If you run a small business, already resell on the side or you're looking for a new way to make extra money, Whatnot is worth having on your radar.
Reseller Vault UK has watched the platform develop for around three years. What started out being known mainly for Pokémon cards, Funko Pops and trainers has changed dramatically. Today, people are selling almost anything and everything on Whatnot.
Here are five reasons UK small businesses and side hustlers should be paying attention.
1. Whatnot is Growing Rapidly in the UK
Let's start with the numbers.
According to Whatnot, first-time UK buyers increased by 374% during 2025, while its European seller base grew 600% year-on-year.
Globally, more than the equivalent of £6 billion worth of goods were sold through Whatnot during the first half of 2026 alone, based on figures released by the company.
For sellers, the important part isn't the headlines or company valuations. It's the fact that more people are using the marketplace.
Finding customers is one of the hardest parts of running a small business or starting a side hustle. Whatnot gives you another place where people have already turned up looking to buy.
That doesn't guarantee you'll get viewers or make sales, but it does give you access to a growing marketplace rather than having to find every potential customer yourself.
2. It's Another Sales Channel for Small Businesses
If you already have a small business, you don't need to abandon your website, shop, eBay account, Vinted, TikTok Shop or social media.
Whatnot can simply become another sales channel.
Live selling also gives you something a static listing can't easily replicate. You can demonstrate products properly, show condition, discuss sizing or specifications, answer questions and build bundles while customers are watching.
For many small businesses, the stock and product knowledge are already there. The challenge is getting those products in front of more people.
So rather than asking whether you should move your business onto Whatnot, ask a much simpler question:
Could I sell some of my existing stock to another audience through Whatnot?
Run a few shows and test it.
3. You Can Start Small — and There's a Huge Community to Help You
You don't need a warehouse, employees or thousands of pounds worth of stock to get started.
At its simplest, you need a phone, something to sell and somewhere suitable to run your show.
Whatnot itself is relatively straightforward once you've spent a little time using it. There are listings, shipping, show scheduling and auctions to learn, but there's also now a large community built around helping sellers understand all of that.
Across the UK there are Facebook groups and seller communities where newcomers can ask questions about everything from setting up their first show and choosing equipment to shipping, sourcing, giveaways and getting more viewers.
Our own Whatnot UK seller community has grown to more than 11,000 members, ranging from people preparing for their first live to established sellers doing significant volumes on the platform.
That makes the prospect of starting considerably less daunting.
You might be a mum or dad looking for a side hustle, somebody already flipping things on eBay or Vinted, or an aspiring entrepreneur who wants to learn how buying and selling actually works.
You don't need to know everything before you start. There are thousands of other sellers figuring it out alongside you.
4. Whatnot isn't Just Pokémon Cards & Funk Pops Anymore
This is probably one of the biggest misconceptions about Whatnot.
The platform originally became known for Pokémon cards, Funko Pops, trading cards, collectibles and trainers. Those communities are still important, but Whatnot today looks very different.
UK sellers are offering fashion, beauty, jewellery, electronics, toys, vintage clothing, homeware, clearance goods, customer returns and pretty much everything in between.
One particularly noticeable trend is pallet stock and random pulls.
Amazon returns, retailer returns, overstock and what UK resellers popularly call TikTok pallets have become a major part of the wider resale scene, and that stock has found a natural home on Whatnot.
Sellers can buy mixed pallets or job lots and work through them during a live. Some sell the products individually, while others run random pulls where the unpredictability of what comes next becomes part of the entertainment.
One minute it might be an air fryer, the next beauty products, headphones, toys or some completely random household gadget.
That's actually quite important.
Live selling has created a format where mixed and clearance stock can become entertainment as well as retail. Instead of photographing, describing and individually listing dozens of unrelated products, sellers can work through stock live in front of an audience.
And pallets are only one part of the growth.
Fashion has become particularly significant. Whatnot says the number of UK buyers shopping women's fashion increased fivefold during 2025.
So if your impression of Whatnot is still people selling Pokémon cards, open the app and have another look.
It's moved on considerably.
5. Live Shopping Itself is Getting Bigger
Perhaps the strongest reason to pay attention to Whatnot is actually bigger than Whatnot itself.
Live shopping is growing. Rapidly.
Whatnot's 2026 State of Live Selling Report estimates the live-shopping market across North America and Europe at the equivalent of roughly £16–17 billion.
The company surveyed thousands of sellers across the UK, US, France and Germany and found that nearly nine in ten respondents said live selling generated stronger sales for them than traditional ecommerce.
Those are Whatnot's own survey findings, so they shouldn't be treated as a guarantee that every seller will achieve the same results.
But the wider trend is clear enough to warrant attention.
Live shopping combines ecommerce with something traditional online marketplaces often struggle to provide: interaction.
Customers can ask questions, sellers can demonstrate products and regular buyers can get to know the people they're buying from.
For small independent sellers, that can be a genuine advantage. You may not have the advertising budget of a major retailer, but you can compete through product knowledge, personality, service and the community you build around your shows.
So, should you try selling on Whatnot?
If you've never sold before, don't start by ordering an expensive pallet because you've watched somebody else make it look easy.
Watch some UK shows first. Explore different categories, learn how the platform works and start with products you understand. You may already have things around the house that can become your first stock.
If you already run a small business, the experiment is even simpler. Take some of your existing stock and test Whatnot as another sales channel. See what sells, understand your margins and see whether customers return.
There are no guarantees, and Whatnot isn't an easy-money button.
But with a rapidly growing UK buyer base, billions of pounds worth of goods being sold through the platform, a much wider range of selling categories and a large seller community available to help newcomers, there's a strong case for giving it a try.
START SELLING ON WHATNOT
Watch some shows. Learn the platform. Start with products you understand.
Then see where you can take it.
Affiliate disclosure: This article contains an affiliate/referral link. Reseller Vault UK may receive a benefit if you sign up through our link. Whatnot UK currently offers qualifying new sellers a sales-match bonus through eligible referrals; check the current offer and terms when signing up.