# What's the deal with "Plato's Closet" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 14, 2004, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822 "2004-12-14T18:30:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![PaulFitzroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/2acd7d/32.png) [@PaulFitzroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulFitzroy)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/1 "2004-12-14T18:30:33Z")
I have a lot of brand-name preppy clothes from my middle school and early high school days that don’t fit me anymore: Tommy Hilfiger, Abercrombie, American Eagle, Quiksilver, O’Neill, and all that. There’s a place here (I guess it’s a nationwide chain) called Plato’s Closet that buys these kind of clothes from people. (All of mine are in good condition.) How much money can I expect to get per item of clothing (mostly sweatshirts and sweaters?) ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/2 "2004-12-14T18:33:56Z")
> [@PaulFitzroy](#): > > I have a lot of brand-name preppy clothes from my middle school and early high school days that don’t fit me anymore: Tommy Hilfiger, Abercrombie, American Eagle, Quiksilver, O’Neill, and all that. There’s a place here (I guess it’s a nationwide chain) called Plato’s Closet that buys these kind of clothes from people. (All of mine are in good condition.) > > How much money can I expect to get per item of clothing (mostly sweatshirts and sweaters?) Is it a consignment shop, or what? If so, most consignment stores sell stuff for 25% of retail, and you get between 40-50% of the final selling price, depending on the store. So for a $100 sweater, you can expect to get $12.50 or so. Also, consignment stores don’t pay up front - they pay when your items sell. However, I’m not super familiar with Plato’s Closet, so perhaps they operate differently. (Honestly, when I opened this, I thought it was going to be a philosophy question about Plato’s cave. Oops.) ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/3 "2004-12-14T18:42:54Z")
Same here, Alice. 😛 Maybe it would be a modernized version, featuring a bunch of guys being tied up in a small room with candle light, until one of them gets up and comes out of the closet. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![PaulFitzroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/2acd7d/32.png) [@PaulFitzroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulFitzroy)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/4 "2004-12-14T18:50:35Z")
Actually it’s not a consignment shop; they pay you right away. ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/5 "2004-12-14T21:34:43Z")
> [@PaulFitzroy](#): > > Actually it’s not a consignment shop; they pay you right away. Why not take in two or three items and "try them on for size$. ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/6 "2004-12-14T22:21:30Z")
Is the shop named after Dana Plato by any chance? ---
**Author:** ![Roland\_Deschain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@Roland\_Deschain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roland_Deschain)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/7 "2004-12-14T22:31:14Z")
I cannot speak to what Plato’s closet pays but if it is anything like Half Price Books (which buys your used books) don’t expect much. I took in over a hundred hardbacks that we didn’t have room for (including a first edition of Silent Spring by Rachel Carlson) and they gave me six dollars!! ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2004, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/8 "2004-12-14T22:39:29Z")
So, this is for people who can’t be bothered to pick through non-name brand stuff like at an Arizona Trading Company? Sigh. I can’t speak as to what they pay. I guess you’ll just have to try them out. ---
**Author:** ![stockton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@stockton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stockton)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/9 "2004-12-15T02:43:09Z")
They’ll pay you $1000 per article of clothing and give you a wide-screen HD TV as a bonus. Seriously, why don’t you drag your ass down there with some of your mall duds and ask THEM what you’ll get for your troubles? Get some fresh air. ---
**Author:** ![Chairman\_Pow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2004, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-platos-closet/279822/10 "2004-12-15T03:40:16Z")
> [@Roland Deschain](#): > > I cannot speak to what Plato’s closet pays but if it is anything like Half Price Books (which buys your used books) don’t expect much. I took in over a hundred hardbacks that we didn’t have room for (including a first edition of Silent Spring by Rachel Carlson) and they gave me six dollars!! Wait, you gave your books to a little used book store instead of selling/sending them to other Dopers? Woah.