Reawaken your future with us.

The people who join Clothes Mentor get so much more than just a lucrative business opportunity. They’re the successful working moms who want a career and more time with their kids. They’re the married couples who want to build something together and give back to their community. They’re the entrepreneurial parent-and-child teams eager to create a multi-generational legacy. They’re ambitious professionals who want the chance to thrive working for themselves — instead of someone else.

Are you one of those future Clothes Mentors?

The resale clothing industry is on pace to double its size in a five year period — growing to more than $50 billion annually by 2023. And it’s showing no signs of slowing after that. This stunning pace of growth opens up the door for you to join our Clothes Mentor community. Since 2007, more than 100 people have followed their dreams and launched a Clothes Mentor store.

The Clothes Mentor franchise community is a happy family of passionate owners who love the freedom to control their destiny. Take a look around and learn more about who we are and what we do. If you’ve been having those inner stirrings to make a professional change — one that gives you flexibility and growth potential on your terms — start building the future you want with us! You can start today.

Clothes Mentor is not consignment or thrift — it’s upscale resale.

Each independently-owned Clothes Mentor franchise sells gently used name-brand and designer clothing, shoes, and accessories for up to 70% off original retail prices. Our owners have a great eye for pieces that are in great condition and are on-trend or classic and timeless.

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 21 times faster than the retail apparel market in recent years. Nearly 60 million women alone purchased secondhand clothing in 2018, 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 like Taylor Swift and Maggie Rogers are celebrating 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

Clothes Mentor is all about providing fashion at great prices. Our franchise owners source their inventory from local customers who have name-brand and designer pieces in their closets that they no longer wear (or have never worn at all). Clothes Mentor pays cash on the spot or offers store credit for clothing in sizes 0 to 26 and maternity as well as shoes, handbags, and other accessories.

There are many Clothes Mentor stores throughout the United States, each serving its local community by both buying and selling high-quality items. The concept puts money back into the pockets of the people within the community and promotes the reuse of goods, which also benefits the environment.

Most importantly, Clothes Mentor allows its franchisees to be in business for themselves and build the lifestyle they want. Our store owners can create a career that allows for personal and professional fulfillment.

Clothes Mentor is for the modern woman with great taste and an eye for fashion. She wants designer and name-brand clothes and accessories that make her look great and feel great – at a great price.

Our customer is drawn to resale shops like Clothes Mentor because it’s a win-win for her: She can shop for high-end, quality items without breaking the bank, and she can earn cash on the spot for recycling her gently-used clothing. Most importantly, she knows she is making a socially and environmentally responsible choice by reducing textile waste.

Who is our target customer?

The typical Clothes Mentor customer is a 25- to 55-year old woman who lives within a 20-mile radius of our store. Let’s meet a few of them:

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.

Elisa, age 43

Elisa is a busy mom of two who’s constantly juggling her responsibilities at home and at work. This Gen X-er has recently returned to the workforce after a brief hiatus to focus on raising her family. Although they are now a dual-income household, Elisa remains very cost-conscious and wants to provide for herself and her family in an economical way.

Nothing is more important to Elisa than being a good mom to her kids, but now that they’re both in school, she has a little more time to focus on her own personal sense of style. On a whim, she wandered into her local Clothes Mentor and fell in love with all the designer and name-brand clothing in the store. She gets an incredible value when she shops with us, and she never feels guilty about the price tag.

Elisa recently discovered our Personal Shopper program, which has helped her find the best styles for her daily life and career, as well as uncover some new fashion trends. She truly feels like shopping at Clothes Mentor has helped her define her “look” as an ambitious, successful working mother.

Calla, age 59

Calla was born during a time of dramatic social change. She grew up in the wake of the Vietnam War, civic and environmental movements, and women’s rights movements, so her family raised her to be socially and financially responsible.

This upbringing instilled a desire in Calla to work hard and plan for the future. She tends to be more fiscally conservative and has always stuck to a strong personal financial plan.

When she shops for herself, Calla is looking for value about all else: She wants high-quality merchandise at a great price. She expects a high level of customer service provided by a friendly and knowledgeable staff. She finds all of that at Clothes Mentor.

What’s in it for me?

This is a common question asked by our customers. Our resale business model offers more than other retail stores. Watch this video to find out what’s in it for our customers:

Our Product

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 approximately 70% less than the original retail price. Our franchisees regularly put new inventory out 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!

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.