What’s the Difference between Consignment and Resale?

Most recently, myGemma launched a new luxury consignment service in February, expanding beyond their direct selling model to offer customers more ways to monetize their designer items. But what exactly is the difference between consignment and resale?

The Fundamental Distinction The primary distinction between consignment and resale lies in ownership and payment timing. With resale, stores purchase items outright from sellers, paying cash or store credit immediately upon acceptance. The store then owns the items and is responsible for selling them.

In contrast, consignment operates on a partnership model where the original owner keeps ownership until the item sells, receiving a percentage of the final sale price only after a successful transaction.

As Andrew Brown, CEO of myGemma, said: “Our consignment offering, alongside our direct selling option, is designed to help our customers sell their designer goods in whichever way is most practical and beneficial to them…