Book sellers and shipping
Summary: berksh17 questioned how books can be sold for $4 to $5 with free shipping since Media Mail costs about that much. Several participants explained that large-scale book sellers often operate on volume, using contracts for cheaper bulk shipping rates and acquiring books at minimal costs through auctions or unsold stock. They often sell these books cheaply to avoid disposal and keep their operations busy. m60driver noted that mega sellers have efficiency and cost advantages that smaller sellers cannot compete with.
How are there sellers of books at $4 to $5 with free shipping? Isn't Media mail a minimum of $4 or so? https://www.ebay.com/itm/406670352165?_skw=a+family+treasure+of+prayers+frances+lincoln+limited&epid=703631&itmmeta=01KYN5FKASAW4WKSTEJ7RJS2DJ&hash=item5eaf711f25:g:OFoAAeSw7QpqQXWH&itmprp=enc%3AAQALAAAA8GfYFPkwiKCW4ZNSs2u11xAF%2BeHcBgvCrZwGlfeCNYdonK2pxiZR7mYHyv%2F09aMePW84LyNWv3dSsbH9eKLurHqUyCcOiNIgDNt6GJ8PvVd6XZ31hJJ6LTOvrEayb9Rg16b3cEMRJIJOIpNEbCKeTl%2BTK11MN7%2F58%2FBN7R4dEMRp%2FNtr4qZktPoN2uj31h1dYP1T9DAVashFxlf%2FlTKLGq5SVpWW%2BDm2NMSYbr63ZB0ej08ezPw48VpIG1evmlkLd0r7OoVcHiNzw4IuvfV4L6uUtjjFOGtGH6jtIl68s8ysPism63Eft39wadpf7Ns%2FlQ%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR8S1vqX1Zw
bbcardzman
·1 week agoAs with many things in life these days, some people are just a few bricks short!
m60driver
·1 week agoThe mega book sellers have a number of tricks up their sleeves that allow them to sell books at a price that would be a loss for me even if my cost basis was pennies per book. For example, they have reduced Ebay rates and they have reduced shipping costs. They also have very efficient operational costs. As one who also sells books all I can say that resistance is futile so the mega sellers are just another reason to be extremely judicious as to which books you purchase for resale.
berksh17
OP1 week agoThank for your thorough response, it is appreciated, especially the Borg reference!
inhawaii
·2 weeks agoA: They are not very smart and losing money.
1786davycrockett
·2 weeks agoSome of the bulk book sellers purchase tall, sealed skids of unsold "remainder" books that have been returned to the distributor. These skids can be about 4' x 5' x 6', holding multiple cartons of unsorted books. These skids are sold at auction to the highest bidder; and, because the contents are unknown, the average price per book is only pennies -- plus the bulk book sellers pay less than USPS Media rates -- they negotiated Pitney-Bowes contracts for "Bound Printed Matter," which is cheaper than Media.
Plus they advertise for more inventory from their customers, and then offer very little in the way of payment for used books.
berksh17
OP1 week agoGreat answer, enjoyed reading the shared details.
shado-x
·2 weeks agoJust bought 10 Maxell button batteries for $3.58 + Free Postage. CVS out of business soon.
chapeau-noir
·2 weeks agoThis question gets asked frequently.
Huge book sellers work on volume, and also have contracts with shippers to ship at a bulk rate. They also generally do not combine shipping on volumes, so if you purchase three books, you pay shipping three times. They get books in bulk.
So, basically, they make their money on high volume shipping and nearly free inventory acquisition.
bonanza125
·2 weeks agoThey buy in bulk and willing to take a loss rather than throw the books away. Some donation places don't want them. I have books available for free on other sites and nobody has show interest in them at all.
tobaccocardyahoo
·2 weeks agoSome books cost money to dispose of.
Many books have an effective cost of nothing. They arrive with books that have value and make money.
I could effectively break even selling a 1 pound book for $5 and offer free BPM shipping ($4.05). I have my share of worthless books, but I still have places to donate them and do less work.
A high volume seller, with employees he is paying may have no additional labor costs associated with these sales, and keeping his employees busy can keep them out of trouble.
dbmm-media
·2 weeks agovolume