Somehow this week, I ended up on the “I hate resellers” side of TikTok.
And wow — that was… something.
What struck me most wasn’t passion or concern about fairness. It was bitterness. A deep sense of entitlement wrapped in misinformation and delivered with confidence that only comes from not understanding how something actually works.
So let’s talk about it.
The Entitlement Problem
A common theme across many of these videos was the expectation that someone should be able to walk into a thrift store, estate sale, auction, or garage sale and find exactly what they want, at the price they think is fair — every time.
That expectation has a name: entitlement.
Thrift stores, estate sales, and auctions are not curated shopping experiences designed around individual wants. They are marketplaces. Supply changes daily. Demand fluctuates constantly. No one is guaranteed access, timing, or pricing — and that has always been true.
Resellers didn’t create that reality.
Resellers Are Not New (Despite What TikTok Thinks)
One video confidently stated that reselling “got popular in 2019.”
I laughed.
Reselling has existed for decades. Long before TikTok, Instagram, or even the internet, people bought and sold goods at flea markets, from wagons, through classified ads, at garage sales, and in antique shops.
Then, around 1995 — 30 years ago — many of us started selling on a little site called eBay. It was wildly popular and absolutely changed the landscape of resale. Flea markets and classifieds didn’t disappear because of greed — they evolved because technology evolved.
The platform changed.
The practice did not.
What Actually Happens If Resellers Disappear
Here’s the part that rarely gets discussed.
If resellers truly didn’t exist, several things would happen — and none of them would improve access or fairness.
Less Competition, More Control
Independent resellers create competitive pressure. They offer alternatives to buying directly from big brands and big-box retailers. Remove them, and pricing power concentrates at the top.
Less choice. Less flexibility. Less transparency.
Fewer Small Businesses and Local Income
Vintage shops, refurbishers, niche sellers, specialty importers, and online stores rely on resale to survive. Many are small, local businesses. Blocking resellers doesn’t “protect” consumers — it wipes out entrepreneurship and local income streams.
Weaker Secondary and Repair Markets
In many categories — electronics, tools, books, collectibles — resellers are the ones who inspect, test, repair, bundle, and stand behind used items. Without them, buyers are left with scattered one-off listings and far less trust in the secondary market.
More Waste, Not Less
Resellers keep goods moving. Overstock, returns, estate items, off-season products — these don’t magically disappear if resellers go away. They go to landfills.
Resale is a cornerstone of circular economies. Removing it increases waste, period.
The Online Seller Hate Is Especially Loud
What became very clear is that much of this resentment isn’t about reselling itself — it’s about online selling.
There’s a belief that buying something and selling it online is somehow unethical, greedy, or “ruining” thrifting. But online selling is simply the modern version of flea markets and classifieds.
Same model.
Different platform.
Disliking the internet doesn’t make the business model wrong — it just means the world moved forward.
The Part Everyone Forgets: Consignment, Estates, and Downsizing
This conversation almost never acknowledges the role resellers play in real life transitions.
When someone passes away.
When families downsize.
When estates need to be liquidated.
When people don’t have the time, knowledge, or ability to sell items themselves.
Resellers step in. We manage volume. We handle logistics. We move leftover goods. We help turn physical items into usable value for families and owners.
That’s not exploitation — it’s service.
Final Thoughts
You don’t have to love resellers.
You don’t even have to agree with every resale practice.
But a blanket statement of “I hate resellers” isn’t bold, edgy, or insightful.
It’s uninformed.
Resellers are not the enemy of thrifting, reuse, or fairness. We are part of the ecosystem that keeps goods circulating, businesses alive, and waste out of landfills.
And we’ve been here a lot longer than TikTok, and many of the haters!