Apparel, resale & collectibles
Books and taxes for consignment and resale shops.
Walk-in intake, a sliding consignor split, scheduled price drops at 30 and 60 days, and a monthly check run to pay everyone out. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
March came in at $6,500. The spring markdown push cleared out a lot of items sitting past 60 days, so consignor payouts were heavier this month than usual.
- Register sales, all racksRetail sales
- New consignor intake feesIntake fees
- Monthly consignor checksConsignor payouts
- Rack and tagging suppliesSupplies
- Local newspaper adMarketing
Why your books are different
Consignment shop books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees a register total. Your business sells other people's goods on a sliding split, owes a payout the shop has not written a check for yet, and marks items down on a schedule that changes what is actually owed. When the books do not know that, the shop's real income disappears into money that was never its own.
-
1
The full sale price gets booked as the shop's income
A consignor's item sells for $60 on a 50 percent split. Booked as a $60 sale, the shop's real income is overstated by the $30 still owed to the consignor.
What we doCounts only the shop's cut as income and keeps the consignor's share as a payable owed out, so the sale reads honest the day it happens. -
2
The split changes and the books do not follow
Many shops raise the shop's cut the longer an item sits unsold, or drop the price at 30 and 60 days. If the books use one flat split for everything, every markdown sale gets the wrong payout calculated.
What we doTracks each item's current split and price tier, so payouts match what the consignor is actually owed that day. -
3
Unpaid consignor payouts pile up unseen
Between monthly check runs, the shop is holding real money that belongs to dozens of consignors. Without a running total, it is easy to spend against it without realizing.
What we doKeeps a running consignor payable balance, so it never gets mistaken for cash the shop can spend. -
4
Intake and processing fees get mixed into sales
A per-item intake fee or a processing charge is not the same as a retail sale, but rung through the same till it inflates the top line without adding real margin.
What we doKeeps intake and processing fees in their own category, separate from what the shop earns on the actual sale.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a consignment and resale shop.
Set up once for your split schedule and your fees. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Retail salesRegister sales rung through Square or a resale-specific point of sale.
- Intake feesPer-item or per-bag processing fees charged to consignors.
- Online marketplace salesListings on eBay, Poshmark, or Mercari for higher-value pieces.
- Unclaimed item resaleItems past the pickup deadline, resold as shop-owned stock.
Money out
- Consignor payoutsThe percentage owed to consignors once their items sell.
- SuppliesTags, hangers, garment steamers, and pricing gun supplies.
- Rent and utilitiesThe storefront lease and its utilities.
- PayrollIntake staff and sales staff wages, kept apart from owner draw.
- MarketingLocal ads and community bulletin board postings.
- Card processing feesWhat the card processor keeps before payout.
- Software and check printingConsignment tracking software and payout check printing costs.
What we watch for you
- Consignor payable balance
What is currently owed out to consignors, so it never gets mistaken for spendable cash.
- Sell-through by price tier
How much moves at full price versus each markdown tier, so pricing schedules can be checked.
- Average days on the floor
How long items sit before selling. Rising numbers mean intake or pricing needs a look.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things consignment shop owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
That was money owed to consignors sitting in the account, not shop income. I have been tracking that balance all along so the payout run was not a surprise.
No, I keep them separate. They are a processing fee, not retail income, and mixing them would make your margin look better than it is.
If you pay her $2,000 or more this year and she is not on payroll, yes, by January 31. I am keeping that total as we go.
The tax side
The tax side of a consignment and resale shop.
Most of what goes wrong here is treating a consignor's share like it belongs to the shop.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Consignment income is only the commissionOnly the percentage the shop keeps counts as its income. The rest is money collected on behalf of the consignor and owed back out, not the shop's own revenue.
- Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll paid $2,000 or more in 2026 for pricing, pickup, or sourcing help gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when consignor payables are kept separate from shop income all year.
- Self-employment taxAn owner running the shop alone, as a sole proprietor or single-member LLC, pays 15.3 percent self-employment tax on top of income tax, up to the $184,500 Social Security wage base.
Deductions consignment and resale shops miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Tagging guns and supplies
- Garment steamers
- Consignment tracking software
- Payout check printing costs
- Local newspaper and bulletin board ads
- Storefront rent and utilities
- Racks and display fixtures
- Card processing fees
- Business liability insurance
- Signage and window displays
- Damaged or unsellable inventory write-offs
- Phone and internet for the shop
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A consignment shop year, kept every month.
Consignor traffic and payout runs happen every month. Your taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list for pickers and pickup help is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether the consignor payable balance is being tracked the way it should.
- October
Before the holiday rush
Holiday shoppers start hunting for gifts and gently used gear. Gus looks at what to buy or accept before December and what the season will owe.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for consignment and resale shops. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions consignment shop owners ask first.
Does Gus track what I owe each consignor?
He works from your bank statement and keeps a running total of what is owed out overall, so the payable never gets mistaken for cash on hand. Item-by-item consignor balances stay in your consignment software.
How does Gus handle a sliding split that changes as an item ages?
He tracks each sale against whatever split and price tier applied that day, so the shop's real cut and the consignor's payout both come out right, not a flat guess.
I sell unclaimed items after the pickup deadline. Is that treated differently?
Yes. Once an item becomes the shop's own stock, its sale counts as shop income rather than a consignment payout, and Gus keeps that split clean.
My consignor payout checks bounce my cash around every month. Is that a problem?
It only becomes a problem if the payable balance is not tracked. Gus keeps that running total so a big check run is expected, not a surprise.
My books have not been reconciled in months. Can Gus catch up?
Yes. Send the statements you have, consignor payout history included if you kept it. Gus untangles what is owed to consignors from what is actually the shop's, and most owners see where they stand within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
More in apparel, resale & collectibles
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Antique shops & antique malls
- Comic book & collectibles shops
- Estate sale companies
- Flea markets
- Kids consignment stores
- Liquidation & bin stores
- Plus-size & specialty fit boutiques
- Record stores
- Sports card & Pokemon card shops
- Tabletop & trading card game stores
- Thrift stores (for-profit)
- Uniform & scrubs stores
- Vintage clothing stores
- Watch dealers & watch repair
- Western wear stores
- Kids clothing boutiques
- Men's clothing stores & tailors
- Shoe stores
- Sneaker resale shops
- Jewelry stores
- Women's clothing boutiques
- Art supply stores
- Baby boutiques
- BBQ & grill stores
- Candle stores
- Christian & gift bookstores
- Craft & fabric stores
- Crystal & metaphysical shops
- Farm & ranch supply stores
- Fireworks stores
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever