Im a medical student and I bought a house just by selling used clothes - how you can too

Posted by Reinaldo Massengill on Monday, May 6, 2024

DURING the Covid–19 pandemic, it seemed like everyone was carrying around an empty wallet.

However, a medical student at Oakland University thought of a creative way to make extra cash amidst the difficult time, and she shared it with CNBC Make It.

Olivia Hillier had some experience selling a few of her own old clothing items on the well-known resale app, Poshmark, but it was always just a way for her to get a few extra bucks.

One day during the height of the pandemic, she noticed that other Poshmark sellers were profiting from “flipping” trendy thrift store finds.

So, she became a bit curious if she could do the same and spent the next couple of months testing various clothing items on the app.

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Eventually, she came to focus on selling vibrant vintage statement pieces because those items sold the fastest.

The first item that Olivia "flipped" on Poshmark was a $5 t-shirt she found at a thrift store, and she sold it for $20.

However, Olivia's side hustle didn't earn the big bucks right away because she needed to find a routine of studying for school and selling clothes on Poshmark.

Once she found her rhythm, her Poshmark store gained traction, and her audience got a bit more targeted.

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She began looking for items that caught the attention of women, specifically between 25 to 40 years old, wanting a “young professional” flare.

From there, her business started to take off.

How Olivia's side hustle is doing now

Nowadays, she spends between 20 to 40 hours per week sourcing, posting and shipping clothes.

In 2021, the side hustle brought in about $85,000, and it has given Olivia more than $117,000 in total revenue so far.

In 2022, it has already brought in more than $55,000.

It currently averages $6,000 to $7,000 of profit per month, but it depends on how much Olivia is selling and how busy she is at the hospital.

She has used some of the revenue from the business to help buy her and her husband a five-bedroom house and pay off student loans.

Olivia explains her gratefulness for the success of the business to CNBC Make It because without it, "I’d have to take out loans to cover my living expenses, on top of tuition.”

Though Olivia just recently graduated from medical school and will be starting her residency in Kansas, she said: "I want to keep this business going through residency, and I hope to continue it when I’m an attending doctor.”

Read More on The US Sun

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