Can i sell someones else item ,they are selling, for more money

[jayg.buyandsell]

am i alowed to list say "earphones" on my ebay for $5 or $10 and when someone makes a purchase i use the money i received and order the same earphones for $1 from china on another persons ebay listing and instead of putting my address for delivery i put the person that payed me for a pair. Then the china earphones get sent to the person that bought from me and i still have a profit of $4 or $9 depending on how much im going to resell them. And it means i dont have to hold any stock or start with any money.

The ebay store that is selling them from china for $1 dont miss out because they will be making profit and so will i. Is this a win win and is it allowed or would it even be worth it.

Thanks.

[gutterpunkz05]

It is your responsibility to ensure that any third-party fulfilment of your orders complies with this policy. If you don't follow these guidelines, you may be subject to a range of actions. We may limit, restrict or suspend you from buying, selling or using site features. All of your listings may be removed, displayed lower or not shown in search results, without refunding any or all applicable fees. You may also forfeit any special account status and/or discounts.

Allowed

• Fulfilling your own orders, including if you are a retail business selling your own inventory on eBay
• Fulfilling your own orders directly from a supplier (drop shipping) from whom you have pre-purchased stock
• Using a third party to fulfil eBay orders on your behalf, provided all of the following conditions are met:
  • You are clearly identified as the seller on all packing slips and invoices, and
  • Using the third-party fulfilment service doesn't mislead or confuse the buyer as to the origin of their purchase (for example, due to branded packaging), and
  • You ensure the safe fulfilment of the item within the terms stated in your listing, and
  • You ensure that your third-party provider is subject to a contractual condition which prevents them from using or sharing any eBay order information (including the names and contact details of buyers) for any purpose other than the fulfilment of the specific eBay order which they are engaged by you to fulfil.

Not allowed

• Fulfilling your orders from a third-party supplier when the above conditions are not met
• Listing an item on eBay and then purchasing the item from another retailer or marketplace that sends it directly to your customer.

[dontmissthese]

Ebay changed it's drop shipping rules a while back.

Short version...it's OK as long as you 'pre-own' the goods being sent from the supplier.

I ran into these new conditions when I was considering offering drop shipping of

products I manufacture. I was able to get around this rule but in the end found it easier to

set up some affiliate software at my web site.

[*tippy*toes*]

Think about it. Why would I give you $5 or $10 for something, when I can buy the identical item from China for $1, that will arrive in the same timeframe as your listing?

Bad idea. You're dreaming. Guaranteed to end badly.

[springyzone]

You're dreaming, but it's a nightmare scenario.

If it worked, every man & his dog would be doing it, wouldn't they. You don't think you're the only person who has ever thought of it?

Some others have tried it. i recall a year or so back, someone came on the boards complaining bitterly as they had bought from someone on ebay, only to have K mart deliver the item. Same principle but at least the item there was located in Australia and the item was a big one that buyers probably would not be buying multiples of, so they'd know what purchase it was.

Many buyers consider it fraudulent behaviour (on the part of the seller) to buy something that then comes from another retailer. You wouldn't be generating any goodwill, buyers might see you as sneaky & dishonest and I am betting a lot would open not as described claims.

If you want to head into big trouble, one of the fastest ways to do it on ebay is to list something as in Australia and have it turn up to buyers, with Chinese postage markings. And make the buyer feel like a fool.

But the main problem I think you'd be facing is this: 

What makes you so confident that a buyer would even know the small item was from you? 

You're assuming the buyer has only bought one set of earphones and will 'know' they must be from you. I'd say a more likely scenario is they would open their pack, think "Who on earth sent me these, I can't remember ordering anything like this from China', and down the track, they would think-my Australian earphones have never turned up. They would then open an item not received claim. I know I certainly would. You would have no tracking detail and i would receive a full refund.

You're forgetting one basic thing. We're in the middle of a pandemic, people are buying from online sites a lot more now. Some retail stores have had online sales increase by 80%. So a person isn't going to automatically know their random chinese parcel is from an ebay purchase, they might not know where it is from. And some of those who do twig will still see the way wide open to make a claim from you and know you won't have a leg to stand on, they'll take you as a chump.

If you genuinely want to sell stuff on ebay, buy some items first.  Then when they arrive at your home, make your own ebay listing and see how you go.

My concern for you though would be that the sellers you buy from (even if you buy from somewhere like ali express) also most likely sell on ebay. So what's your point of difference? What are you offering that a buyer would choose to pay $10 for instead of buying the Chinese one?

You might strike the occasional person who prefers to buy from an Australian seller and will pay a bit more for that, but be aware that in that case, the buyer will be expecting to that get the item much quicker than they would by buying from China. You sell in Australia, people expect a parcel within a 1-2 week time frame in most cases.