Where can I go to find items to sell on ebay?

[niko_zheng]

Hi there,

Where and how do individuals find things to sell on ebay? I want to buy items in bulk and then sell those items individually through ebay, how do I do this? Do sellers contact and buy from a distributer? Can someone please point me in the right direction where I can find things to buy in bulk?

kind regards

[k1ooo-slr-sales]

I didn’t mind revealing where I got my stock from.  A newbie wanting the secrets of successful selling is unlikely to go down the path I took.

I sold things that I was interested in.  I did it mainly for the enjoyment of it, to source equipment for my school, and to help keep film photography alive.

I am also an opportunist.  If I see something good and cheap on the clearance table at Officeworks I will buy with the intention of on-selling.  I bought some Garmin GPS Cases the week before the William & Kate wedding.  I listed them while the wedding was in progress and they sold in a matter of minutes.  My thinking was that there would be higher eBay traffic during the wedding and it paid off.

For anyone thinking of buying on eBay with the intention of on-selling, I would recommend having two eBay IDs, one for buying and one for selling.  You don’t want buyers looking at your feedback and working out that you are selling something you bought for much cheaper on eBay.

Spoiler

one of the refurbished K1000 cameras I sold a couple of years back is currently listed on eBay.  It is the one re-covered in Blue leatherette.  I sold it (camera body only, no lens) for $250, and it is currently listed for auction starting at $300).

I still have about 20 of the K1000 cameras and will probably sell them later in the year.  They sold really well in the lead up to Christmas the last time I was selling them (I really am an opportunist).

[*sons_n_daughters*]

---

@brickworksmarket wrote:

Its kinda funny you mention this method as it would be the holy grail of selling and is where you make decent money. Unfortunately you need deep pockets and warehousing space to do this method. 

I feel you meant it as a joke which is the funny part but it is how you make a business and not a job which is what many ebay sellers do. Anyone who thinks their ebay business is a business try selling it as a business. 

---

I wasn't joking. Most of my product was bought from China, Africa, and India. I bought from 90c to $3. I sell between $10 and $250. Although I did get over $500 for a 90c item a few years back. That said, I don't sell cheap Chinese junk knockoffs. I sell products that don't have cheap Chinese knockoffs, because it's near impossible to replicate them.

I also wasn't joking about the going to China thing. A former work colleague did because she decided she wanted to open up a clothes shop. She was a foreign born colleague. She wanted to provide a local service for other people from her country. It was so successful, she gave up her job with me and concentrated on the clothing business. She was raking it in. I live in a town with 53,000 population.

[brickworksmarket]

You do realise quoting numbers like that makes it impossible for anyone to take you serious.

[domino-710]

That should be ' seriously '.

Ever checked out ' Antiques Road Show '.

[imastawka]

I've bought from s_n_d, and no, they're not joking.

They have beautiful items, and I was very happy with my purchase.

If they can source their product at those prices, then more power to 'em.

I buy at 15c to about $5 and sell between $2 to $20 mostly for individual items.

I know $2 ain't much, but if you get a lot of buyers, it works out ok.

Repeat collectors buy many items in one sale for $2each, and ebay only allows 40 items per invoice.

There was a mad buying season for collectors a few years ago and I was selling 15c items for over $200.

My stock is vintage items left over from a B & M store I had in the 80's.

My grandchildren's children will be selling it, I have so much of it.

[brickworksmarket]

Is that some type of car show for old people. 

[sugar249]

---

@brickworksmarket wrote:

You do realise quoting numbers like that makes it impossible for anyone to take you serious.

---

I don't think you realise that there are huge trade shows over in China,  where every man/Woman and their dog from Australia goes to.   If it wasnt profitable, would they take the expense of a trip and a week or 2.   Of course it is profitable,  you most likely only looked at Alibaba, and not the real products worth selling.

[brickworksmarket]

I am under the impression they have a job as their main income going by what they say. So selling the odd thing here and there is not the same as selling enough to make ebay your main income.

[domino-710]

Don't give up your day job. LOL

[imastawka]

---

@brickworksmarket wrote:

I am under the impression they have a job as their main income going by what they say. So selling the odd thing here and there is not the same as selling enough to make ebay your main income.

---

And that's a problem how?

Regular sales is not 'selling the odd thing here and there'.

Most small-ish sellers on ebay have sales to supplement their income, not rely on it for main income.