posted on February 13, 2001 09:43:34 AM
I was wondering how many of you look for stuff just to buy and resell? I know this is a really stupid question but if you do this, does it ever offend the person you bought it from? What method do you use? Do you care if someone buys one of your items and then resells it? Thanks!
posted on February 13, 2001 09:52:07 AM
I occasionally buy items on Ebay (and other auction sites) to resell on our websites, but do not resell them on Ebay. I use a different Ebay ID to buy under and never bid against our previous customers. I check the feedback of the high bidder to see if they have feedback from us. If they do, I won't outbid them.
As for offending the seller, or being offended by someone reselling what they bought from you ... A sale to a reseller is still better than no sale at all.
posted on February 13, 2001 09:58:55 AM
It is very hard to buy anything in my major categories (photo, electronics), never mind re-sell it. Almost always people pay more for stuff than you can buy it NEW for, with warranty, and get delivery in 1-2 days. I often think buyers on eBay are on a tropical island w/o newspapers or shopping engines etc. That being said, you can sometimes get a good enough deal to re-sell. Frequently newbies do not post a picture. A picture will always increase the price. Another way is when the seller puts up a "lot". I made a fortune once buying a lot of printers and parts. There were 3 printers, a bunch of toners, and a couple of drums. I bought the whole lot for LESS than one of the drums was selling for on eBay. You always break up lots. The last thing you can do is look for misspellings. I got a good deal on a "Bessalar" color enlarger which I resold. Buyers when searching do not think to search correctly for stuff they are looking for, so the competition is less.
As for how the person you buy from feels about it, well you can't worry about somebody else's stupidity. It's a learning experience.
Tony
posted on February 13, 2001 09:59:36 AM
i have bought things on ebay, and ended up turning around and listing them at a later date for sale. But I buy under one name, and sell under another, so who would know?
It is not a stupid question, but it is a question I would expect from a caring, sensitive, nurturing person. You'll have to stop being that way!!!
Buying for resale is a time-honored tradition dating back thousands of years. Assuming both parties are bargaining in good faith, you can't take a trade personally, and you can't feel "guilty" about what the other person receives. They may be thrilled to get $1.00 for something you resell for $10.00. The prior owner, for whatever reason, didn't want to do what was necessary to find the $10.00 buyer---or they didn't know how. You did. What's wrong with that?
Your first priorities are your own family and business. When looking for items to resale, scrounge for good deals and bargain hard. You still have to clean up the item, photograph it, write the description, list it, pay the listing fees, deal with the bidders (or lack thereof) and handle the post sale packing, shipping, take the risk of damage or a chargeback or bounced check. When you figure in all your time and the risk you take, the "excessive profit" doesn't seem unreasonable at all.
You are honest and fair in your dealings----I can tell----so, don't hesitate to be fair to yourself as well. Go make tons of money!!!
posted on February 13, 2001 10:57:17 AM
Yes you can buy and resell. You do risk losing money. I frankly don't worry about who I am bidding against, nor do I use a separate identity. I usually delay reselling something to avoid appearing too obvious in my dealings.
Many great items, do to bidder/seller ignorance, go begging on eBay.
posted on February 13, 2001 11:26:41 AM
I know that some of my customers are buying to resell but what the hey. I purchased it from someone who made a profit and I in turn sold it for a profit (be it $1 or $100) and if the buyer can turn it over, that's great. That's how the economy works and how it keeps working.
posted on February 13, 2001 11:34:44 AM
Last summer I bought a box load (literally about 200 pieces) of el cheapo, decorative, made in china widgets. They fit in nicely with a certain type of collectible that is generally expensive, but this particular item is neither collectible NOR expensive. Each one of these widgets cost me $1.50. Summer is usually fairly slow for me on ebay so I was content to resell each of these items for $5.00 plus $2.00 shipping.
I listed them in what I felt was an appropriate category. Not the category intended for the high priced collectibles.
Since it is again winter and my sales have picked up considerably I decided to start peddling these items again. I listed them in the same category at the same opening bid- 5.00, but this time with a BIN of $9.00 (which, by the way, I thought was outrageous).
To make a long story short, each time I listed one of these widgets the same buyer snapped it up at the BIN price within hours of my listing it. Needless to say when this individual emailed and asked how many of these widgets I had I answered truthfully and was ecstatic to sell each of the rest of them for the BIN price.
I got curious and started nosing around this person’s auctions.
It turns out this item in a different category (the category intended for the high priced collectible) sells for roughly $30.00!
Honestly though, I can’t beat myself up about it.
I sleep very well at night and I’m still able to make an honest dollar. I was thrilled with what the item was selling for and couldn’t in good conscience list it in an inappropriate category. I can also tell you that if I was in the market for one of these items I would never, ever in a million years pay $30.00 for it!
I don’t know whether to consider it good marketing on the part of the seller who purchased them from me or to consider their advertising techniques misleading. This person doesn't say anything in the ad that isn't true. It's the category the item is listed under that bothers me a little.
posted on February 13, 2001 11:35:43 AM
I try to be as honest as I can because that's just the way you have to be to be successfull
I have flubbed up a couple of times here lately and I'm just WAITING for a couple of negs to come through. They were honest mistakes and both involved bidders who didn't contact me and waited till I sent out that I was relisting the item to say that they wanted it, only too late.
posted on February 13, 2001 11:39:29 AM
Mayfair - I think you did absolutely fine. Other people should know what they are buying and if they are willing to pay $30.00, then let 'am
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
"Nothing is so complicated that
it cannot be explained simply"
- Albert Einstein
posted on February 13, 2001 11:44:35 AM
Thanks, Susan.
I sure do wish I had more of those widgets, though. I was thrilled with my profit margin at $9.00 each!
posted on February 13, 2001 02:52:25 PM
I'll do it only when I'm bored and see what I can come up with. I've done well buying lots, and reselling the items individually. But, single items I've bought for resell I'm still stuck with.
I do sell factory cases of items to others who either resell it or invest in it and that is exactly what I expect. Plus I sell vintage things that I'm sure end up sometimes being resold at shows or antique/collectible malls, but I buy low and sell low and everyone's happy. Any resellers I'm more than happy to accomadate, and will allow them to buy more at the same price. I like fast turnover.
\"They say the grass is greener on the other side. But have you flipped it over and looked?
\"
posted on February 14, 2001 04:16:21 PM
I have to admit that I, too, often resell things I have bought on Ebay. But, it's not because I intentionally bought it for that purpose. I change my decor like some people change their socks (let's hope that's daily, ha ha). I drive my boyfriend nuts. One day I absolutely love something and the next, I hate it. So, if you are a selling who sold something to me and see it for resale on Ebay. . .chalk it up to the blond hair.
posted on February 14, 2001 04:27:02 PM
I don't see it as any breach of ethics or etiquette to resell something you buy on Ebay. I bought it, it's mine, I can sell it if I want. I don't understand why anyone would take that personally.
Then again...I am blonde...and I redecorate all the time.....and drive my spouse crazy....hmmmm...there may be something in that.
posted on February 14, 2001 05:21:29 PM
Some people have resold what I sell them. I have a bunch of bidders who always bid on my items and tell me they resell it locally. I too look for things other sellers don't look for. I look for certain compilation CD's where a seller may only get $3 for it because they did not put a certain group that was on the CD. They assumed that the no name groups would get no bids. Sometimes, if they are a newbie, I tell them and hate myself for it. Sometimes I buy the CD and resell it and it end up being sold for $30 or more. I don't think there is anything wrong with reselling.
posted on February 14, 2001 05:23:25 PM
I also buy stuff to resell, but also will not outbid a buyer that I recognize as a customer of mine, nothing is worth losing a good repeat customer. Don't really care what the seller thinks about me reselling their stuff, can't imagine they would even care. I know I don't, if you can get more for the stuff then I did, happy selling.
posted on February 14, 2001 06:09:36 PM
Susan:
I attended my first auction in 1958 at the age of 4. I did Brimfield for Col. May in 1971 as a junior in High School. The entire Antiques and Collectibles market is based on buying and reselling. I have owned some items 3 times already over the last 40 years. If someone buys something from me for resale not only do I wish them Good Luck put hope they make a good profit. Why: Because they will come back and but again. In this business your repeat customer base is your largest asset. All good antique/collectible dealers buy from each other and sell to each other.
My partner & I still do our best buying from other dealers.
Do not be afraid to buy and sell for resale. Thats what this buiness is about.
posted on February 15, 2001 06:08:15 AM
I buy mostly magazines and books, and yes, I buy on Ebay and resell. What I usually end up doing is buying collections of more than 1 magazine or book that a seller puts up (only if they are in very nice condition do I bid) and then breaking them down and reselling them individually. I've made good money doing this.
I never bid against any of my frequent customers on these items unless I was there first and bid first - then it's every bidder for themselves! I do use another ID to bid and buy. I recently bought a collection of 40 books and to date have sold not even half of them and have my purchase price and shipping costs back and still have plenty left to sell.
posted on February 15, 2001 11:10:30 AM
I've found some of my best resale deals on eBay. I keep an eye out for box lots that contain several high-value items in my specialty, that are being sold "as-is" (meaning dirty and tarnished). The seller is happy to get rid of what he considers to be low-value junk, and I am thrilled to pay next to nothing for something that with 15 minutes of elbow grease and a good photo I can sell for 3-4 times what I paid...or more.
There is also a certain pleasure in finding unrecognized treasures, cleaning them up and making them beautiful again, and then selling them to a buyer who writes, "I've been looking for this for 20 years...thank you!"
posted on February 15, 2001 01:25:23 PM
In my opinion, you can definately buy and resell on eBay.
The trick is to be very well educated on the items that you are purchasing and selling. Very often, I find products that are undervalued that I know I will be able to pruchase and later sell at a resonable profit. It's tricky, but it can be done.
