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True, but you did the garage sale route for the first 20 years. Most of the viewers are less than 5 in. Unless you have some capital, most resellers will have to build up to 3,000 square ft. after many years. New Replenishables IMO is the best way. 10 items 10 sales per each day
not everyone wants to be stuck online sourcing big bulk etc and don't have the means or desire to store in gigantic warhouses. The thrill of getting out and looking for old stuff at markets, vintage shops, garage sales etc is all part of the process and the fun part of reselling. It's about what suits the individual and how that translates into lifestyle choices. It sucks all the colour and joy out of reselling if you're just buying online bulk and not sourcing on the street where you get to handle the goods and meet people and then treat yourself after for a coffee haha.
I love the perspective. I have had multiple days at estate sales, garage sales and thrift stores where I’ve walked away with thousands of dollars worth of inventory with under a couple hundred spent. With insane sell through rates and ROIs. I think there are numerous ways to source and a bit of everything is worth it within reason. It also depends on what your focus of selling is. I literally sell anything. My knowledge is broad but not expertise level. Some things I of course know better than others. I understand what you are saying but it is important to take into consideration what makes you tick and stay motivated.
It all depends on where you are located with respect to thrift stores, He is out in the Country I believe so the selection is not that good, for instance the big city thrift stores clothing is usually much better in the city and can find better brands and you can hop from thrift store to thrift store fairly quick in bigger cities as well. It all depends. I love the Thrift Store, theres always gold in there, things that the thrift store doesnt understand are worth money.
I agree that the Biggest Most Successful Resellers don't shop at Yard Sales and Thrift stores. But I also believe 95% of Don's Watchers are not the Biggest Most Successful Resellers, and Don't have employees and Warehouse space to process big Bulk Deals.
You’ve always had some of the best knowledge on youtube for reselling. While I agree that you do need to be doing bulk purchases to make your year, most of my bulk purchases came through contacts at yard sales. You’ve never had a few thousand dollar score at a yard sale? I can’t count the number of times I’ve scored that heavy at a yard sale. Maybe it’s your area or maybe you’re doing it wrong? I spend maybe 5-6 hours a week going to yard sales in peak season and it would be rare that I don’t hit on $2k+ of profit.
I’m a small reseller and bought a large haul of books, approximately 1000 for $100. I made a lot of profit from that haul but there was a lot of rubbish and it took a long time to sort and list! Found some fabulous vintage first edition horror titles.
I definitely agree that making connections, buying in bulk, etc. are incredibly good ways to obtain inventory. Personally I grew up going to garage sales and I supplement my day job with my eBay sales. At this point, I have made some contacts and make private purchases when they're available and those buys are almost always profitable. However, yard sales on a warm Saturday morning when it's 75 degrees and there are townwide sales in every other town are just too much for me to pass up. While it's true that finding thousands of dollars of inventory is not a weekly occurrence, it does happen to me still to this day. I think it's what works for everyone taking into account what their reselling goals are.
I always found it best to see and pick up things I would buy to sell, everyone is different. If everyone sought and bought in the same way, those bargains wouldn't be around. I think everyone should find their strength, and improve on that, like Don says ''you got to know your stuff''. The bottom line is to learn and learn all the time about things you're buying and selling, this gains experience and knowledge. Thank you, Don. Charles in the UK.
Garage sales where I am are a bust. Thrift stores don't have the inventory I sell. But I don't have any contacts for bulk studf like you, but we've found that online and in person auction sales give us the inventory we need at a good price for profit with much less time invested.
Depends how you look at it. Some of those are 2 or 3 person operations so that dilutes the 100k. A few of them are very easy to fact check and are full of crap. One for sure that is popular who I knew years ago is not making the 500k he claims selling .50 hockey cards and 10.00 remotes.
I built my store up to 6k items solely on thrift stores. I agree to get bigger I'd have to find larger purchases. However, some thrift stores will do bulk. The GW in my area does BOGO denim in August. When it was good, I could get 300 pairs of jeans that week for $2 or less per pair. Now the stuff they have is crap. Other local SAs did $1 Fridays. I could get 100 items in less than an hour. Those too are not crap. Buying in bulk for me is tough due to shipping. Living in the middle of nowhere has it's downsides! :P My next best option is estate sales. I have been able to buy very large loads from estate sales when I find sellers who are willing to make me a deal on a literal truck load.
I have been selling on eBay for 16 years I only buy in bulk your cost per item ends up being nothing I can spend $200-300 on bulk buy and turn it into 10K. I listen to some RU-vidrs who bragging about buy a $3 plush and selling it $15 what a joke that is. The bulk buys are out there you just need to expand your knowledge. It is so easy now with the internet you can buy an item that is worth nothing in your area and ship it to California where they will pay a lot for it. I agree with Don on this buy bulk build your inventory so you never have to worry about having things to list. Thanks for the video
It's like gambling. Some believe in small bets and grinding it out, while others bet big and win big. Both have fun. That might be the point you're missing. You don't look like you're having fun anymore:(
Really happy for you and your family! You have been consistent and persistent through all kinds of tough times. Thank you for all of the information you provide to help people. Here is to your continued success!
I have found that most re-sellers have no idea what they are making, as far as take home money. I've never seen a person write anything down. You HAVE to write everything down to the penny, or you will never know what your true take home is.
Same, what flea markets do you frequent? I'm in New England so in the spring/summer I'm super busy picking but the winter is such a drag. I want to find a good place to snowbird to next winter that has a lot of flea markets and antique malls. This spring I plan to take a few trips to PA. It's a 6 hour drive but I think it's worth it.
@@TheRollingCoinStore Im in South Florida. I go to the Thunderbird Swap Shop on Thursday and Sundays. There are also many church fleas at this time of year. If you want to warm up, this is definitely the place to be.
Great video. You covered alot of aspects of reselling and also business acumen. I think we can get trapped into a certain way of doing things because it's like we don't want to miss on that 1 possible great item 😂. Another piece of advice I like to think of is "There are riches in niches". You've got to be smart in your approach. Knowledge is power.
I don't agree. I also don't have people dropping off turn of the century inventory for a song. If you are going to 50 garage sales and it takes you 30 hours and you find nothing, don't do it. I don't know where he is, but I can do 50 in a couple hours, it's not hard.
I’ve been reselling for several years now but only part time and mostly to fund hobbies. The main one being collecting retro video games, which I’ve done since the 90s. I started reselling when the prices started to skyrocket. After a long hiatus from collecting about 2000-2010. I was mainly going to thrift stores and seem to come up with little here and there so I started buying other stuff to sell on eBay to buy the things I wanted that were higher priced. Obviously I’ve watched plenty videos about scoring big lots at garage sales or wherever. One thing I’ve definitely noticed is guys buying whole huge collections and then piecing them out to make money. It seems as that is the best option these days. Thrift stores and garage sales are definitely getting more difficult to source at since everyone has a phone and says “well it goes for X on eBay” (of course they rarely know to look at sold listings). I don’t think I’ll ever go full time into reselling and I’m limited on space so not sure if I’ll ever get into bulk purchases. Plus for me, it’s also the thrill of the hunt. I’m also lucky that my daily commute is usually always by multiple thrift stores so it’s nothing for me to pop in for 10-20 minutes. I mostly stick to vintage items from the 80s/90s but have sold stuff from nearly every era. Basically if I think it’s cool I’ll sell it. (Not good advice for full time sellers). I also do well with golf clubs.
I'm not arguing just my two cents: I gotta get my thrift store/garage sale fix. I just have to. We didn't have smart phones, but you also didn't need the expertise we need today because everything sold in the ebay wild west. I still benefit on the regular from using it. I totally understand not having the time to look everything up though.
I guess if you're into having a huge warehouse filled with bulk items like 10,000 postcards, albums, etc, ok cool. But for most people, reselling is part time or a hobby and we do it because its fun and what makes reselling fun is the hunt. If it isnt fun, whats the point?
Most thrift stores (especially Goodwill) are worthless, except for the occasional flip or random pick up. 20 years ago you could find decent stuff. No longer.
It's harder because they caught onto the game and cherry pick inventory to sell out of locked display cases and online, but they are not masters and let some good stuff out.
I agree as far as business goes (unless you are just starting out), but yard sales have been my favorite hobby since I was a child. My family does it as fun family time. We love it as much or more than dinner and a movie. I need to work on managing my time in other areas of my life to get more successful.
You speak the truth. Work smarter. Not harder. Flea Markets are a complete waste of time. Most garage sales are also a waste of time. In a business where time is money, you have to protect your time and choose wisely how you spend it.
Don is yet again spot on with his suggestions. Oddly enough we had never considered sourcing at yard sales as it wasn’t necessary. We got our start attending local auctions in Maine during the late 1970’s. This was my first introduction into bulk lot purchases from table lots both on top and underneath. There were certainly some very good purchases made from goodwill outlets and Salvation Army stores years ago in the Boston area. Sadly, IMHO that horse has left the barn. The consistency is no longer there as these stores have changed their business models. When we travel to other parts of the country we check out the local auctions, flea and estates. This business is also about building relationships with people and it pays off. The business is also full of crooks, gypsy’s and sharks so be cautious. I cannot emphasize this enough, be incredibly thankful for someone like Don sharing what he does. There are many that won’t give you the time of day about the reselling business. Learn to pay for the gas money as an old and scruffy looking yet successful NH dealer reminded me years ago.
Driving 20 hours per week takes 40 gallons of gas. Considering all driving expenses 1 gallon is worth $15, which makes it $600 spent per week to drive around.
Good info and for your business it makes sense. For my small vintage Etsy store I want and need to cherry pick every item so thrift stores, estate sales and flea markets are great sourcing venues for me. But I also don't need to fully support myself with my biz so the pressure's off and I can enjoy it.
i see bulk often, however, they all want ebay or etsy pricing. So, yes its bulk with no discount. I just pass by those deals as people like that are usually a pain.
I’m at the point in life where scaling up makes no sense. I’m actually scaling down so my kids & grandkids don’t have to deal with so much junk & inventory when I pass. Yard sales, thrift stores & estate sales are perfect for me.
I have to disagree , But Im a dealer for over 35 years. My best buys are at thrift stores and garage sales and estate sales. My knowledge is far above the average person. My latest buy was a painting for $15.00 that I will sell for 25K. I sold a vase that I bought I sold it for over 45K. Knowledge is power But it takes years of street wise education. I was a generalist appraiser for a top auction house. I only sell vintage and high quality antiques.
I tell friends exactly the same thing. I can't make a living off this stuff unless I am willing to start buying in bulk and you really need to have some room to store the stuff and not let it take over your entire home. Right now it's just learning to value things and increase my knowledge. I can't tell how many times I have come away from estate sales with things that are worth way more than they were priced and to try and make at least $20 on an item. I see others out there who only deal in one subject matter and that's fine with me. More for me and less for you. So right now I see it as gas money and to pay some utilities and that's not to bad really but if you are serious about this stuff then yes you are going to have to source items in bulk otherwise you are just wasting a lot of time and energy. You can also be burned because items may be in bulk due to replacements with an improved like item or competition, recalls or the fad has died down.
100% - And if you happen want travel can rent a truck and hit the real retailer surplus channels. Find things that are MSRP's from $50 to $200 for for $3 - $20 each in bulk. Tons of these places right across the border in Canada for example as well as the USA. I know a fella across town who opened a really small retail store and takes in collections. Just last week ton of Franklin Mint Diecast Cars all brand new in original boxes, about 80 the larger slot cars most still new in boxes, enormous amount of track and two complete surround sounds systems one with Polk speakers and the other with 5 year old Klipsch speakers. Paid $2500 for all of it. Already sold the Klipsch one in the store for $750, expects $500 to $600 out the other system. He sold 25 of the slot cars online and is already break even. Stuff comes to him... Constantly has resellers coming into the store too. They'll do the yard sales and then come in to try and flip the stuff quick to him. Be the first to tell you romping around trying to find items is wasting valuable time needed to sell items.
Depends which country your in in the uk bulk deals are a pain to source Howevery id agree on chairty shops they are very hit and miss unless you really in into speciality ninches i do art and often find paintings worrh hundreds for £10 or less
Mom & pop thrift stores are still strong in my area.. I make sure to frequent those types of places, as you gain a connection with the employees over time. One time an employee even handed me a Forrest Gump poster signed by Tom Hanks, the director, and other cast members... probably paid a buck, sold it for a decent chunk of change. Tons of stories like this over the years, but they're definitely worth it in my opinion.
I just started reselling because it's enjoyable. The hunt is half the fun. Do I want to make money? Yes absolutely. The capital to buy in bulk isn't always available though. I understand where you're coming from, and am happy you've found something that works for you. I think a balance between the 2 is where I'd like to end up, but I'll always go out to look, because that's the fun part.
Where can you buy things in bulk? I don't expect you to give me your sources you actually use because that would be competition, but I don't even have a clue of where you would go to buy bulk vintage items
Bulk is everywhere if you seek it. Network and talk to folks, never going to just fall in your lap. Most areas don’t have good yard sale sourcing but there are pockets that are unbelievable if you do your research once again. 30 minutes from where I live I fill an SUV with high quality antiques from yard sales multiple times a week during warmer months but if I looked close to home it’s all overpriced garbage.
It's crazy you made this video because I just was saying to myself I can't get past a certain amount every month I pay my bills but that's it and I've lost money over the summer buying the contents of a home after a sale luckily I got it for dirt cheap. But I seem to just be breaking even now I've relied on selling stuff for other people on eBay sometimes and in the end after fees and there cut and my cut it's just not worth it
Don, have you seen any consistency in a decrease or increase in impressions in your eBay store? I’ve studied mine since the 1st of the year because my brain works that way…I’m curious if a seller at your level has seen anything similar to me. I have way 4000+ listings and I know that you have way more…but the percentages should be consistent if it’s a eBay problem.
I mean when u purchase the bulk lots? And figure it out to make a profit? Your experience lends u an advantage. But, doing along time they know what your talking about. ❤
I couldn't disagree more. My best & most consistent source of inventory has been estate sales. i've made enough friends among the estate sale industry that I get calls to pre-pick before a lot of them run the sale, since they know I'm a dependable and ready buyer. It's all about building relationships!
If you're driving 30-40 hours a week for yard sales, you're doing it very wrong. I couldn't spend 30 hours per week on garage sales if I wanted to. Maybe if I was traveling by skateboard.
I wonder how much that Glow in the dark "Goonies" hat is worth nowadays. On a different note I have stressed out over my Above average ebay from certain factors and have actually had to take a week off that has now turned into two-week off because I've had a horrible time trying to title my items for ebay to accept as a listing. I've tried to use other people same words in their listings but Ebay won't accept mine. I've become so frustrated with it that I've had to stop. In 50 days I did 5600 and the last 2 weeks 84 $ I can't seem to get back in the groove because of the titles and now I have a house full of crap and I'm miserable 😊. I'm actually going to sell it at a yard sale😅 Honestly Miserable
30 or 40 of the biggest resellers all video how they go daily to yard sales thrift stores antique malls . That's what people do across America. The bulk deals he is talking about is personal connections that he built up after a life time. He can't tell us we're to do it because it's his secret connection s that if he told other people would take his sources. Auctions work the same as bulk buys if you buy it all . The auction professor is always right this first time I disagree.its just that people want access to thrift stores and antique malls without going to them. And 99% of them are not online especially their inventory. Covid has made the world the upside down world. If you do walk through of the thrift stores and antique malls and other places yard sales etc. The customer tells you what they saw and want then going back and getting it if possible is what they all are doing for the big resellers.
I can't find the auction professors group of stuff selling on eBay and or Amazon. I tried to go to his store and can't find it it's not under auction professor.
I wanted to see all his millions of buttons online selling all of the old antique ephemera toys bottles jewelry the works . I can't find it. Not on eBay as a mall or Amazon as the auction professor. Maybe I don't know how to look . I have never went on these sites before. I just wanted to look and maybe buy some of the civil war buttons he was teaching us about.
