Costume Consignment Process

Our Process

Once your costume has been approved for consignment by Crystal Couture staff: 

  1. We ask that you drop off your costume (if local to Minnesota) or mail your costume to:

Crystal Couture

14276 23rd Ave N.

Plymouth, MN 55447

  1. Then we will:
    1. Tag your costume with your unique Consignor ID 
    2. Photograph your costume 
    3. Develop a description for your costume, including number of rhinestones and other embellishments 
    4. Finalize a list price (selling prices will be determined by Crystal Couture staff)
    5. Publish a listing of your costume on our website 

Please do not send or drop off any costumes that were not previously approved by our staff via email or text. We will not accept them, and in some cases may add fees to your account for the additional staff time required to process these costumes. Exceptions include scheduled review dates to bring in costumes. 

When your costume sells: 

  1. We inspect the costume to ensure it is clean, all rhinestones and appliques are properly attached, and there are no snags, tears, holes, or other notable imperfections.
  2. Costumes must be of recent fashion, in good condition, and include all pieces. Items must be freshly laundered, wrinkle-free,stain-free, odor-free and not needing repairs. If any cleaning or repair needs are identified, our trained staff will clean the costume, replace rhinestones, repair holes, and secure appliques as needed. A fee for this specialized labor will be deducted from your consignment earnings. The minimum fee is $25.00 for this labor.

PLEASE NOTE: Costumes are not inspected for the above items until a costume is sold.  Acceptance of a costume for consignment does not mean it has been inspected for the above items.  A cleaning or repair fee may still apply when a costume is sold.

  1. If a costume is not able to be repaired before sale, it may be subject to a price reduction at the time of the sale to adjust for rips, tears, stains, or missing items. A decision on the price adjustment is made by Crystal Couture staff at the time of the sale.  These price adjustments are agreed with the buyer of the costume at the time of sale and oftentimes are not identified and agreed until a costume is purchased from the website. 

If your Costume has not sold: 

  1. You may request to remove it from the store and have it returned to you.
    1. Once a costume is accepted for consignment, if you choose to remove it from the store or website, we require a minimum de-listing fee of $35.00 (or 15% of the list price of the costume, whichever is greater) to cover photography, account set-up, descriptions, website and marketing expenses. This  de-listing fee does not apply if your costume is sold..
  2. If you do not request to have your costume returned, our staff may identify it as a costume that we would like to remove from our store: 
    1. Yearly our staff will review current inventory and identify costumes we believe will not be successfully sold. These costumes will be deemed eligible for donation to a local dance non-profit organization.  Costumes selected as eligible for donation will be determined after all efforts to sell the costumes have been made.
    2. If your costume is identified by our staff as eligible for donation we will email you to let you know. At this time you can do one of two things: 
      1. Ask that the costume be returned to you. If you want the costume back, you will be asked to come collect the costume, or pay for shipping back to you (a $15.00 minimum fee for shipping will apply). 
      2. Agree that Crystal Couture can donate the costume on your behalf. We have a network of worthy organizations that will come and hand pick costumes that suit their programs. This donation event is always a joyous occasion! 

Additional information about our process: 

  1. All consignment costumes are sold as final sales, we do not accept any returns.
  2. Costumes will be priced based on the original cost, condition, style, age and current demand.
  3. Typically current costumes will retail at approximately 75% of the original cost. Older costumes, if accepted, may retail anywhere from 50% of the original cost down to 25%, depending on condition, style and current demand.
  4. Each client/seller will be assigned an account number. Each Costume is cataloged, tagged, priced and stored with care

Consignment Sales Commission Breakdown 

Please refer to the below table for a breakdown of consignment earnings for each costume price point. 

Sale Price of Costume

% of Sale Price Consignor Keeps* 

$650.00 +

70%

$400.00 - $649.99 

60%

$201.00 - $399.99

55%

$76.00- $200.99

50%

Under $75.99

40%

*Consignors will accrue earnings on account with Crystal Couture. Earnings will either remain on account or a payout will be issued to the consignor quarterly depending on your choice at account set up. Payouts are issued quarterly on the 15th of April, October, and January.  Payouts are not issued in July due to the low volume of transactions during that period.