consignment store here and have sold 1 item in 7 months…. lost money!
    I would have loved to have an option at seeing the stuff you wanted to sale before… maybe I would have picked up something!

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  5. Interesting, I've never heard of this company before. It sounds tempting, but I honestly love the ebay process even though it's more work. I like to start my items at 99 cents and then let them be bid up, it feels like I'm gambling or something. Sometimes I win and sometimes I don't.

    I'm glad you got some spending money, can't wait to see what you buy!

    Silvia

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  6. I've been meaning to post on this for so long but haven't had internet at home! Do you think you might have gotten more money if you'd sold your items on ebay? Or, do you prefer the ease on using a service like this? x

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    1. I liked the ease, for the items they took I think I would have made similar or a teeny bit more. But for some items they didn't accept I could probably make a good amount on eBay. For odd items I'd definitely send them in, but for more basic/classic pieces probably better to sell by yourself

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  7. This review is for the second time that I have used this company to trade-in. I traded in 4 items, and after the trade-in value was too low (they were nearly new All Saints items), I decided to return all 4 items. Upon receiving the returned items, 2 of the more expensive items were missing. I called Material Wrld and spoke to their customer service supervisor. She said that they automatically pre-select your items to be donated. Now, my $500 All Saints bag was donated, and that she could do nothing to resolve the issue. I let her know that pre-selecting any of my items for donation was pretty much fraud. She said that I should have checked after my confirmation if I had a problem. She was of no help whatsoever. Her only solution? Use the tax refund card for the donated item. I was completely shocked by what this company had done here. They basically stole my property. I have never encountered a company that donates your property without your acknowledgement. This is highly illegal and inappropriate. I'm shocked by how they do business and the fact that they refused to do anything to address their mistake. Even after I gave them feedback about how donating someone's things without permission is wrong, they refused to do anything about it. Be warned if you care thinking of consigning with them! They donate your items automatically without your permission. I will be reporting this company to the BBB for fraud.

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    Replies
    1. Oh no! I'm so sorry that happened to you. This was my first (and so far only) time using the site and while I agree the prices they give are a little low that was my only issue. I was going to use them again soon but maybe I should rethink that.

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  8. I just sent in a brand new, never worn pair of Christian Louboutins that just didn't fit me. I paid $965.00 for them. I was offered $104 from Material Wrld. Disgusting offer. I am having them send everything back and I'll just sell the stuff myself on Ebay. Good Lord....They scare me! No chance I will ever work with them again.

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    Replies
    1. Yea, I would definitely say it's not worth it if you paid full price. I resold things that I had bought on consignment so it made more sense for me

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  9. Upon receiving a laughable consignment quote for New With Tags and perfect Theory, Vince, and M Misoni clothing (leather pants, silk tops, blazers, dresses) on November 22, I immediately responded (on the same day, within minutes) that I would like the items returned to me. I received an email listing the items to be returned stating that they would follow up with a tracking number "in a few business days".

    A week later, I contacted the company via email regarding my items to be returned and received no response. Followed up again, no response. Then, I called and spoke with the after hours message service who took notes about the lack of responsiveness and urgency of my inquiry. STILL waiting for a response!

    Their customer service is absolutely TERRIBLE and their consignment prices aren't comparable with what you would get walking into ANY consignment store in Manhattan--BEWARE!!

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  10. Agreeed consignment is better ! You get to actually agree on your prices this place is the wrost and if you send to many items they get mad at you for having to pay for shipping

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