One of my favorite things about reselling is finding something for next to nothing and discovering that it's worth a whole lot more than I paid for it.
For this round of what sold on eBay, I'm sharing five of my recent flips — including some of the inexpensive finds I probably paid $1 or less for.
That's actually pretty typical of how I source. I love finding cheap, overlooked things that other people might pass right by and seeing what I can turn them into.
What Sold on eBay: 5 Recent Flips
Here's a quick look at five things I bought to resell and what happened when I listed them on eBay:
Most of My Inventory Costs $1 or Less
One thing that surprises people about my eBay sales is how little I often have invested in the items I'm selling.
I usually pay around $1 or less for a lot of my inventory.
That doesn't mean I won't pay more. If I find something with enough resale value, I'm definitely willing to spend more to make more.
But I love those really inexpensive finds because keeping my cost low gives me a lot more room between what I paid and what the item eventually sells for.
What I Look for When I'm Buying to Resell
I don't have one specific type of item that I'll buy.
That's actually part of the fun for me.
I'll look at clothing, home decor, vintage pieces, unusual items, recognizable brands, and sometimes things I know absolutely nothing about until I look them up.
I try not to assume something has no value just because it's inexpensive or doesn't immediately look special.
Some of my favorite flips have been things that would have been very easy to overlook.
What I Paid vs. What It Sold For
The selling price is only half of the story when you're looking at a flip.
An item selling for $50 is a very different flip if you paid $40 for it than if you paid $1 for it.
That's why I like sharing both sides — what I actually spent to get the item and what someone eventually paid for it.
Of course, the difference between those two numbers isn't necessarily pure profit. There can also be eBay fees, shipping costs or supplies, and other selling expenses involved.
But keeping my initial cost of goods extremely low gives me a much better starting point.
Cheap Doesn't Mean Worthless
That's probably one of the biggest things I've learned from years of buying and reselling.
The price on something at a thrift store, yard sale, or other secondhand source doesn't necessarily tell you what it's worth to somebody else.
Sometimes something is cheap simply because the person selling it doesn't want it anymore.
That's where knowing what to look for — and being willing to look things up when you don't know — can make a difference.
I Don't Get Every Flip Right
Of course, not everything I buy turns into a great sale.
Sometimes something takes forever to sell. Sometimes I think I've found something great and later realize it isn't worth nearly as much as I thought. And some items end up making a pretty small profit.
That's part of reselling.
But because I keep my purchase prices low on so much of my inventory, I have room for some misses along with the really good finds.
More of My eBay Sales Are Coming
This definitely won't be the last time I share what I've sold.
I plan to keep showing real eBay flips — what I bought, what I paid, what it sold for, and the things that surprise me along the way.
Some batches will probably have bigger profits than others, and I'm sure there will be plenty of weird finds mixed in too.
That's part of what makes reselling fun. You never really know what the next good flip is going to be.
Would You Have Picked These Up?
Which of these five items would you have bought to resell — and is there anything you would have walked right past?
Follow Unlikely Flips for more real eBay sales, thrift finds, home makeovers, DIY projects, and things that turn out to be worth more than they first appear.
Comments
Post a Comment