A Few Popular Children’s Clothing Brands Don’t Make the Final Cut
Loobalee as Loobalee 'Philosphee'
Mar|4|2009
We have been busy over the past year researching designer children’s clothing brands for inclusion on our LoobaLee listing menus. This is a never-ending process! So many new brands continue to appear each year, while many others are retired. We have been amazed at the shear volume of designer and exclusive brands from both the U.S. and around the world. It’s a testament to the demand for quality children’s clothing.
We will go live in Private Beta mode (request your code) with over 700 brands. We have carefully reviewed and qualified each one of them. Unreal! Even more unbelievable, is that our list of pending brands comprises an additional 1,000+ brands.
Qualified brands are sold wholesale in (or imported to) the U.S., are of consistently high (if not supreme) quality, and offer items at retail price points that save room for margin on the resale market.
So, who didn’t make the cut? Surprisingly, a few stores that we have been blogging about in our bi-weekly “What’s On Sale” posts, among others:
- Children’s Place
- Old Navy
- Crazy8
- Carter’s
- OshKosh
- Justice
- Limited Too
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Of course there are exceptions. About 20% of each of these brands would do well on the resale market, especially higher priced items and styles that were in high demand when originally released.
However, the majority of the brand will not do well on resale and, therefore, will not justify the overhead of shipping costs. On-line selling is simply not the right market for ‘passing’ on these gently used items. Because we offer unlimited listings to sellers for a flat-fee and in order to keep LoobaLee listings of high quality for our Buyers, we needed to make these “final cut” decisions.
We will, however, continue to include these brands in our recommendations for buying new (as appropriate) and when donating or selling by other means. We recognize these are often well-loved brands by Moms and kids alike.
Tip for Buying New: While it’s tempting to buy these brands new at the prices and discounts offered, the resale market is low. To “outfit your kids for virtually free” we recommend limiting lower-priced and lower-quality items in your kids wardrobes. Sounds backwards? Yes! But, think of most purchases as “just passing through” — you care as much about what you pay up front as what you can get after wearing.
Valentine Clothing for Kids – 5 “Ready for Resale” Tips
Loobalee as Loobalee 'Philosphee'
Feb|14|2009
Happy Valentines Day!
I happen to love Valentine’s Day, and have always managed to slip a couple of items into my children’s wardrobes, yet stay within my philosophy of trying to dress my kids for almost free. I recommend buying quality, Valentines Day clothing because, unlike any other holiday, it can be worn after the holiday and into spring.
This is a reminder to watch for deep discounts on designer Valentine clothes over the next couple of weeks, and stock up for next year. These styles don’t change much at all, and wouldn’t you rather buy them at 60-80% off now then full price or a meager 20-30% off before Valentines day next year? You can even pick up matching accessories, like socks and hair accessories for pennies on the dollar.
Here’s some Tips for Buying Ahead:
Tip #1
In general, the smaller the size, the better your resale value. Valentine clothing is more popular for babies, toddlers, and little kids than for older kids. And, it is far more popular for girls than it is for boys.
Tip #2
For valuable items on the resale market, look to Gymboree, Hanna Andersson, Baby Gap, and Gap Kids. The boutique brands also offer Valentine-themed clothing, such as MIS-TEE-V-US, Young Colors, or Michael Simon. The typical pop-culture Valentine Tee from Target, Old Navy, Children’s Place will not re-sell well on-line, so plan to donate these or sell them in your next garage sale.
Tip #3
Avoid Valentine clothing with words. Rather, choose solids or items that have fun prints or designs that can continue to be worn after the holiday.
Tip #4
For boys, stick with the basics. Look for a great, solid red shirt, sweater, or vest. Layer red with white, black, or gray. And if you have a boy who likes pink….go for it ☺
Tip #5
For girls, surely you will already have a closet full of pink! Try these ideas to create a Holiday Look — all the layering and colors you need will be on sale. You don’t even have to plan on heart-themed clothing for your girls to look great on Valentines Day. So, pick up the basics too!
- Layer pink, red, white, purple or lavender tops together for a cute, trendy look. Two words of advice: 1) avoid all red and purple (too “Red Hat Lady”) and 2) use (at most) only one layer of prints.
- Accessorize with home-made Valentine jewelry, such as pins, bracelets, rings, necklaces, earrings, or hair accessories. Use pipe cleaners, beads, heart-shaped foamies, gems, and glitter. Have some fun!
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Suzanne Rielle, Co-Founder – LoobaLee.com
Get on the list to join our upcoming LoobaLee Private Beta!
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Loobalee Inspiration: Reduce, Re-use, Recycle Kids Clothing on Loobalee
Loobalee as Loobalee 'Philosphee'
Apr|22|2008
Today is Earth Day! I really thought we would see some Earth Day sales today, but I haven’t noticed any from the popular merchants of children’s clothing.
Nevertheless, you will soon be able to “reduce, re-use, and recycle” with our upcoming Loobalee services. One of our core principles and inspiration is Eco-friendliness — we want to reduce the wastefulness while maintaining the joyfulness in dressing our children.
How many of you have tubs, bins, boxes, and closets full of clothing that your children have grown out of and you don’t know what to do with it? Read the rest of this entry »
What is Loobalee?
Loobalee as Loobalee 'Philosphee'
Mar|29|2008
This is the introduction to a series of related articles defining Loobalee, entitled “Loobalee Inspiration”. Loobalee is unique. We are offering an on-line, niche marketplace to serve the exciting and unique designer children’s apparel and merchandise market.
Are You Our Customer?
- Loobalee’s target customers are primarily Moms, and especially busy Moms! It is for Moms who enjoy sharing with and helping one another, but is also a market for their friends and family. Anyone looking for quality kids clothing and merchandise at great prices.
- Additionally, we aim to attract off-line Children’s Boutiques, handmade artisan Moms who make specialty items for children, and ‘Mom’ authors of children’s books and music into the our on-line marketplace and community.
- And finally, we ultimately envision creating a direct channel between consumers and children’s charities — allowing charities, such as children’s shelters and others in need, to participate in Loobalee.
Already, You Must Sense That Loobalee Is Different!
And, we think it’s special.
When we set out to create Loobalee, I had a wishlist. I wished for a site that was fun, easy, profitable, transparent, required a limited amount of my time, and allowed me to connect with others.
I envision a site that was the:
- Best of the Auction Sites
- Best of Classified Ad Sites Best of Retail
- Best of the Resale Shops
- Best of the Loops
- Best of the Discount & Rebate Sites
- …And, more!
Saving The Best For Last…
We’re also inspired by a “Philophee” here at Loobalee – “Dress Your Kids for Virtually Free”. I’ve learned how to do this through my 9 years of experience dressing my children. By participating in Loobalee, you can learn how too!
Stay tuned for upcoming articles, where I will go into detail about Loobalee’s exciting features; how we’ve been inspired by the best; our “Dress for Free Philosphee” and how we’re putting it all together to create a unique, interactive experience – especially for You!
– Suzanne Rielle, Co-Founder, Loobalee.com
