Helpful sourcing.
Is anyone in the same situation as I am? Regarding sourcing. Financially, I am NOT in a position to do any sourcing. However I have a great, generous friend who sells online, but they only deal with certain items & categories. Instead of dealing with particular items, my friend will package up a variety & ship them to me. Make space for themselves & want to do me a favor, as well. What I've received so far is 1990s non-sport trading cards, hand-crafted beaded jewelry, purses, cameras, clothing. A good assortment. Some brand names. This has been my sourcing. I'm asked if they can send this or that & I won't refuse anything. Who knows what people will purchase. The non-sports cards were popular & quick to sell. Even have plenty left that, for an unknown reason, have not drawn the same attention. Although, 1 incomplete set have over 4,000 views on MP in only 4 1/2 days. It must be a glitch!
Another friend gave me items & wants to split the money 50/50. Another friend wants to part ways with a few collectibles, too. Another 'make space' project.
Are you lucky enough to have such friends that want to help out & do favors that is helpful to both parties & allows you to be free of sourcing?
On a side note - ever tried an "Everything for $1.00" yard sale? I'm tempted to do one in April if weather permits. Cheers!
meme6253
·5 months agoI have gotten some free items from time to time but not a real lot, But they are always welcomed because you have nothing invested you can let them go cheaper.
kensgiftshop
·5 months agoSince I've been selling on Ebay, I think I've spent like $5 or $6 buying stuff to sell, everything else was given to me.
I did yard sales until a few years ago, just not worth it where I live.
christworks
·5 months agoI will have family and friends give me things they do not want. That's not my main way to source, and a lot of what they give me isn't worth listing. Some of it is. Most I donate.
@sakic92710 You do not have to spend money to resale. There is plenty of free inventory to be had. Go around neighborhoods the evening before their trash comes. I just stripped about $200 in parts off a TV that was laying on the side of the road today. On the weekends, go check the outside areas by the dumpsters at storage facilities. People move in and out of those places on the weekend and almost always leave stuff behind that can be resold. We have recycling centers here. People leave leave all sorts of stuff behind.
You are also likely throwing out things that you can save and sell. For instance, when I started reselling again, I saved up and sold our empty paper towel and TP tubes. Crafters use them, and teachers love them for class projects. I normally would lot up about 30 or so, but you can do larger lots. You can do the same with egg cartons.
As far as yard sales, I do not like dealing with people period, but for sure in person. When my ex and I did yard sales years ago, it was always a lot of work with little reward. I recall one we had some nice furniture set out for sell. A woman wanted it, but she wanted her husband to see it. She asked if we would hold it for her until she got back with him. No problem. Well, they called an hour later and asked if they could come the next day, but she was sure they would be getting it. Fine. Next day came, she called and said they could not make it. Asked to come later in the week. Fine. You can see where this is going. They eventually do come to look at the furniture. The husband liked it and they said they would take it. Wonderful. Whe it came time to pay, they demanded we take 1/3rd of our asking price and they would not take any more than that. I was very well-known in the community we lived in so I could not say what I was I thinking. I sure let it all out when I got back inside the house. And no, I did not lower my price. I donated the furniture. I'd rather give stuff away than deal with people like that.
Years ago I flipped at our local flea market, and it was nothing but a bunch of other resellers trying to get your stuff for next to nothing. That's just not the place I am at in the reselling business. I am that person who buys cheap.
When I pull down listings, I pile that stuff up and donate it. I took two boxes that had been sitting on the carport since January over to the Habit store this week. Of course, I ended up bringing back a shopping cart full of things.
gurlcat
·5 months ago"Trash" was what started me becoming a full time seller. Actually the very first things were personally-owned items I felt I needed to sacrifice when I had a big expense and was just desperate for money. And once those items were gone, that WOULD have been the end of it, but right when I had only a couple of those listings still unsold .... one magical night changed everything.
One of my coworkers gave me an address where she had seen a bunch of trash at the curb, including a couple of aquariums (she knew I was into fish). So after work I went, and noticed a couple of other nice things, too nice to throw away, but most of the 'bulk' was in black lawn bags. I opened one and saw tons of good stuff, so I crammed as many as I could into my car, 7 I think, without knowing if some of it was actual disgusting garbage, LOL.
When I got home I went through the stuff and it was almost entirely GOOD, worth selling for sure, in fact I ended up making about $600 from that haul. And that was it, I was hooked for life.
femmefan1946
·5 months agoThe non-sports cards were popular & quick to sell. Even have plenty left that, for an unknown reason, have not drawn the same attention.
The "good" cards sold fast. The rest are not going to sell. Can you either give them back to your friend, donate them with the friend's permission, or dump them?
It would be better in the long run to buy from your friends, because taking them on consignment, including putting in all the labour, is not a good way to keep friends.
sakic92710
OP5 months agoThe other cards will sell. It just takes time. Already had an offer on some today. My friend does not want anything back. Everything was given to me. The one friend who is going 50/50 with me wanted bins out of his way & won't sell online. It was completely his idea to do consignment. There will be absolutely no reason to lose a friendship. Hope you are not negative about it because of past experience. I've never lost a friend due to "business."
meme6253
·5 months agoI agree with your last part, Business with friends and family usually don't mix well.
gurlcat
·5 months agoI've done 3 yard sales to get rid of dead stock. The first one did GREAT, barely left anything behind and I made about $250. But the other 2, just awful, way more trouble than they were worth. And I have no idea why, considering I lived in the same house all 3 times, used the same advertising methods, etc.
I don't know why you'd price everything $1.00 though. Surely some things would be sellable for more, others less.
Yes I've had some inventory donations from friends/family in the past. It feels a lot better than a handout of cash because I still prefer to earn my living, and like you said, if they just want to clear space anyway, there's at least some sense of a mutual benefit.
I've also done 50/50 consignment with a couple people but it gets old if they don't understand Ebay nearly as much as you do. Also there's the fact that it's all on your tax bill in January, not theirs.
sakic92710
OP5 months agoI would only put things out there that I don't care if they sell for $1.00. I have several hardcover books that I got for free. They were left behind in a flea market booth. Same with DVDs. They were left behind by a family who abandoned an apt. I'd sell them 2 for $1. I have everything in my apt. & want to clear stuff out, too. I have sports cards that can go at a buck each. Patches, buttons. Even some posters that I'm inclined to toss out. Try to get a few bucks instead. Several decorative knickknacks. Hot Rod magazines. It's just an idea. I had a great yard sale a few years ago, but regret selling items too cheap. After the successful one, the next 3 were ok, awful, awful. lol