Women's
Fashion Resale Franchise
Clothes Mentor buys and sells name-brand and
designer clothing, shoes, handbags, and accessories.
WHO WE ARE
Brand Overview
Fashion, Fun, Franchise!
A Rewarding Opportunity Awaits
Joining Clothes Mentor offers more than just a lucrative business venture. It’s a chance for working moms to balance career and family, for couples to build something together while giving back to their community, and for parent-child teams to create a multi-generational legacy. It’s an opportunity for ambitious professionals to thrive as their own boss, rather than working for someone else.
Tapping into a Booming Industry
The resale clothing industry is experiencing explosive growth, projected to double by 2028, growing 6.4x faster than traditional retail. With no signs of slowing down. This remarkable expansion opens the door for you to become part of the Clothes Mentor family. Since 2007, over 100 individuals have pursued their dreams by launching a Clothes Mentor store.
A Passionate and Supportive Community
The Clothes Mentor franchise family is a tight-knit group of passionate owners who cherish the freedom to control their destiny. Explore our website to learn more about who we are and what we do. If you’ve been feeling the urge for a professional change – one that offers flexibility and growth potential on your terms – start building the future you want with Clothes Mentor today!
Retail &
E-commerce
Clothes Mentor: Embracing Resale and Ecommerce
Clothes Mentor is using cutting-edge technology to take advantage of the growing secondhand market. They have a smart way of selling used clothes that opens up new ways to make money.
Local Sourcing and National Sales
Clothes Mentor’s physical retail stores buy gently used clothes from people in their local communities. But the real strength is their advanced system that allows them to sell these clothes not just in their local stores, but also online across the country.
Combining Local Buying and Online Selling
By combining local buying with a powerful online sales platform, Clothes Mentor can take advantage of the booming resale industry nationally. This gives all customers easy access to quality used goods, while also allowing franchise owners to make money through multiple sales channels.
Advanced Re-commerce Technology
Clothes Mentor’s use of leading-edge resale technology shows they are looking to the future. They are meeting changing customer demands, embracing sustainability, and creating new ways for franchise owners to make a profit even when their retail stores are closed. A win-win for everyone!
Tremendous Industry Growth
Clothes Mentor is not consignment or thrift — it’s resale reimagined.
Every independently-owned Clothes Mentor franchise specializes in offering remarkable discounts of up to 70% off original retail prices on gently used, name-brand, and designer clothing, shoes, handbags, and accessories. Franchisees leverage a powerful data-driven Point-of-Sale system to appraise the items they are buying, ensuring that owners curate a desirable inventory. With a keen eye for identifying high-quality items in excellent condition that align with current fashion trends or possess a timeless, classic appeal, Clothes Mentor owners are committed to providing customers with exceptional value without compromising on style or quality.
Why resale and is the resale industry growing?
Over the last decade, the impact of the so-called “retail apocalypse” has been very real. Traditional brick-and-mortar retail stores have been closing by the thousands, losing customers to e-commerce giants. So how is a store-based brand like Clothes Mentor growing so quickly?
It’s because we’re in a different market. We are in the RESALE industry, which has grown three times faster than the retail apparel market in recent years. Some 52% of consumers have shopped secondhand clothing in 2023 alone, and that number is expected to grow. Even big names like Nordstrom, Macy’s, and JC Penney have gotten into the resale game and now stock secondhand items in their inventory.
A few reasons why resale has exploded:
- It’s exciting for buyers and sellers. Owners of name-brand clothing and accessories can earn cash for their gently-used items, and resale customers love getting bargains on high-quality designer fashion.
- It promotes sustainability. Instead of sending their unwanted items to a landfill, consumers can give their clothing a new home with someone who will love wearing it. Even celebrities celebrate the “vintage” secondhand fashion movement, making it an eco-friendly and trendy choice for consumers.
- It makes fashion accessible to everyone. Fashion changes frequently, and shoppers want to keep up. With resale, shoppers don’t need to pay retail prices for brand-new items every time the trends change. They can enjoy high fashion at a price they can afford.
We love our Customers
Who is our target customer?
A Fashionable and Eco-Friendly Choice
Clothes Mentor is the perfect destination for stylish women, 25-65, who appreciate designer and name-brand fashion at affordable prices. Our customers love a bargain, have an eye for quality, and seek clothing and accessories that make them look and feel their best, without breaking the bank.
What sets Clothes Mentor apart is our commitment to a sustainable and socially responsible approach to fashion. Our customers are drawn to our resale shops because they offer a win-win situation: they can shop for high-end, gently used items at great prices, and they can earn cash on the spot by recycling their own lightly worn clothing.
By choosing Clothes Mentor, our customers are making a conscious decision to reduce textile waste and embrace a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. They understand the importance of community and reducing their carbon footprint. They are proud to be part of a movement that promotes sustainability in the fashion industry.
Olivia, age 28
Olivia leads a very active lifestyle and is constantly on the go. She is confident, well-networked, and unafraid to go after what she wants. Olivia has always had a defined sense of style in her personal life, but now that she’s rising through the ranks in her career, she’s looking for stylish, affordable business-casual clothing to match her C-suite ambitions. Since she’s still paying off her student loan debt, Clothes Mentor items suit Olivia’s tastes and her wallet. She’s always finding awesome deals on her favorite designer and name-brands – and sometimes even finds things she didn’t know she was looking for!
Like many Millennials, Olivia is civic-minded with a strong sense of community, both local and global. She loves that she can stay connected to Clothes Mentor through our social media presence, but she also adores our friendly and personal staff when she’s shopping here. Both online and in-person, Olivia can feel that sense of community when she’s engaging with Clothes Mentor.
Our Stores
Why do customers keep coming back to Clothes Mentor? They know they’ll always find an exceptional product within.
Whether buying or selling gently-used clothing, shoes or accessories, our customers know that Clothes Mentor focuses on quality.
How we get our inventory
Our inventory comes directly from our customers! Women who have name-brand and designer items in their closets that they no longer need can bring it in to Clothes Mentor. Our certified buyers evaluate each item, making sure it fits the following criteria:
- It’s in great condition.
- It’s current within the past few years.
- It’s free of wear, tears, stains and other damage.
- It’s freshly laundered.
- It has its original brand and size labels.
- It is contained in a basket or bag.
Cash on the spot
Customers are presented with an offer of cash on-the-spot or a percentage of in-store credit for the items the store wishes to purchase. Our point-of-sale software features a sophisticated buy matrix, which helps buyers make offers that are consistent and fit the margins of Clothes Mentor’s successful business model.
Designer and name brands at a fraction of the retail cost
Just like they love to make money by selling items to Clothes Mentor, customers love saving money by shopping at Clothes Mentor, too. That’s what resale is all about!
Stores price their high-quality, name-brand merchandise at up to 70% off the original retail mall price. Our franchisees regularly stock new inventory on the floor so customers can keep coming back, day after day, knowing they’ll discover new items at great prices. The more our stores buy, the more they sell!
Brand Growth
It takes major confidence in your brand to start franchising on the verge of an economic downturn. And it takes an incredibly strong business model to not only withstand but flourish during such a challenging time. That’s part of our history, and we take great pride in the resilience and success of Clothes Mentor since its humble beginning in 2007.
Sustained Growth
We’ve witnessed a ton of interest and growth since we started. Our brand’s concept of buying and selling gently used name-brand and designer clothing, shoes and accessories resonates with women in so many different communities nationwide—and the reach of the brand continues to grow. We’ve opened more than 130 stores and have more than a dozen awarded and under development.
Recognition as a leading franchise business
The Clothes Mentor team understands the resale business through and through—and it shows in the success of the brand and its many stores nationwide. We want you to join us in continuing to grow this thriving resale business!
One early milestone for the brand came after just a few years of franchising in 2009, when Clothes Mentor was first recognized in Entrepreneur’s annual Franchise 500 list. The recognition is based on franchise stability, growth rate, and size, among other factors, and considers all franchises that complete a survey across the United States and Canada.
In addition, our burgeoning women’s resale brand played a significant role in parent company, NTY Franchise Company, earning a spot in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal’s Fast 50. The program recognizes the fastest-growing privately held companies in the Twin Cities area according to criteria such as growth rate, revenue and more.
Investment
How much does it cost?
The graphic below shows the average investment range, average store gross margins, and average net sales from our top-performing stores, as reported in Item 19 of the Clothes Mentor Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
Inital investment range
$272,000 to $395,500*
Average gross margin
67.00%**
Average top performing sales
$1,278,370***
The charts below show the approximate Clothes Mentor initial investments you need to get the doors open, have a working capital reserve, get stocked with inventory, and be ready for your customers.
Estimated Range: | |
|---|---|
Low End Approximately | $272,000* |
High End Approximately | $395,500* |
While it’s likely that most stores will land in the targeted range listed above, it’s also dependent upon a number of variables. Further detailed information is outlined in our Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD). To get a copy of this document, please contact your Clothes Mentor franchise representative.
Type of Expenditures | Purchase Option Amount |
|---|---|
Total | $272,000 – $395,500 |
Initial Franchise Fee | $25,000 |
Leasehold Improvements | $25,000 – $60,000 |
Signs | $5,000 – $9,000 |
Fixtures | $50,000 – $70,000 |
Proprietary Software and POS | $19,000 |
Inventory | $50,000 – $70,000 |
Deposits, Business Licenses and Permits | $7,000 – $15,000 |
Legal and Accounting | $0 – $4,000 |
Security | $7,000 – $10,000 |
Travel Expenses to Attend Training | $4,000 – $8,500 |
Pre-opening Labor Expenses | $10,000 – $15,000 |
Grand Opening Advertising | $16,000 – $20,000 |
Miscellaneous Pre-opening Expenses | $14,000 – $20,000 |
Rent – 3 Months | $20,000 – $25,000 |
Additional Funds – 3 Months | $20,000 – $25,000 |
FRANCHISEE REQUIREMENTS:
- Liquid Capital Available: $80,000-$100,000
- Net Worth: $400,000 or more
- Those who intend to Own and Operate their own Business
- Previous Retail Industry Experience a Plus
- Previous Management Experience a Plus
- A Love and Passion for Resale
- A Love and Passion for Fashion
- A Love and Passion for Sustainability
Support
Proven success model
The Clothes Mentor franchise company has developed a clear path that will help you to avoid years of trial and error, reduce costly mistakes, shorten your learning curve and, ultimately, reach your goals sooner. The following are key benefits that come along with a Clothes Mentor franchise.
We’ll work with you to develop a plan that can be used as the financial and operational guide for your store during the critical start-up phase of your business.
We conduct two separate, comprehensive training programs that provide our new owners with both pre-opening and post-opening classes and hands-on experience.
We have a Small Business Administration (SBA) preferred status lenders who can help you with prequalification before you commit to opening your store. These lenders knows our brand, our business plan and how to process loans quickly and efficiently.
Clothes Mentor has adopted a standardized real estate process that has a clearly defined all-in-one strategy for site selection, lease negotiation and legal review
We have proven vendors already in place to get the best pricing and service on everything needed for store buildout: fixtures, equipment, interior/exterior signage, point-of-sale system and more.
The unique software that runs our proprietary POS system was specifically designed to meet the ever-changing needs of the resale business. With touch screen capabilities and a built-in buy matrix, the system assists in the buying and selling of gently used merchandise.
Our FBCs serve as small business consultants for our franchisees. They are responsible for ensuring success in all areas of the resale operation, including financial performance, merchandising and customer service.
Before a store even opens, we help to create excitement about it. Then we continue to provide marketing support to all stores at both local and national levels. Get more in-depth information about each of these topics within the following pages.
Our Team
Franchisee Testimonials
Clothes Mentor franchisees from all across the country are here to tell you what it’s like to own a store and work with the Clothes Mentor franchise company. Click on the videos below to hear from a few Clothes Mentor franchisees.
Clothes Mentor News
We invite you to discover what it would be like to start your own successful resale business with the help of our proven techniques, training and support team.
Connect to Learn More?
Contact Us to Receive Your Free Franchise Report
