At just 24 years old, Maya Torres is a true a #girlboss entrepreneur –the San Diego native has run a successful side business for over two years buying clothes, never wearing them, then selling them at half-price on Depop.
“So many of my friends are making extra money from selling their old clothes on second-hand fashion websites,” says the next Barbara Corcoran. “So I figured, why not join them? I have so many clothes never wear and want to sell for less than I paid for them!”
Indeed, most of Maya’s clothes on her Depop still have tags on them and are filled with various clothing items that she bought “because it would be cute in a specific outfit” but proceeded to never wear that specific outfit.
Although from a business standpoint, Maya is constantly at a deficit, the budding fashion tycoon is still thrilled at how much money is coming in.
“I love flipping clothes, it’s such a good side hustle!” says Maya, “I can clean out my closet and make money from it, how great is that?”
When told about the difference between net and gross profit, Maya still shrugged off the idea that she would save more money by not buying clothes she’s never going to wear or simply returning the clothes instead of selling them for a steep discount.
“How do I know if I’m going to wear something unless I buy it, leave it in my closet until at least past the 30-day return window, and loosely hang it in front of me in the mirror? Without that process, I would never have the thriving small business I have today. It’s all about the grind – in this case, my grind is constantly buying new clothes I don’t wear.”
With the success of her Depop shop, this budding Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur plans on expanding her business to include the piles and piles of canvas tote bags she has amassed to “do her part for the environment,” despite only ever using two bags at the most when grocery shopping.
As of press time, Maya was listing a designer dress she found in the back of her closet that she bought “just in case she ever had to go to a wedding” but never did.
