Unlock everythingPass

Level 2: Buy smartLesson 05 of 17

Planning your first buy

Plan a first wholesale order you can afford to get wrong: budget, sold-price research, cost per piece, space and time, and your first week.

  • Checked 28 Sep 2026
  • 8 min read
  • 19 checked facts, 6 estimates
  • Part 1 free, 8 parts with the Pass

Tools for this lesson: Box profit plannerKilo to pieces estimatorPlatform fee comparerReal hourly rate

Your first wholesale order is tuition as much as stock. Aim for a lot small enough that mistakes are cheap and clear enough that every piece teaches you something. If kilos, bales, boxes and grades are still new to you, read How wholesale vintage works first.

Set a budget you can leave alone

Your stock budget is money you can afford to have tied up for months, and some of it may never come back. Not rent money, not bill money, not money on a card you cannot clear in full.

The lot price is only part of the cost. Also budget for:

  • Delivery from the supplier.
  • Packaging: mailers, tape and labels (Packing and shipping).
  • Prep kit: detergent, a lint roller, maybe a steamer (Prep: clean, steam, fix).
  • Selling fees, which vary by platform and seller type (compare them with the fee comparer).
  • A buffer for surprises.

Size your first lot

  1. Money cap: the most you could lose without touching bills or credit.
  2. Time test: time yourself listing a few things from your own wardrobe, photo to live, plus cleaning and packing. Then work out how many pieces fit the hours you really have over the next few weeks.
  3. Multiply that piece count by the lot's cost per piece.
  4. Your first lot is the smaller of the two figures.

A bale or a large mixed lot can wait until a smaller lot has paid back and proved your numbers. Pre-sorted lots usually cost more per piece, but mean less sorting, less waste and a clearer lesson.

Reseller Pass

This lesson is part of the Reseller Pass

Part 1 is open to everyone. The other 8 parts of this lesson unlock with the Reseller Pass, along with the full school, every playbook and all 8 tools at full power.

In this lesson

  • 9 parts: part 1 above, 8 more with the Pass
  • 19 checked facts, each with its source and the date we checked it
  • Tools: Kilo to pieces estimator, Real hourly rate, plus the full box profit planner and the full platform fee comparer

The Reseller Pass includes

  • The full Reseller School: 17 lessons in 5 levels
  • All 6 platform playbooks
  • All 8 tools at full power
  • The Starter Pack printables

£19.99 One payment, 12 months of full access, UK only

Or £9.99 added to an order with stock from our shop. Discount codes don't apply to the Pass.

Get the Reseller Pass

12 months, then renew if you want to. No automatic renewal.

No Pass needed for lesson 1, the glossary, and the fee comparer and box planner basics.