Selling From My Collection to Fund New Purchases

Fare thee well, my beloved bags.

This won’t come as a surprise, but I love to buy handbags. That spark I feel when I see a bag that I need to have is something I have come to love and hate. On one hand, it is always thrilling to see a new and interesting design in a bag that I want to buy. On the other, I often become fixated until said bag is in my possession. Patience has never been my strong suit and I suffer from obsessive “must have now” syndrome.

When I see a bag I want, all senses fly out the window. I don’t ask myself questions like “Do I need this? Is this practical for my lifestyle? Do I already have one like it?”. Instead I choose to focus on the important things, like why the bag is so beautiful, how cute it would look with my new booties or dress, and how I can get it in my hands fastest. Often the price tag of my desires will exceed the amount of money I have budgeted for, which poses a problem with actually being able to make a purchase.

This has led me down a treacherous path of selling what’s in my closet to buy something new. It’s a topic I’ve seen discussed often on TPF. Some of us will sell to buy, while others don’t. I have sold numerous bags that I still loved in order to buy a new bag, which has often been rewarding. Other times I have regretted it so deeply that I am still haunted by bags I’ve sold off. It is around a 50/50 chance that I will regret it, which aren’t great odds, yet I continue to do it regularly.

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When selling a beloved bag to fund a new one, I know I’m running the risk of being disappointed with my new purchase–but once the obsession kicks in, I will do anything to buy what I’m lusting after. I have a process in place when this happens. I start by taking inventory of the bags in my current collection, how often I wear said bag, and what the approximate resale value is. I am a lot more likely to sell a contemporary bag than a premier bag even though I know I won’t get as much money for it. I usually take a pretty big hit with resale prices for premier bags, so I try to avoid selling them all together. I once sold a beautiful Marc Jacobs Blake for an unfortunately low amount and I still regret it immensely.

As someone who not only sells bags but also shops the preowned market, it does ease the pain of selling something I love to think about its new owner. I hope it will make them as happy as it once made me. When I purchase a preowned bag, I like to that I am giving it new life and I hope that can be said for all the bags I’ve sent off to new homes.

Below are the top bags I am currently lusting after…to sell or not to sell is the question? Have you ever sold a bag to fund a new purchase?

Louis Vuitton V Tote MM

Buy Now

Gucci Small Matelassé Shoulder Bag

Buy Now

Chloé Medium Faye Shoulder Bag

Buy Now

Tod’s Dot Shopper Tote

Buy Now

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victoria shin

Oh yes! And similarly…sometimes regret it, sometimes not. It’s amazing that a bag that I lusted after obessesively can become one that I can quickly put up for sale a couple of years later. Alas, the fickle handbag connoisseur…I am currently debating selling a black Celine luggage tote in order to fund a Louis Vuitton Montaigne BB. I know I should really hang on to all the Celines cuz…#oldceline. But I’ve gotten enough wears from the luggage.

Irene

Oh my, all worthy of selling from your collection.
Once you have a new one of any of these, you won’t miss your old bags at all. Go for it.
Love the Gucci Matalasse in that shade.

lucy watson

I’ve been wanting the Gucci for almost 2 years but have hesitated because I usually carry big bags..the more I look at it, the more I want to pull the trigger!!

Karina Mac

Go for it! You won’t regret it. If you’re used to big bags, the shape of this is very forgiving and you can fit A LOT in them 🙂

Karina Mac

I have the LV and the Gucci, both the same style and colors, and I adore them.
Both are a worthy purchase.
But I’m also in the same boat as you…I sell my bags very often and usually out of guilt and AFTER I’ve bought things I shouldn’t have. In fact, today I just submitted SIX for quotes from Fashionphile…I know I’ll take a hit (they’re Gucci, YSL, Givenchy etc) but it will make me feel better about the purchases I just made, plus I don’t like looking at bags if I don’t use them. It bugs me for some reason (unless I LOVE them), so out they go!

Kenzie

I think they all look little gaudy in real life except for the Tod’s, so I say you should go for that one!

PJGambler

I like the LV very much.
No, I’ve never sold a bag to buy another, never sold a bag for any reason. It’s a merry-go-round I don’t want to board!

Jess

I have just sold my Chloe Faye to Fashionphile, that exact one! It should be up on their website in the next week or so. It’s in great condition 🙂 I have just sold about 12-15 handbags and a few pairs of shoes to actually invest in a beautiful dress ring with black onyx and diamonds. My husband is impressed to say the least! He doesn’t have to fork out a penny. Get the LV!!

Amazona

Selling to fund new purchases has been my jam for a long time. My bag closet has a budget and I haven’t added much to it in a while – making smart choices&haggling when I buy and selling for market prices has earned my bag closet a nice increase in value. It makes sense to have your bag collection stay at a reasonable size because there are other, more important things in life that require funds as well and bags are an expensive hobby.

tiffany

I can so relate to this—the obsessing, the buying, the selling of a bag (or bags) I’m not even out-of-love-with yet in order to pay for the new one. And more often than not, the bag I buy is gone from my closet within six months. Really tired of the merry-go-round, but apparently, not tired enough to jump off. Anyone been successful in stopping this kind of behavior? If so, how did you do it?

Dana Hansen

What are the venues to sell your vintage purses?

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