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Question

I'm new to selling here, been reading and trying to take it all in.

But my simple question is.....is the really worth it? ðŸ¤”

Fees seem ridiculous, especially for antiques and vintage items, which is what I'm sell. I can't cut the prices or I'll loose. So please if some kind sole is out there advise me before I'm in to deep. I can always try Estsy or Shopify but good lord it cost to start. ðŸ¥´ Dazed, confused and headache is coming. ðŸ˜±

Thanks Y'allðŸ¥´

inhawaii · Accepted Answer

Is it worth it?It depends on how you run your business.A well run business, yes, it's worth it.

tobaccocardyahoo · Answer

If the fees seem high you must not have much experience in the IRL antiques business. Ebay fees are about what we would have paid in commission to an auctioneer 30 years ago.

If we could find an auctioneer who ran regularly, and even with one who runs irregularly, the fees would be 25% and the total that a buyer would pay would include a buyers premium which might be 20 or 25% and for most items is reflected by bidding ending sooner than with a lower premium.

With 3 items sold and 13 items listed, you are not even playing the game yet.

BTW Etsy is cheaper to sell on and you get what you pay for. Less traffic and a site which does not know how they are going to survive. And if you open a store on Shopify, it will cost you money and time to drive traffic to it.

ryry-jj · Answer

hmmmm....that fact that you are put off by the FVF's tells me you will struggle to apply a value no matter what you do. Selling costs money regardless of being online here or in a brick and mortar. If the costs of business scare you, then business scares you. Real simple, if you cant understand the value eBay brings to the table, how can you understand your item's value?

Just reading your post, it might not be for you. But it can be a lot of fun.....or one big headache...your choice

mommaknows · Answer

You have a lot of good advice in the comments to mull over. I just wanted to say that whatever you decide to do I wish you success.

natoman777 · Answer

Been selling on eBay for a long time. Sourcing items that you can make a profit on is the key. eBay is the best platform for us. We sell on 4 others. eBay blows them away with fees. The key for us is to sell a wide variety, list nearly every day (we don't on Sunday's). We have made very good money over the years. Still do

lakefor94 · Answer

You have to make your money when buying. If you have a lot of skin in the game, it can be tough unless you have very desired items.

onefootflipper · Answer

@kcsluckydent2025 wrote:
I'm new to selling here, been reading and trying to take it all in.

But my simple question is.....is the really worth it? ðŸ¤”

Fees seem ridiculous, especially for antiques and vintage items, which is what I'm sell. I can't cut the prices or I'll loose. So please if some kind sole is out there advise me before I'm in to deep. I can always try Estsy or Shopify but good lord it cost to start. ðŸ¥´ Dazed, confused and headache is coming. ðŸ˜±
Thanks Y'allðŸ¥´

It doesn't matter what YOU paid for an item, it only matters what it sells for now. You will never sell a single thing on shopify and etsy is far worse than ebay for basically everything.

You seem to be guessing your prices or basing them on what you paid. There are 18 other "South Fork Ranch" shot glasses on ebay in addition to yours. You have a $30 price tag on yours, only one like yours has sold in the last year, it sold for $4.

There is an exact duplicate of your $20 Black Sugar Bowl Trinket Box sitting unsold at $11. It took me 10 seconds to find that one, there may be others for even cheaper. It is actually only part of a 3 piece set and someone has the entire set available for $21.

Your competition on that $50 chicken pitcher is at $11 and the most one has sold for in recent memory was $27 and that one had incredibly vibrant paint with no fading.

The demand is not increasing for any of that glass you are selling it is only decreasing, if you are not realistic about your prices then it will all be sold at the estate sale some day for 25 cents each.

krazzykats · Answer

Iâ€™d also like to add that I only buy things I personally enjoy for resale. Obviously, I like cats, dolls, jewelry, and animal collectibles, but I only buy and resell items I genuinely like.

Not everyone shares my taste, but my shop reflects what I love.

There are also other animal-related items listed. I decided long ago to only sell things I enjoy, rather than collecting everything just to make a few bucks.

Besides, if it doesnâ€™t sell, I can still enjoy it myself.

á“šá˜á—¢

kibble-net · Answer

@kcsluckydent2025 wrote:
I'm new to selling here, been reading and trying to take it all in.

But my simple question is.....is the really worth it? ðŸ¤”

Fees seem ridiculous, especially for antiques and vintage items, which is what I'm sell. I can't cut the prices or I'll loose. So please if some kind sole is out there advise me before I'm in to deep. I can always try Estsy or Shopify but good lord it cost to start. ðŸ¥´ Dazed, confused and headache is coming. ðŸ˜±
Thanks Y'allðŸ¥´

Yes it costs money to run a business. Whether it's ebay, etsy, shopify, mercari, and so on and so forth, every platform has its cost. If you feel none of them are worth the cost you can always start your own, or sell on your own website.

If you can't make a profit here, then you need to look closely at your business plan. While it's not for everyone, there's certainly a wide open market.

mooreandmoore · Answer

My wife and I have been doing eBay for 28 years . When we first started it was almost all antiques and collectibles. A lot of things have changed over the years but we still list and sell older items. We buy a lot at estate sales and auctions and we try to buy in lots. That helps to keep the cost of individual items down and we can piece things out which helps recover our cost quicker. We are both retired but still sell on eBay because we like it. We try and list everyday and try and do a variety of items - I find that people tend to look at all that you sell if you have one or two items that they are looking for - if they like what they see they will check you out frequently . We use eBay labels for shipping as well - you can save some money there. Wrap well and ship right out. I always leave feedback right after I print the label too. Best of luck to you !

lb23cavaliersmvp · Answer

Just looked at your ~ 10 listings and I don't think you have a chance because you aren't selling vintage/antique items. The proof is they are in the $10-40 range. That said the answer as to whether to sell on ebay is easy, do the math. What are you paying for items and what will people pay? It's the same no matter what platform you sell on. If fees prevent you from making a decent profit then either find items at a better price or do something else with your time.

12345jamesstamps · Answer

You sell breakable items...so packing is your hardest job.

There is a lot to learn and I am still learning because the rules keep changing on eBay every week sometimes.

That's why a lot of us here read and post like it's our daily ritual...coffee and read here and you will learn a lot.

Estsy announced new increases in fees this week.

I never been on Shopify and wonder who does go there...

caldreamer · Answer

Only you can decide how much your time and valuables are worth to you. You must have a lot of patience and a thick skin to sell on EBAY.

Things you should know about EBAY:

- When your item sells, EBAY charges selling fees on (purchase price, shipping, sales tax).

- EBAY 30-Day Money Back Guarantee (supersedes "no returns" policy) allows customer to return item by claiming "not as described, counterfeit, defective, missing parts" (EBAY will force you to refund (purchase price + shipping BOTH ways). EBAY does NOT require the customer to prove their claims. EBAY always rules in favor of the customer.

-If item get damaged or lost in shipment EBAY will force you to refund (purchase price + shipping). Exception to that rule is if EBAY handles international shipment for you (then EBAY is responsible for lost or damaged package).

-EBAY will NOT protect you from scammers.

-EBAY can "take money out of your bank account" if you owe fees or money needed to refund a customer.

dhbookds · Answer

There are millions of sellers on ebay, most of whom, one assume can make money even with the fees....... So the next question I would ask myself in your position is did I pay too much for the item to make what I "want", "expect" to make on the item. Therein, you have 2 possibilities.....paid too much/expect too much.

Basic theory is that you make the profit when you buy........not when you sell.

Have you "shopped" your items? That Shawnee Rooster seems to be listed by many at 1/2 of your asking price.......Likewise on the $75 Tiara Pitcher..... Have you looked at the sold prices?

A couple of things.......meant constructively........use a blank background for pixs..... Foam Board at Dollar store is cheap. Don't start titles with "Collectible Vintage"...... Vintage is fine, but ditch the collectible, us title space for keywords/color/size if appropriate. Tell color/sizes of items in the descriptions......trying to see those rulers is hard on the eyes..... I really thought that 4" "vase" was a full size pitcher. Does the music box work? What tune does it play.......some people collect by the song. Don't pay for subtitles, use brand name in title. That pipe is "NEW"........yet it's collectible and vintage? READ the definition of new........

Using AI for descriptions eliminates any chance you are seen as an individual.

Buying and listing take a lot of learning to do well......and we all have made and will continue to make mistakes. One of the best pieces of advice for listing ever given to me, was to consider the item as buyer.......what do I want to know?

just thoughts

mamacassidy · Answer

"is it really worth it?" depends on what you're trying to get out of it.

Did you buy items to resell? If so, you need to decide how much profit you need to make it "worth it". And then make sure that you can actually sell the items for that amount.

Are you just clearing items out of your home? If so, you're basically getting "free" money, but there is still some labor involved. So you still have to decide how much you need to make it worth the time and effort.

You can try etsy or poshmark or other reselling sites, but you'll encounter the same things there that you're seeing here.

On a side note, you may want to take a second look at your shipping prices. Some of the items you have listed will cost much more to ship than what you are charging, so you'll be losing money there.

jerseyboymusic · Answer

@kcsluckydent2025 Roughly 15% is good for me to list on a platform and have that platform do my tax collection for me!

soh.maryl · Answer

My personal viewpoint: Only YOU can decide if it's worth it for your particular situation. I hope a lot of folks will post their experiences and feelings in reply to your question. On eBay, there are some who just sell as a hobby, those who sell to learn more, those who sell because it helps pay the bills, those who enjoy having a little discretionary income -- and many more reasons than those.

stainlessenginecovers · Answer

In the NOT-too-distant past, there were 'antique malls' all over the country. Sellers set up their little 'booths' and pay a 'monthly fee' AND a 'per sale fee.

So how is sitting in your jammies creating listings at 3 in the morning, not having to haul stuff to a 'place', and paying a 15% 'fee' when it sells- "ridiculous"??

By the way; Etsy doesn't 'cost' to start.

Shopify does and costs upwards of $100,000 a month to advertise to TRY to get people to your 'website' as that is ALL Shopify is; a 'website' builder. It's NOT a place.

krazzykats · Answer

Yes and no. You have long-tail antiques, and so do I, as well as the next person. Most of the people buying old things were the baby boomers, but theyâ€™re cutting back now. The younger generation doesnâ€™t collect old items.

I do this because I enjoy it and donâ€™t rely on it for income or bills. Since the first of January, Iâ€™ve only sold three thingsâ€”barely enough to cover a light bill if I needed to. ðŸ˜Ž

Itâ€™s a side gig thatâ€™s fun but doesnâ€™t always pay much.

á“šá˜á—¢

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