Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessie Feigert.
Hi Jessie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was a single mom living in my parent’s basement a few years ago, and I needed a way to make some money. I was also freelance writing at the time and enrolled in a program to become certified in medical coding. I was earning little money, and much of my time was spent in school when I wasn’t caring for my young daughter.
I started buying clearance gift sets from Sephora’s “After Christmas” sales, breaking the pieces up and selling them individually for a profit. I have a background in cosmetics, so I was familiar with the items. From there, I slowly built up a solid eBay store with over 1,000 items, focusing on vintage clothing, toys, and collectibles. Violet’s Vanity is named after my daughter, Violet Mariah.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has been quite a difficult road and I am still learning. There are so many people selling items online, especially nowadays, and it requires an immense amount of time, effort, and patience.
When you are running a small business by yourself, all the pressure falls on you. I have hit so many walls where I have wanted to give up; not selling enough, navigating the high fees I pay to sell on different platforms…I am learning everything as I go. Even today, it’s difficult and my store has hit a lull this new year. It’s hard.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I am a reseller. I could try to dress it up in fancier language -online retailer, antique dealer, merchandise distributor- but I find no shame in calling myself a reseller. I use online platforms to sell mostly preowned goods, mostly on eBay, but I also am on Poshmark, Mercari, Etsy, and Facebook Marketplace. I focus on vintage and antique items, with a focus on 90s streetwear and other vintage clothing; antique and vintage dolls; and other collectibles (e.g. old glassware, military items, etc.). I have a scholastic background in qualitative research, so I do my best to heavily research the items I sell to provide their history to customers.
What sets me apart from other sellers is my work ethic. I ship all my items out the same or the next day, I take great care in packaging all items appropriately, I respond to all inquiries immediately, and I truly have so much appreciation for my customers; without them, I could not do this. I think what people need to know about online resellers is: 1) There is more than enough to go around. We are not taking all the “good items” and making it hard for others to find things to buy at thrift stores. and 2) In fact, this is one of the best professions for the environment.
The amount of items that still get dumped into landfills is mind-boggling. The fashion industry, especially, with the rise of fast fashion, is destroying our world. I feel good saving used items from a potential trash dump, polishing them up, figuring out their unique history, and finding the exact buyer that will love them.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
The best thing you can do for your finances is to have at least a side gig in which you are working for yourself and can work from anywhere.
Having flexibility and not relying on a parent company is my end goal; working for myself and being self-sustaining is a level of freedom that I realized I needed during the pandemic. Covid taught me that you can never fully rely on anyone else, be it a company or a person, so you have to take your destiny into your own hands.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://stores.ebay.com/violetsvanity
- Instagram: instagram.com/violetsvanityatl/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/violets.vanity/
