If you are new to shopping on eBay, Poshmark, Tradesy, or any other similar site, you’ve probably asked yourself what the EUC, NWT, GUC, HTF, NWT, and other acronyms mean.
You will see those a lot in listing titles, mostly because the title field length is limited, and sellers don’t have enough space to spell the acronyms out.
So what do they mean? Are they for brand names? For product names? Else?
Let’s dive into the most common abbreviations used on major online marketplaces so that you can shop like a pro!
Acronyms used to indicate an item’s condition.
NWT means New With Tags. NWT applies to items that are unused, unopened, and not having any defects. Although it’s pretty obvious that NWT items have tags, it is also worth noting that they usually come in the original packaging (where it’s applicable).
BNWT means Brand New With Tags. It is the same as NWT.
Buying something marked NWT or BNWT on eBay, Poshmark, or any other marketplace is basically the same as buying something from the store except there is an extra link in the chain between you and the store. Otherwise, you are purchasing a completely new item.
NWOT stands for New Without Tags. NWOT items, just as NWT ones, are unused, but NWOT items may come without the original packaging.
BNWOT means Brand New Without Tags. It is the same as NWOT.
NIB means New In Box. NIB is the same as NWT and BNWT, but it applies to items that come in a box.
NWOB stands for New Without Box.
When it comes to fashion items, sellers usually use NIB and NWOB acronyms for shoes.
So, we have covered some of the most common abbreviations. But all of the above acronyms only apply to new items. And as we all know, eBay, Poshmark, Tradesy, Mercari, and the like have a lot of pre-owned items listed for sale. Those pre-owned items’ condition can be described with the use of acronyms, too.
For example, if you’ve already run a few searches on eBay, you must’ve seen EUC in listing titles.
So what does EUC mean? Well, EUC is one of those acronyms commonly used on eBay, Poshmark, Tradesy, and other similar platforms for indicating a pre-owned item condition.
Read on to learn more about the meaning of EUC and other acronyms sellers use to describe the condition of previously used items.
EUC stands for Excellent Used Condition. Usually, EUC means that even though the item listed for sale may have been used, it has no signs of wear, or has some very minor ones.
VGC stands for Very Good Condition. Similarly, VGUC means Very Good Used Condition.
GUC stands for Good Used Condition.
Regardless of what of these pre-owned condition acronyms you see, it is always good to carefully check item description and pictures. Sellers use their best judgment when choosing the acronym for their listings, but it is still subjective, so you might want to decide the item condition for yourself.
Brand- and product-related acronyms.
Due to the limited space in listing titles, sellers can also abbreviate brand names and some product-specific terms. I don’t know all of them, but here are some that I know and have personally seen.
RM stands for Rebecca Minkoff.
HB means Henri Bendel.
TTS means True To Size.
OS stands for One Size.
And here are some that only apply to Rebecca Minkoff items.
‘Siggy‘ is usually used along with ‘hardware.’ Siggy means signature hardware that older Rebecca Minkoff bags had.
SO stands for Special Order. Years ago, Rebecca Minkoff made custom bags on request (Special Order). I’ve seen those orders coming from the lovely ladies on the purse blog forum, but maybe there were other places to start a Special Order, and I’m just not aware of them. Those Special Order bags were actually the same models sold anywhere else (like MABs or MACs). Still, the Special Order bags had slight modifications like differently colored zipper pull or hardware, a different lining or hardware shape.
BBW means black basketweave.
BQP stands for Black Quilted Patent. It was the type of leather Rebecca Minkoff used years ago.
Other acronyms.
OBO stands for Or Best Offer. If you see OBO in a listing title or description, it means the seller is willing to negotiate the price, and you can send them an offer.
HTF means Hard To Find. Used for rare items that are, well, hard to find. These might be vintage items or ones from a limited-edition collection.
ISO means In Search Of. I’ve never seen this used on eBay, but it’s pretty common on Poshmark. People use ISO when they are looking to BUY something, so if you see a listing with ‘ISO’ in its title, don’t purchase it.
PP stands for PayPal.
PM stands for Poshmark. PM is something you might find in Poshmark comments; I’ve never seen this abbreviation in listing titles. PM is commonly used for ‘Private Messages,’ but on Poshmark, PM means Poshmark.
M stands for Mercari. You can see this abbreviation in the Poshmark comments section. As Poshmark charges sellers 20% of the sale price, sellers usually can’t afford to give bigger discounts to buyers. In the hope of buying the item for less, buyers may ask the seller if it is listed elsewhere. If the seller answers that the item is listed on M, that means it can also be found on Mercari. Mercari is Poshmark’s competitor, so no wonder people reduce its name to M while commenting on Poshmark.
I hope you liked the post! If you know any fashion-related acronyms haven’t listed here, please let me know of them in the comments, and I will update the post.
