A mom of 3 quit her toxic job to be a reseller on Poshmark. She loves it but warns it's a '24/7' commitment.
Candice Murray
- Candice Murray used to work three jobs to support her two children.
- Now she works full time as a Poshmark reseller.
- She says she loves it but works 12-hour days and has found it hard to make money.
Candice Murray says her 2016 decision to leave what she calls a "toxic" and "emotionally and mentally abusive" work environment changed her life.
The 48-year-old New Yorker now works full time selling clothes, shoes, and bags exclusively through the reseller platform Poshmark.
But it hasn't all been roses.
She say that she "loves" what she does and that the decision to leave her former employer "forever changed" her life. But the Poshmark life isn't an easy one. She made roughly $23,000 last year, according to documents viewed by Insider, and is on track to make a similar amount in 2022.
She says the work of shopping, sanitizing, photographing, listing, packaging, and shipping could make it feel like a "24/7 job." She does everything by herself and says she typically works at least 12-hour days, shipping items every day except Sunday.
Still, Murray says the extra income has been huge for her family.
"This is not play money for me. It's helped me put two kids through college," she says. "Electric bills, phone bills, this is very serious for me, and it helps my husband tremendously. It's nice to be able to take the occasional vacation every now and then, but this really helps pay my bills."
Murray is one of millions of Americans who have found ways to generate income outside a traditional workplace. Researching large companies, the MIT Sloan School of Management estimated that roughly one in 10 US workers think their workplace culture is toxic. The paths workers who feel that way have taken to escape that culture have varied. US workers filed over 5 million new business applications in 2021, the most since 2005.
A 2021 Upwork study estimated that 59 million Americans — or 36% of the US workforce — had performed freelance work over the prior 12 months. Others have ditched college for trade schools or apprenticeship programs.
And some, like Murray, have embraced reseller platforms like Poshmark to effectively start businesses of their own.
Candice Murray
She loves the 'thrill of the hunt' to find inventory
Murray says she quit her previous job on four separate occasions but always returned because she needed the money. In 2006, she became a single mom and began working two more jobs, including as a bank teller and a "sprayer" for perfume companies in Macy's, to support her children.
But by 2016, she'd remarried and was working only the one resale job. She'd created her Poshmark account in 2014, selling only a few items here and there, when one day she concluded: "I think I could do this. I think I can do this on my own."
She decided to quit her job and pursue Poshmark full time, a decision she says was "scary" because having dual incomes was "so important" to her family.
"I told my husband, 'We're going to be in a bad financial position for a couple of years,' and he said: 'Go for it. You need to get out of that environment,'" she says.
Once she committed, she says, there was "no turning back."
Given she spends "very little on inventory," she says that her profit margin is roughly 60%, but Poshmark's 20% commission on sales of $15 or more takes a chunk out. Between 2017 to 2021, that profit ranged from $9,000 to $28,000.
While Murray had experience in the resale world, she says it took her some time to figure out which items sold best, the cheapest places to get them, and how to develop a returning customer base. She says she gets her inventory from "everywhere" — including friends' closets, thrift stores, and online — and has become an "expert" at finding things at great prices.
"The thrill of the hunt, the find, is such an adrenaline rush. It's incredible," she says.
She recalls "almost having a heart attack" after finding a a rare Chanel "Coco Libre" sequin shirt in a bin at The Salvation Army. It was being thrown out, and because Murray was a regular customer, an employee told her she could "keep it" if she wanted. She says she ended up selling the shirt for close to $3,000.
Candice Murray
3 tips for beginners on Poshmark
For aspiring resellers, Murray has a few pieces of advice.
First is "quality over quantity."
She says some Poshmark stores list 200 items a day, but she says she does about 150 a week "so clients aren't overwhelmed" with too many new items to look at.
Next, Murray says that while there's a "buyer for everything," she's selective about which items she puts in her store because "consistency is key," and she wants her customers to know what to expect.
"You have to make that decision. Do you want to create a brand or do you just want to be a garage-sale seller?" she says. "Both are fine, but it could also determine the amount of money that you make in the end."
She says her items are "always below retail price" but she typically trusts her gut on what to sell them for — rather than doing a ton of online price comparisons — because "some things sell for less than they should."
Finally, Murray says that while one doesn't necessarily have to quit their job to be successful on Poshmark, they do have to "go full time mentally."
In addition to her core Poshmark responsibilities, she says, she answers questions from clients at all hours of the day, an important way to cultivate her customer base.
"You're never going to make any money unless you put yourself into something 100%," she says.
Moving forward, Murray says it's been an "incredible journey," one she has no plans to conclude anytime soon.
"Doing what I love is the most euphoric thing that could ever happen to me," she says. "I'll do this forever."
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