Grade A, B or C: What Our Thrift Grades Actually Mean

Buying second-hand online has a trust problem, and everybody knows it.

You have seen the listings. “Vintage jacket, good condition.” Then it arrives and “good condition” turns out to mean the previous owner survived a small fire in it. There is no photo of the sleeve for a reason. There is never a photo of the sleeve.

We grade every single second-hand item A, B or C before it goes live, and we put the grade on the product page where you cannot miss it. Here is what each one actually means, in plain language, with no marketing gymnastics.

Grade A: it looks new because it basically is

Grade A means the item has either never been worn or has been worn so lightly that you would need a magnifying glass and a grudge to find the wear.

What you get:

• No stains, no holes, no thinning fabric
• Original shape intact, no stretched cuffs or sagging knees
• Zips, buttons and clasps all present and working
• Often still has the original tags

Grade A is for the occasion you cannot risk. The interview. The wedding you are in, not just attending. The first day at a new job where you want to look like you have your life together, even if the truth is more complicated.

Grade A costs the most of the three, and it is still a fraction of retail.

Grade B: honest wear, full life left

Grade B is where most of our stock sits, and it is where the actual value is.

What you get:

• Light, visible wear that we photograph rather than hide
• Maybe a small mark, a slightly softened collar, honest fading on denim
• Everything still functional, nothing structurally compromised
• Photographed from the angle that shows the flaw, not the angle that flatters it

That last point matters. If a Grade B item has a mark on the left cuff, there is a photo of the left cuff. We are not going to make you play detective with a zoom function.

Grade B is your everyday wardrobe. Work clothes, weekend clothes, kids’ clothes that will be destroyed by a jungle gym within a fortnight anyway.

Grade C: character, or a project

Grade C items have obvious, named flaws. A missing button. A repaired seam. Fading that has moved past “vintage” and into “committed.”

What you get:

• The flaw described specifically, not vaguely
• The lowest price on the site
• Something worth wearing, mending or repurposing

We are honest about Grade C because the alternative is a return, a refund and a customer who never comes back. That maths does not work for anyone.

Some Grade C items get restored in-house before they are listed, and we say so when that happens. That restoration work is done by trainees in the Community Venture Development Program who are learning the trade on real stock, not practice pieces.

Why we bother grading at all

Because “condition: good” is not information. It is a shrug with a price attached.

A grading system does three things:

1. It sets your expectations before you pay. No surprises when the parcel lands.
2. It makes the price make sense. You can see why one blazer is R180 and a similar one is R420.
3. It keeps us honest. Once a grade is published on a product page, we have to live with it.

Frequently asked

Is everything cleaned before it is listed? Yes. Every item is cleaned and inspected before it goes live, regardless of grade.

Can I return something if the grade was wrong? Yes. If an item arrives worse than its stated grade, that is our error, not your problem. Check the returns policy for the process.

Are the photos of the actual item? Yes. Second-hand stock is one-of-one. The photo is the item you receive, marks and all.

Do you grade new vendor products too? No. Grading applies to thrift stock only. Products from our marketplace vendors are new and are described by the vendor.