Selling baby clothes online in Australia: what to look for beyond Facebook Marketplace

To sell baby clothes online in Australia, look for a place where the buyer’s payment is secured before you post anything, where every fee is shown up front, and where the postage label is sorted for you. Then list by size, photograph the pieces in daylight, describe wear honestly and check that nothing you list has been recalled.

Children outgrow baby clothes quickly, so they are a natural thing to pass on second-hand. A parent clearing a cupboard is a private seller, not a business, and the rules that apply to a private sale are different from the rules that apply to a shop.

What to look for in a place to sell

Whichever site or app you use, six questions sort the good options from the risky ones.

• When does the buyer pay, and does the money reach you only after the parcel is delivered?
• Who pays the fees, and are they itemised before anyone commits?
• Is a postage label provided, and is the parcel tracked?
• Do buyers and sellers have to be verified before they can message or trade?
• Is there a clear dispute process if something goes wrong?
• Does it say what may not be sold, so recalled or unsafe items are kept out?

The rest of this guide goes through each of those points, using how Gettit handles them as the worked example.

How payment works, and why sellers should care

Payment risk is not only a buyer problem. An overpayment that has to be refunded, or a payment method that cannot be reversed, can leave a seller out of pocket too.

On a shipped order on Gettit, the buyer pays through the platform and the payment is held. Gettit releases it to the seller after delivery, once the buyer confirms the item, or when the 48-hour confirmation window after Australia Post’s delivered scan ends without an issue being raised. The seller does not have to take a bank transfer from a stranger.

Sellers also need to set up payouts. Payouts run through Stripe Connect, and a seller completes Stripe’s identity check once before they can be paid. Browsing, messaging and listing do not need that check. Members must verify their email address and mobile number before they can buy, sell or send messages.

Who pays the fees

Fees are the second thing to compare, and the useful question is who pays them. On Gettit, listing is free and sellers pay no fee when an item sells, so a seller receives the full item price.

The buyer pays a buyer protection fee on shipped orders, which is 7.5% of the item price plus $1.50, plus postage. Both are shown before they pay. Free local pickup has no Gettit fees at all, although it is paid directly between the two people and is not covered by Gettit Protection. The full schedule is on the fees page.

Photos, sizing and honest condition

Gettit’s community guidelines ask sellers to use their own photos of the actual item and to describe it accurately, including faults, wear and missing parts. For baby clothes that comes down to a few habits.

• Photograph in daylight on a plain surface, with each piece laid flat.
• Include the size label and the care label, because buyers shop by the printed size rather than the age in a title.
• Take a close-up of any stain, pilling, fading, stretched neckline or loose snap.
• Say how the items were stored and washed only if it is true.

Condition words matter. Product Safety Australia tells buyers to make sure they understand descriptions such as ‘as new’, ‘excellent’, ‘good’, ‘fair’ or ‘used’, and to ask the seller when they are unsure. A listing that shows flaws plainly answers that question before it is asked.

Bundles and pricing

Bundling by size, and often by season, suits baby clothes. A parent buying for a six month old wants one parcel of that size rather than ten separate orders, and a seller packs and posts once.

• Name the size and the number of pieces in the title.
• Photograph the whole bundle, then each piece or a clear flat lay of all of them.
• Mention the brands, and anything that is worn more than the rest.
• Look at what similar bundles are listed for before you set a price, and leave room for an offer.

On Gettit, buyers can buy at the listed price or make an offer, and the seller can accept, decline or counter. Bundles for the youngest sizes belong in the baby clothing category.

Check the item before you list it

Private sellers have safety responsibilities too. Product Safety Australia advises private sellers to make sure the information they give about a product is accurate and to check whether it has been recalled, banned or fails a required minimum safety standard. The regulator publishes a searchable recalls database, and Gettit’s community guidelines do not allow recalled or unsafe goods to be listed.

One mandatory standard that touches baby clothing directly is the one for children’s nightwear. It is a mandatory standard. Nightwear in the covered range must carry a fire hazard label, either a low fire hazard label or a high fire hazard warning label, and the standard covers items such as pyjamas, nightdresses, dressing gowns and infant sleep bags with sleeves or arm openings. Product Safety Australia also notes that loose-fitting nightwear has a higher risk of catching fire and that no nightwear is fireproof (see the children’s nightwear guide).

In practice that means keeping the label on nightwear and photographing it so buyers can see it. The standard’s page also lists the garments it does not cover, so check the item against that list if you are unsure.

Postage for baby clothes

Clothing is light, so it suits a satchel. On Gettit, shipping is carried out by Australia Post. The seller gets a prepaid, tracked label, packs the parcel and drops it at a parcel locker or post office, and the buyer pays for postage. Small satchels suit light flat items, medium satchels suit clothing and shoes, and large satchels suit bulkier soft items or a few garments. The FAQ on satchel sizes explains why to use a genuine Australia Post satchel rather than your own bag, and how to send a sold item walks through the steps.

Australia Post’s packaging tips say the packaging should be durable, secured with heavy-duty packing tape, and neither too loose nor too tight, and that empty space should be filled so the item does not move around. A parcel locker also gives the seller a drop-off record.

Scams that target sellers

Scamwatch lists several warning signs for sellers. Among them are a buyer sending a payment that is more than the agreed price and asking you to refund the difference, being told to pay or be paid in unusual ways such as money orders, pre-loaded cards or several different PayIDs, and an account holder whose name does not match the person you think you are dealing with. Scamwatch also notes that many payments are now made instantly and it is unlikely you will get your money back.

The simplest way to avoid payment scams on a shipped order is to keep the sale and the payment on the platform. Gettit’s guidelines say never to pay or accept payment off the platform for a shipped order, and to report anyone who asks you to move off it. For a shipped order of baby clothes there is no reason to accept a bank transfer from a stranger, because Gettit already holds the buyer’s payment. See Scamwatch’s guide to buying and selling scams for the full list.

What the law does and does not cover

Product Safety Australia states that most consumer guarantees do not apply to private sales between two people where the seller is not a business, including sales made through online marketplaces. The only guarantees that apply to private sales are title to the product, undisturbed possession, and no hidden debts or charges. Under the Australian Consumer Law, buyers have a right to a remedy from a business seller that fails a consumer guarantee, but not generally from a private seller (see the ACCC’s buying guide and its guide for sellers).

Gettit is a venue that connects buyers and sellers. It is not the seller and is not a party to the sale, and it does not own, store, inspect or authenticate the items listed. Gettit Protection is its own purchase guarantee for shipped orders paid through the platform, covering items that do not arrive or are materially not as described, up to the amount the buyer paid. Gettit Protection does not cover change of mind. Buyers looking for the other side of this guide can read how to buy second-hand baby clothes and bundles, and anyone selling larger items can read how buyers check second-hand baby gear.

Gettit facts

Sources

1. Product Safety Australia (ACCC), Buy safe second-hand products online, on consumer guarantees in private sales, reading condition terms and what to check before buying. productsafety.gov.au
2. Product Safety Australia (ACCC), How to sell safe second-hand products online, on the responsibilities of private sellers. productsafety.gov.au
3. Product Safety Australia (ACCC), Nightwear for children mandatory standard, on the garments covered and the fire hazard labels. productsafety.gov.au
4. Product Safety Australia (ACCC), Children's nightwear guide, on fire hazard labels and well-fitting nightwear. productsafety.gov.au
5. Product Safety Australia (ACCC), Search consumer product recalls. productsafety.gov.au
6. Scamwatch (National Anti-Scam Centre), Buying and selling scams, on warning signs, overpayment and payment methods. scamwatch.gov.au
7. Australia Post, Packaging tips. auspost.com.au