posted on July 18, 2002 03:04:30 PM
I am REALLY considering doing eBay full-time come Sept. I am a student and I am supposed to do a co-op in sept then have 8 months off before I start business school, but the job market is down the tubes.
I am seriously considering doing eBay full-time, I have been doing it part-time currently and have learned alot and finially start making money, by buying good merchandise.
I would like to hear from people that do this full-time. I don't want your secrets, but it would be nice to know how much you earn and if you want to tell us generally what items you sell. How hard do you really work
I think I would get most of my merchandise from thrift stores and garage sales, and supplement the rest of my income as a trading assitant for a few sellers I know.
posted on July 18, 2002 03:28:19 PM
Forget thrift stores and garage sales as a source of merch. They're fun to shop when you don't have to do it for a living, but these days everyone's looking to make a buck. I won't even stop at garage sales anymore unless the passenger insists. Pawing through other peoples' crap was fun when I was selling at one flea market a month, but on eBay, it's a flea market every day. The collectibles market is very soft right now. I just checked prices on some rare china I wanted to sell, and let's just say it's going to stay on the shelves for months yet. By all indications this is a good time to BUY on eBay.
I sell on eBay full-time, and sorry, I'd rather not share any data about my business with you.
posted on July 18, 2002 08:45:36 PM
Unless you have to do eBay full time, why would you ?
eBay is the perfect set-up as a part time job that consumes far less time and effort than actually working a part-time job.
eBay presents the perfect venue for having a full time job with benefits and doing eBay on the side. Your eBay auctions are working online while you can be elsewhere doing something else.
However, many people don't have the option of having a full time job with good benefits and instead do eBay full time. Doing eBay full time is actually better than working at their full time job. If you're good at selling on eBay, it would definitely be better than putting in your time at a low wage/no benefits job.
Depending on eBay for your income is also rather risky. There has been more than one thread on AW about a full time seller rightly or wrongly being NARU'ed for a week or a month or longer. Whether they deserved being NARU'ed or not, the financial results are the same for the seller.
edited to add: While I have heard of many stories of people that work for eBay and received stock options becomming millionaires, I have yet to see any seller on eBay become a millionaire.
