York student made £17,000 reselling trainers and designer clothing whilst studying

A former University of York student made an estimated £16,000 to £17,000 by reselling second hand clothes during his studies.

Haider Rashid Chaudhry decided to sell trainers and designer clothing online after his student finance was delayed.

The pressure of accommodation rent instalments prompted Chaudhry to try his luck at selling on online marketplaces, resulting in a huge income throughout his three year politics and international relations course, The Mirror reports.

Langwith College, University of York

The University of York is known for its high accommodation prices, reaching highs of £241 per week, and £9,856 for a year self-catered. Beginning his course in 2017, Haider began working full-time at Ralph Lauren but still needed further income to cover his rent due to the delay in his loan.

It was during his time at Ralph Lauren that the student became fascinated by designer and vintage clothing, forming contact networks as far as the US to supply him with items to resell.

However, Haider credits his initial inspiration to a friend that had already made a large profit from reselling. His time at university from 2017 to 2020 saw a huge boom in online marketplaces and reselling.

Haider claims that the trainer scene was massively popular and increasingly trendy, meaning a pair of Nikes bought for £100 would resell for £600 to £700.

He told The Mirror: “At the time, the sneaker reselling market was really big, it was a thing a lot of people were doing. I started by getting lucky in a couple of the Nike draws and making £600 to £700 on a pair of trainers that I purchased for £100.”

“I got really ingrained in the sneaker scene, but because I was working for Ralph Lauren and I was a Ralph Lauren enthusiast, I got engulfed in the Ralph Lauren vintage clothing network as well. There were some guys in the US and one of those guys sent me a couple of bits. He sent me some Ralph Lauren bits that weren’t available in the UK which I went on to resell. I built good relationships and had returning customers.”

Yet his most successful sale was not trainers, but loafers. He purchased five pairs of Edward Green shoes for around £150 each and sold them for £700 per pair. Haider said: “I sold them all to the same guy who owns an online shoe store for people with larger sized feet. I celebrated a lot after that.”

Despite Haider’s references to his luck surrounding buying and reselling, his enterprising mindset continues today as an account manager at a London communications agency.

He kept up reselling following his graduation, adapting to the Coronavirus pandemic by entirely changing the stock he would sell. As well as designer clothing and trainers, he now also sells everyday items such as dog flea shampoo and random items found at auction.

On how others can earn a bit of extra cash whilst studying, Haider said: “My top tips would be, you need to understand your consumer. I check how many items have sold in the last month, the price they sold at, all the specifics.”

“The customer is not seeing you, so your best representation of yourself is your product. If I’m selling used goods, it’s important I package them in the right way.”

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