eBay fees aren't that much compared to other outlets.

[quadcitypickers]

A consignment store near me - they take 60%, yes...60% of the item's selling price.

Antique malls may only take 10-15%, but you might have to spend $200/mo on rent. So if you sell $1,500/mo out of that booth, that ends up being 23-28%.

Auction houses charge upwards of 35%. You have no control over the selling price (reserves are usually for super expensive items or cars).

Neither of the 3 have the level of exposure eBay has.

Could fees be cheaper? Sure, but compared to trying to sell your stuff at a consignment store, auction house or antique mall, they really aren't that bad.

[theteamsetguy]

@quadcitypickers ,

Not only your items are exposed ALL over the globe for no extra charge. If an item sells to a foreign buyer,  the seller gets charged a minimal additional FVF which is a bargain. Foreign buyers tend to have bigger orders and many are repeat customers because they can’t find it their home country.

Ebay fees are a bargain when compared to the venues you mentioned. Also, where else can you sell something in the middle of the night when sleeping?

[luckythewinner]

Could fees be cheaper? Sure, but compared to trying to sell your stuff at a consignment store, auction house or antique mall, they really aren't that bad.

There is a reason there are 18 million sellers listing 1.5 billion items here ... and few of the sellers who complain about fees seem to be in a hurry to leave. 

[pickapaper]

We are in an antique mall and we pay a little over $1000.00 month rent plus credit card fees.  That means we have to sell that much every month before we even start to make any proceeds.   It is a huge mall so competition is heavy; you might see the same items in several booths so pricing has to be low or competitive.   We have had things stolen, we have had things torn up or broken (I understand accidents happening but sometimes it is obvious that things have been torn up on purpose.)  The mall is not responsible for theft or damage.   Why do we do it?  Because some things aren't worth selling on eBay, some things are restricted from eBay but can be sold at the mall, and some expensive things can be locked up in a case at the mall.   We have been buying and selling for about 40-45 years so it's hard to give up.   

I still prefer selling on eBay.  I don't sell as much dollarwise on Ebay as I used to because for the most part I don't sell anything over $200-$300 and I stopped selling internationally.   Every time I mail out a package, I say a little prayer that the transaction will go okay.    I've been "taken" a few times but in the grand scheme of things, it has been good.  That's why I've sold on here for 27 years. 

[dpgcolle-30]

I compare it to a brick and mortar store.  I don't believe rent, utilities, payroll, sales tax collection and remittance, etc. can be had for less than 12-15% of your sales.  Plus if  you go an entire month without selling anything, all you pay is the monthly store fee.  In a physical store, all of those expenses are still in place.  While it may seem high, it's a business and the fees are just a part of business.  Plus your items are visible to anyone that has access to a computer.  Would I love for it to be less?  Of course, but at the current rate I can't complain too much because they allow me to something fun from home and make some money in the process

[bennotbill]

For larger electronic items and tools I prefer to sell to a shop near me.

They pay half of what the item sells for in the shop. Taking into account ebay fees, postage and packing, and the high chance of something going wrong, a cash in hand instant sale is by far the best choice for me with those sort of items.

[theteamsetguy]

@bennotbill ,

Ebay is not for everyone. 

[funfactorychannel]

ebay fees can be a lot more than paying for a big retail brick and mortar store. But then again I would love to have that problem where my fees are a lot more than big retail brick and mortar 

[12345jamesstamps]

Some people are strange...like my other half...she has to look at it, feel it, and check it up and down...never buys online...even if it's four bucks.

There is a market for those who want to see the item in person vs. who buys it online.

Me...I buy stuff on eBay online and try to hide it when it comes so she doesn't know I bought it...LOL

[simba6]

eBay also has a lot more buyers.

[stainlessenginecovers]

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@funfactorychannel wrote:

ebay fees can be a lot more than paying for a big retail brick and mortar store. But then again I would love to have that problem where my fees are a lot more than big retail brick and mortar 

---

You'd have to sell $1,000,000 a month to equal the cost of a 'big' B&M Store (Typical Lowes/HD store 'lease' is well over $100,000 a month (I paid $55,000 a month plus another $25000 utilities, insurances etc. for a 55000 sf HomeBase store in Fullerton Ca in 1992. 

[txentosupply]

My wife is the same way. If it's only four dollars, she'll try to get it for two dollars! Funny thing is, shell get annoyed at people following the same strategy.

[theteamsetguy]

@stainlessenginecovers ,

That’s a pretty big nut every month.

[isaiah53-57]

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@dpgcolle-30 wrote:

Would I love for it to be less?  Of course, but at the current rate I can't complain too much because they allow me to something fun from home and make some money in the process

---

Well maybe you havent had  a few $300 to $1000 items scammed from you yet - Trust me - Once it happens, the "fun" goes away real quick...

[theteamsetguy]

@isaiah53-57 ,

I’m still waiting for it to happen and I expect it to happen to me eventually. To me it’s a cost of doing business.

There are scammers and thieves everywhere. Before the days of eBay I used to set up at many shows. One time a guy asks me if I he could take closer look at a $500.00 plus card in my show case. Then his friend wanted to look at something else. The first guy decides not to buy the item so I put it back in the show case. 

An hour or so later another guy asks to look at the card. He looks at it and goes I think the borders of card has been touched up with a black marker. Upon closer examination it was definitely touched up. So, the guy that looked at earlier swapped cards on me. Did I stop doing shows or blame the show promoter because of that?