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We’ve seen some articles lately stating that another recession could be coming. It could just be the result of nervousness around the upcoming Presidential elections that feels more and more out of control, but our American economic system has long history of ups and downs. A broken clock is right twice a day. I’m sure the economy will hit a rough patch one of these days.
So is eBay a recession proof business? When we started selling on eBay in 2008, the country was in the depths of the Mortgage Crisis. Selling old shoes online didn’t seem like a bad idea as work was difficult to find and gas prices were almost $4/gal. We found that people needed to buy clothes and practical items even in bad times. People probably start looking for deals when money is tight. And remember that not everyone is doing poorly during bad times. A recession wasn’t the zombie apocalypse. People were still buying collectibles and everything else we were selling. But every recession could be different.
Maybe a better question to ask is: how do we prepare for a recession? Because we’ve been self-employed for almost 12 years, we always assume the worst is around the corner. Here’s what we do so we can sleep at night:
–First we make sure our expenses are as low as can be. We still feel like we’re living a life of luxury because we own our time, but we have few “fancy things”. We don’t borrow money for luxuries.
–We talk with each other about any purchase over $20. Our default is to NOT spend money.
–We cook almost all our own meals instead of eating out.
–We have enough savings to pay for at least two months of expenses. Some financial gurus say six months is the goal, but we feel good with two months of breathing room.
–We’re cautiously investing in our rental business which diversifies our income (you can hear about these adventures at ShampooAndBooze.com). There is no guarantee any business will succeed, but it’s important for us to take chances while we’re young. We think you can’t be too careful.
Anyway, there’s no absolute safe space in this world. Our point is that eBay feels like a good place for us to invest our time and have come control over our own lives.
Oh, here’s a photo from Dan and Lisa of NewVintageNY taken at their collector’s event in Upstate NYC. You can also see one intrepid Scavenger, Derik, which you’ll soon here from in an interview we’re recording. Hope you had a good week!
Our Store Week June 26-July 2, 2016
- Store #1
- Total Items in Store: 3911
- Items Sold: 31
- Cost of Items Sold: $203
- Total Sales: $1,464.14
- Highest Price Sold: $130 (Perfume set)
- Average Price Sold: $47.22
- Returns: 0
- Money Spent on New Inventory This Week: $50
- Number of items listed this week: 1
- Amazon FBA Store
- Number of items sold: 20
- Amazon total sales: $693.04
- Amazon FBA Fees: $255.51
- COGS (shipment to FBA included): $30
- Net profit after COGS: $407.53
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- Store #2
- Total Items in Store: 1100
- Items Sold: 16
- Cost of Items Sold: $31.30
- Total Sales: $519.55
- Highest Price Sold: $65 (Wool Hat)
- Average Price Sold: $32.47
- Returns: 0
- Number of items listed this week: 11
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