Debutante Clothing :: A vintage clothing and fashion blog for unconventional style where vintage and runway meet.

For the past year and a half, vintage sellers all over the web have been complaining about the ever rising fees on what used to be the only game in town - Ebay. Other websites have come along, especially in the vintage and collectibles market, but none have been able to match the ease of use and user friendly layout of Ebay.com - until now.

Market Publique is a brand new marketplace strictly for vintage clothing and accessories. The site itself is beautifully laid out. When you scroll over one of the many images of items up for auction or sale, you immediately get all the pertinent information you need to know without having to click. This is one of the many features I think will set this site apart from any other vintage selling site.

But it takes more than a pretty face to meet the unique needs of vintage buyers and sellers. The component that impressed me the most was the fact that not everyone is allowed to sell at Market Publique. In order to sell here, you must apply. This will definitely weed out the newbies and undesirable crap that is sold on Ebay. According to their site,

"We're highly selective when it comes to choosing the sellers we partner with. Everyone selling on Market Publique displays style and integrity."

And after witnessing the shameful practices of some vintage sellers on Ebay, I hope that Market Publique can and will uphold this mantra.

If you are a seller, the dashboard is equally as user friendly. Everything is clearly laid out and easy to navigate. Currently, only flat rate shipping fees are possible - there is no shipping calculator. This may be an issue when you want to buy/sell internationally, but otherwise, I actually prefer flat fees, even if that means I have to eat a few bucks.

A site like this could easily charge what Ebay does for listing and closing fees because although they might not have the same traffic (yet), the audience is so niche that I imagine conversion rates will be high. Like my business skills?

But the rates are actually VERY reasonable. Almost too reasonable. A $0.25 listing fee and a flat 5% final value fee when the item sells. That's it. You can always upgrade and get some neat marketing perks such as "Fresh". For $5.00, you can get listed on the homepage, and for $2.50 you are featured on the category page. A small fee compared to Ebay.

I think Market Publique has a real chance at giving Ebay a run for its money by focusing on one niche Ebay just can't seem to stop pissing off with ridiculous fee increases and free for all community. They seems to get what vintage aficionados want in an online experience.

Come check out my first listing, since I have been completely ignoring my own selling site for the past year.