Depop reseller defends her business after being accused of ‘greed’

The US teenager resells vintage fashion items she finds in thrift stores

Depop reseller Jacklyn Wells went viral for showing off her vintage finds (TikTok/Jacklyn Wells)

A 19-year-old vintage fashion dealer on Depop has hit back at critics who accused her of being “greedy” and “lazy” for marking up the prices of the clothes she resells.

Jacklyn Wells runs her small business through the resale platform under the storefront Jack’s Vintage and regularly posts TikTok videos about her vintage “hauls”.

Recently, she posted a video about her “most insane thrift haul” and showcased a number of vintage leather coats and Noughties denim maxi skirts that she had found and would list on her Depop shop. The video went viral, racking up more than 5.9 million views.

Wells’ fans loved the clothes she found, with many praising her for her sense of style. One person commented on the TikTok video and wrote: “This is legitimately the best thrift haul I’ve ever seen, wow, you got some great finds!”

But the video received backlash after it was shared to Twitter, where some people took issue with the prices Wells was selling some of the clothes for.

One of the items was a suede coat with a fur trim that Wells later listed for US$175. A second was a brown leather trench coat she listed for US$120.

On Twitter, one person accused Wells of being “greedy” and “lazy”.

The same social media user added in a separate tweet: “Like a 1,600 per cent plus up charge [sic] for what she bought it for is INSANE, it’s valid to charge a little extra because you put in the work thrifting, it’s like a personal shopper, but US$170, be for f***ing real??”

Another said: “I wholeheartedly despise resellers who are THIS f***ing greedy.”

But others defended Wells, including author Cora Harrington, who formerly ran the popular Lingerie Addict blog.

Harrington tweeted: “US$120 for a vintage leather coat is astoundingly reasonable.

“I’m not super involved in the thrift reseller conversation because that’s not my ministry, but believing a really cool vintage leather coat – that you didn’t have to go hunting for yourself – is overpriced is… well, we need to unpack what people think an accurate price is.”

A second person said: “Not gonna [sic] lie, I have zero issue with this, I would rather people do this than sell fast fashion, there’s so much clothing in thrift stores they literally throw them out a lot of the time.”

Wells took to Instagram to address the criticism in a recent post and said she began reselling vintage clothes at the age of 16 while she lived with her sister and worked in “fast food” to earn money through high school.

“Where I live, there are 20 Goodwills,” she wrote, referring to an American non-profit organisation that raises funds through thrift stores. “All overflowing, all restocking hourly, and all sending truckloads of excess clothing to the bins.

“Reselling pushes circular fashion, sustainable consumption and helps low-income individuals earn a living wage off of endless clothing,” she continued.

Wells has since set her Instagram account to private, but her TikTok and Depop pages remain public.