Why Right Now Is the Best Time of Year to Shop for Cheap Designer Clothes

Other people’s New Year’s resolutions could be a boon for bargain hunters: Secondhand and consignment websites say more people clean out closets and unload unwanted goods at this time of year, including clothes they’ve never even worn and still have the tags on. As a result, there's arguably no better time of year to browsing for deals on desirable duds.

Online secondhand stores like The RealReal and thredUP, which resell designer clothes and accessories see a big uptick in new inventory come January, according to CNBC. The RealReal, which focuses on luxury brands, said that nearly 40% of its inventory had tags still on it at the end of the last holiday season, compared to just 4% new-with-tags (or NWT in thrifter parlance) at other times of the year.

In many cases, these aren't out-of-style or worn-out items people are looking to unload. Part of the New Year's surge at sites like these is due to people trying to make money off unwanted holiday gifts, or finally getting over their guilt about getting rid of a brand-new item. If you want to score a deal, though, you have to move fast: CNBC said 80% of the items on The RealReal are sold within three days of being listed.

Even if one of your resolutions was to cut back on buying anything new (even new-used) for a few months, that's fine too. These online, high-end thrift stores said they also get a surge of new inventory around springtime, when people tackle spring cleaning projects and clean out closets.