posted on September 22, 2000 09:52:24 AM new
Hi all - Just feeling like chatting with some other booksellers. I've been selling books on ebay since early 2000. I started with my own books and since then have looked for books to sell locally at used book stores (I use accumulated store credit), booksales, thrift shops, and yard sales. I look for stuff to sell direct on ebay or half.com, and also to take to the used bookstores to accumulate credit.
My rule of thumb for all cash purchases has been to spend about $1-2 maximum for hardcovers, and 25-50 cents for paperbacks. I usually list paperbacks (trade size) for $3 and hardcovers for $4. Using this approach I frequently find gems and make a nice profit, but just as often I make only a few dollars.
My question: when is it time to consider making larger investments in books for possible greater return? And what books would be worth it? Aside from rare collectible books, I'm thinking maybe this would work for really nice hardcover craft books, for example.
I know some people buy books online to resell, but I never do because there is an initial investment of at least several dollars, including shipping. I thought about buying some remainders from Hamilton Books, but never got around to actually ordering them.
posted on September 22, 2000 10:25:37 AM new
I've been doing pretty much like you have with the yard sale and such. I try to keep my investment in the same range for the hardcovers and paperbacks.
I have ordered from Hamilton.com before, but not for resale. They only charge $3.00 for as many books as you want to order at one time. I just don't see putting up that much for remaindered books that if a buyer knows, can go and get the book direct from Hamilton.com.
Have you been going to any library sales in your area? I have found these to be a great source of books for resale. Most usually have the paperbacks $.10-.25 and hardcovers $1.00. It all depends. I usually check this web site for library sales:
www.book-sales-in-america.com
Sorry I don't know how to make that a link. They also list book fairs and huge sales. You can select your state and see what's going on where.
posted on September 22, 2000 10:34:35 AM new
I agree with your general assessment. Sometimes books cost me more to buy and I take a chance that they will provide a good return.
I am amazed at the price difference range people will pay for the same book. You always need to look at more than one auction to get an idea of its perceived value.
I find that I might spend anywhere from about $25.00 to $200.00 buying books and about $40 for packing envelopes for shipping in a given month.
It helps to branch out a bit on subjects you might sell, but I stick mostly to areas I know about. Many books might be perfectly good, but people just won't touch them and take forever to sell.
I try eBay first for most good books and then move them to Yahoo if they need more exposure to sell. Some I did great on Yahoo with a first pass, so it depends.
posted on September 22, 2000 10:42:04 AM new
mballai - I've never tried Yahoo, though several times I've examined their book categories. I've been experimenting with Amazon with lackluster results, so maybe Yahoo will be my next experiment.
micheneraddict: yes, I live for library booksales! I sell a lot of ex-library books, but I also look for whatever people have donated (frequently they are wonderful items!). In October there will be a bunch of sales and I hope to hit them all.
posted on September 22, 2000 10:59:04 AM new
When I lived in Central Pennsylvania, I got ALL my books from estate auctions. Now that I'm in CA, thrift shops and library book sales are the best source of supply for me.
Here's the reason estate sales were great for me. Partner and I showed up in a small town early one morning for an all-day estate sale. The deceased had been a Baptist preacher and had scads of books--30 file boxes full, with 30-40 books in each box (most published between 1880-1920 and on arcane points of Protestant theology and hagiography). Of course, the auctioneer didn't get to the books until the end of the day. . . He started off the bidding at $5.00 a box. No one bid, so he kept lowering the price. Finally the bid was 50 cents per box--your pick of boxes. I raised my hand. Man sitting next to me looked at me oddly and muttered, "Why you bidding on that--they're OLD books, not worth a poot." No one else bid, so I got about 1000 books for $15.00. Most books sold in the $8-$12 range, but a couple went over $100.
posted on September 22, 2000 11:15:19 AM new
Add auctions to the list of "where to buy".
Some auctions that sell household goods and storage items often have quanities of books that no one even bids on. And for a good reason. I found that even next to free books hard to make a profit on when selling online.
The amount of time and effort needed to haul, store, sort, research and list books is great when compared to average returns on common items.
Becuase the quanity of inventory available is high and the supply steady, I'm trying to determine a way of making books a steady offering in my mix. I'm presently trying to learn a multi site bulk lister and time will tell if it all works for me.
Listing, relisting and FVF's take a big cut as a percentage of profit. YAHOO's free listing looks attractive but they do not have a very active book market. Dual listing at YAHOO (Using 1st Bid Wins) and Half.com has potential but needs to be closely monitored.
As with any item the more you get to know about the market, the better your buying skills become but ,as you upgrade quality, the inventory costs, search time and competation all increase.
I'm working mostly with LP's right now and just starting to put books into the mix. I'm shooting for average results for batches. For example if I can put up 100 items with eBay listings followed by parking items at Half.com and YAHOO and have 90% sell thru over time, then what will the overall result be?
I'll need to substract out of pocket cost and then divide the remainder by hours invested in the entire process from searching for inventory thru mailing/feedback.
I figure with fixed business overheads (for computer, office supplies and time etc.)I'll need about $20.00 per hour return.
Unless I'm willing to really learn the market I'm going to have to make volume the road to profits rather than quality.
The list for $5.00 sell for $25.00 happens but so do the list for $5.00 and never sell. How to make it a profitable ongoing business and not just a lot of motion without any profit is my challange.
As with any item the mix of selling processes vary but in the end we all need to make ,what for each of us, is a satisfactory return for our time.
Any shared tips that don't infringe on your own market will be greatly appreciated.
posted on September 24, 2000 05:32:55 PM new
IMHO, the key is the profit a book will bring. Spend some time looking at books sold on eBay. There are lots that go for $25 to $250 and up. This has a great impact on what you could pay for an individual book.
posted on September 24, 2000 06:19:35 PM new
We start our best books out on eBay. About 30%-60% sell in any given week at a fair profit. Once in a while one takes off and except for the true rares you can never seem to know what will do well. After two weeks what has not sold is moved to Amazon along with the less desirable others. With a merchants account on Amazon at about $40.00 a month with up to 5000 listings and the ability to automaticly relist untill a book sells even though we only sell 2%-3% of our Amazon stoc per week it is still much more cost effective for us.
[ edited by ondahouse on Sep 24, 2000 06:20 PM ]
posted on September 24, 2000 10:01:03 PM new
I sell books and I take a chance on weird ones with every batch. I just sold a Japanese book of sheet music , no English in it whatsoever except the title and a mans name. It was affiliated with a well-known Japanese anime artist, which I did not know when I bought it, I bought it because it was cheap and I chose it as my weird one for this batch. I got a surprisingly good price for it (a good price for me, my books aren't exceptional). Some of my oddest books get the best prices, and others just sit there. Darned if I can figure out which is which.
posted on September 24, 2000 11:11:45 PM new
I just had to post....I started out selling my old paperbacks on half.com (I tried selling them at a garage sale and couldn't give them away). I read mostly mystery and true crime (actually just about anything except romance). They did so well on half.com, that I started frequenting thrift stores and have made a decent profit (I won't buy a paperback for resale if it's priced any more than $.50). It doesn't make me rich, but I have made a few hundred dollars every month. I joined an egroup about books to learn more of what is and isn't collectable. As a result of this, I found a paperback book published in 1995 that I auctioned on ebay. I paid $.35 for the book and it sold for $33. Now....if I could just find more of them......
As a rule, though, it is a small profit margin, but I still double my investment....
posted on September 25, 2000 01:45:32 AM new
I buy my books at yard sales and auctions. I recently bought 600 books (old hardbacks) at a yard sale for 20 cents each. I list on Ebay for 2.99 and up. I've currently sold about 75 of them, in 2 months, and at last count I've realized a profit of about $800. Some sell for $2.99, most don't sell, but several have gone over $100!! Great investment.
posted on September 25, 2000 09:54:55 AM new
HI Jmjones -
My minimums always give me 4-10 times what I paid, so by that measure I do fine, though I'm still talking sales in the $3-$10 range most of the time. What is the egroup you joined? I have looked at ebay's book group but I don't care for the format.
posted on September 25, 2000 10:08:49 AM new
Hi. I'm about to sell some old books I have in storage, so I'm new to this market. I just have a question to ask all of you: How do you package your books, either paper or hardcover? Is it acceptable to package them in a bubblewrap envelope? (which I normally do when selling CDs, etc).
Should they be put into a box?
posted on September 25, 2000 10:18:11 AM new
kurzon
I prefer a padded envelope-the bubblewrap ones seem to be fine, but the plainer and less expensive padded ones seem more durable less likely to tear through. The ones I use most come from Mail Away and I get them from Office Depot. I always put the books in a plastic bag first to keep the book clean and dry. I use staples and tape to seal the envelope. My labels are also sealed with tape.
posted on September 25, 2000 11:44:36 AM new
kurzon - I often use a padded envelope for paperbacks, but it's a good idea to include stiff cardboard for reinforcement. For hardcovers I use boxes and wrap well in paper and often pad with foam peanuts.
posted on September 25, 2000 09:20:02 PM new
keziak -
It is a list on onelist.com or egroups.com (they just changed their name, so I'm not sure which it is). I will post the specific group later. Normally, it is a search list for oop and hard to find books for other members, but they often have discussions on collectibles - mostly in the romance categories (which is the category that I am clueless about). It is also a good source for immediate sales if you have the book that someone is looking for - it does generate 40-60 messages a day though.
As far as packaging, I prefer bubble wrap envelopes as they provide more cushion against bumps. I buy care mail ones through office max, although I will be researching as I have seen a few sites advertise for less, but if you order through office max, delivery is free. Just a note of caution, be careful what you wrap books in. Some plastic will stick and destroy the covers (there are specialty bags for books that work well on true collectibles). Also, never use newsprint to wrap due to leeching and transference of the ink - it can destroy covers and dust jackets!
posted on September 26, 2000 02:47:33 AM new
Hi all - I work in a library and one supply I like to "harvest" from the trash boxes are the large sheets of paper many publishers uses to stuff their boxes. Sometimes I guess they also wrap the books, but mostly it seems like they use it for filler.
One sheet is about twice the size of an average sheet of wrapping paper, so when it is wrapped around a book it provides cushioning for the corners. I then slip it into a plastic bag and wrap the whole thing in newspaper.
keziak
P.S. after posting my original question, I went out and spent "real" money on a couple of old books at a shop, and came home to find out they don't have any particular value. Meanwhile, two tiny pamphlets I picked up at an estate sale for a dime each, sold for over $5. And two vintage books I found in a FREE bin at the used book store (which isn't interested in "old books" are currently going UP and UP. Think I'll stick to my low-price sources...
are currently going UP and UP. Think I'll stick to my low-price sources...