Search Results for 'bolo'

[almasty]

Wow, that clothing is hideous! :O

Could it be selling well because other clothing resellers think there’s no demand for it? I see there are only 360 listings when you search “Drapers and Damons.” If someone’s a fan of that clothing line, there really isn’t that much to choose from. At that point, a “cheap, avoidable” piece of clothing goes up in value for the handful of people that might be fighting for the few pieces of it that a few, kind clothing sellers bother to list online.

I know the “bolo” clothing people are devaluing their items listed by constantly boasting about what’s “popular” like it’s their job. They’ve created their own competition with thousands of pieces of similar clothing items being introduced to the marketplace to compete with them. It is smart to take up an opposing strategy, by listing the items that look like junk but appear to oddly be good bread & butter.

[Jay]

I personally think its a time-wasting delusion to think we can “automate eBay”, especially the scavenging. We’ve benefitted from creating processes to streamline daily tasks, but we find our success comes from being creative.

Scavenging just takes time. We push ourselves to find new kinds of things to buy and sell. Ten years ago we would walk through a flea market only looking for clothes and shoes, passing over all kinds of treasures that we love now (and make us lots of money). Because we enjoy scavenging, it doest feel like time wasted. Any “BOLO list” someone gives us today will be mostly outdated relatively soon, especially if that person broadcasts it online.

We know that being creative when scavenging is a our secret weapon, if even because it keep us from burning out finding and selling the same thing again and again.

[Retro Treasures WV]

A couple of things this week brought me to the realization that we could help each other out by using the BOLO (Be on the lookout) idea to help each other find great deals on things we need/want for personal use.

First, Ryanne mentioned wanting to find the Nike Free slip on shoes on the podcast. I literally found a pair of these shoes the day after I listened to the podcast.

The second idea is one I could actually use some help on. We stayed at a resort last week, and the sofa was a sleeper sofa. I’m used to sleeper sofas being terrible…but this one was awesome. My wife used her budding search-fu to determine it was an American Leather brand Sleeer sofa. The good news, a local furniture store has these sofas. The bad news…they can cost $4k+!!

I found one in Florida on ebay and I was trying to get the buyer to agree to let me ship it, but she was a total ebay newb that knew nothing. The auction ended before I could talk her into allowing a shipping company to pick it up.

So back to the topic, it would be really cool if there was a sub-forum where we could post want ads for specific items that we are looking for, and other forum members could search FB marketplace, Offerup, etc in their local markets to help out a fellow scavenger.

In my specific case I’d be happy to pay a finders fee plus additional fees for a scavenger to check out the item in person and/or purchase the item for me so the seller wouldn’t have to mess with shipping or waiting on me to ship.

[SilverFoxFinds]

Only sold 13 items last week, and here are the highlights:

I nabbed this nice vintage Pendleton Yakima wool blanket at a thrift store for $8; it sold within a week for $170: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Pendleton-Gray-Brown-Wool-Camp-Blanket-Yakima-3-Stripe-Red-Green-64×80/323406125392

I picked up 2 of these boxes of sealed TDK tapes at a junky estate sale for $2 apiece. The first box was complete with 10 tapes and sold within a week; this one of 9 tapes took several months longer, and just sold for $90: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Box-of-9-NOS-New-Sealed-TDK-SA-C90-Cassette-Tapes-Japan/323142228066

In my ongoing commission sales for a friend who in the last few months had his second child and is now moving across the country, I’ve chosen not to share most of his What Solds, as they’re not often the kinds of things you stumble across/get for cheap while scavenging – though are very worth my time as a valet seller (and we’re using eBay’s pay % scale for earnings): US knives, high end watches, high end sound equipment, climbing ropes, some outdoorsy stuffs, and now a bunch of motorcycle gear. This past week I sold his Mountainsmith hiking lumbar pack with backpack shoulder strap conversion. Got a lot of watchers, and one guy who wrote and expressed interest in buying it as a back up as he liked his current one so much. So, BOLO for what it’s worth: https://www.ebay.com/itm/MountainSmith-Lumbar-Waist-Pack-Shoulder-Strap-Convertible-Backpack-Strapettes/323357406584

My mom attends a weekly auction. When she sees things she thinks I’ll like, she’ll text with a photo. She picked up this small Griswold skillet for $3. Took a few months, but sold for $70: https://www.ebay.com/itm/NOS-Vintage-Griswold-No-3-709-Small-Cast-Iron-Skillet-LBL-EPU-6-5-Pour-Spout/323296997687

Finally, I’m still clearing out odds and ends of my own belongings. I chose to go ahead and list some of the vintage kitchen towels I’ve had for years, and found that this one is not only “signed” but collectible: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-1950s-MCM-Tammis-Keefe-Linen-Tea-Towel-Cats-Kittens-15-x-27/323407485634

Here’s to our sales!

[Doublythumbs]

My store has been doing surprisingly okay during this summer slowdown period. I’m averaging more in sales than last year for sure! Here’s some notable items that sold…

This is the second home vacuum hair cutting system I picked up and sold almost immediately. Definitely BOLO! This Flowbee brand hair cutter was acquired from the same thrift store and for the same price of $5 as the first one. All the parts were intact, and it looked hardly used, if even used at all. I priced it higher than average at $90 and took a $75 best offer. I probably should have held out for a little more since it was only a day after listing it, but I was hungry for some sales.
Flowbee Home Haircutting System

Vintage tackle boxes are a nice item to find cheap and sell for a good profit. This aluminum “My Buddy” brand fold-out box came from an auction a few months ago. Paid a little more than I would normally have at $10, but it came with this awesome military grenade box that I’ll talk about next week. Finally got around to listing it for $70 and the low ball BOs started rolling in. It didn’t take long to make a deal with one guy for $55.
Vintage Aluminum Tackle box

This small Victor brand rodent live trap came from the same auction as above. It was in a box lot with a couple other sellable items for $2. Antique and unique traps can fetch an amazingly large price. There are collectors of these things for sure. This was not an old or unique enough example, but I still got $30 out of it. I had it set up in my basement with some stale bread while it was listed for sale. Didn’t catch a thing, but I think that’s a good thing.
Small Victor Live Trap

I would have never found this old photograph if I hadn’t decided to list some old promotional paper booklets that came out of a box lot. It was tucked inside of one of them and just fell out when I was photographing them for listing. It’s an 8×10, B&W photo of a dairy processing company out of Marietta, Ohio. The detail was amazing! For as far away as the photographer was, you could get a magnifying glass out and see the lines in the people’s faces. I knew there were dairy collectors out there who would appreciate this photo. I was right, as it sold in a day for $30.
Vintage Crystal Dairy Photograph

[almasty]

I feel like 99% of the energy going into the discourse on reselling is about how to get started, bolos, troubleshooting, fake tax avoidance conferences for resellers to hang out with their friends or youtube mentors & gurus, not anything about the actual substance or consistancy of reselling for the long-term, or how it fundamentally alters your life as a person, and even attempts at conversation about it lead straight back to the expected 99% of discussion.

[VintageTreasures]

Hello All,

My numbers for the week of June 24 – 30, 2018
Total items in store: 194 eBay & 127 Etsy
Items sold: 24 eBay & 5 Etsy
Cost of items sold: $25.25 approximately
Total sales: $565.25: $506.25 eBay & $59.00 Etsy
Highest price sold: vintage santos de Cartier parfum $40.00 (best offer with free shipping). So in reality the highest price sold was a tie between a pair of Patagonia Men’s Jeans and a Metropolitan Museum of Art Mazeltov Crewel Peacock Pillow Kit; both sold for $39.95 with buyers paying shipping.
Average price sold: $19.49
Returns: 0
Money spent on new inventory this week: $126.12!
Number of items listed this week: 53

Another good week for me, I think this is only the 2nd time I’ve hit more than $500.00 in a week. I did spend $88.12 at one estate sale on Thursday but it should really pay off. I bought 13 old fabric store pattern catalog books as well as hundreds of other vintage sewing related items. Just one of the pattern catalog books should more than cover the entire amount I spent at the sale. These are a good BOLO item FYI. Vogue sells for the most and I wouldn’t buy them at all unless they are 1970’s or earlier. I think I will get at least between $50 to $125 each for the 13 I bought, they are all from the 1960’s – 1970’s.

Wishing everyone a happy July 4th!

[Steven S]

I drove truck back in those days with the multi state bingo plates (might be a bolo item to watch for).
We also had to keep track of the mileage we drove in each state on our daily logs.

[ChristineR]

Hey! I have my editing toolbar back. 🙂
Steve, so smart to use a video with mood music to show all of those cool matchbook covers. Filing that idea in my toolkit.
Ida, love the Halloween cat die cut. I have yet to find vintage Halloween stash but maybe when I start going to estate sales…

This week was weird in that I sold a couple of very, very old listings and quite a few of my brand new listings from this week. Really need to do some stale listing maintenance maybe.

Celebrating this little sale today. One my oldest listings. Paid $2 I think. Good riddance – he got very, very close to ending up in the donation bin. Sticky listing – Midcentury Italian Vase

This was a cool vintage stationery sale, paid .99 at GW, sold super quickly. Hallmark Postalettes Check out this example I found while researching this – more similar solds for over $100. Bolo 70s cutsie character Hallmark stationery for over $100 Also, Peanuts Hallmark stationery is quite collectible and I find that these items are super easy to list and ship but overlooked locally.

Yeah! I sold one of my son’s textbooks without waiting for Fall. High School Textbook I think it helped pinning it and doing free shipping because there were some on Ebay listed for less. Got in a dig at Amazon as part of my description. I like listing books on Ebay. I usually tweak the titles and don’t just go with the catalog because I can add relevant terms that are missing.

This took a long time to sell, best offer of $50. Jars France Vase

Found a couple of these cool tray sets for $3.99 local thrift chain. I’m wondering what they are doing with them at the dentist office? NIP Vintage melamine tray set

[Sharyn]

They are supposed to “reveal” the meaning of the letter “b” on June 11. I was thinking maybe International House of Breakfast? But, they do serve lunch and dinner, but I really can’t think of anything else.

I actually don’t have anything with IHOP on it. I’ll keep my eye out for it now. I can see it being a BOLO.

[Sigilini]

IHOP has announced a name change. My guess is IHOP items will become collectibles. I only have one IHOP item right now in my store. I raised the price just to see what will happen.

Your thoughts on this?

[Sharyn]

I do not source on eBay, but I understand that many people do. Several weeks ago, Jay and Ryanne mentioned that they source from a seller on eBay that seems to put items up way too low. They mentioned that they use a sniping app to put in a last minute bid. Perhaps one of them will answer your question better than I can.

I find that I can source very easily through auctions and garage sales, and I just don’t have the need yet to flip through eBay. I think it could be a very efficient place to source especially if you set up a search for your BOLOs. BOLO is “be on the look out”, and it means the items that you look for because you know that they sell well.

[Sharyn]

Steve – How did you check the controls and wiring in the steering wheel? I’d be concerned that some of the controls don’t work; otherwise, why would the dealer remove it?

I usually try to show about three items that sold, but I really had a decent week with a number of interesting sales.

It started out with this vintage fedora hat in hardly used condition that I bought for $2 at a rummage sale. When doing my research, I noticed that most were selling in the $30 to $40 range, but one sold at over $200 at auction! So, I decided to try out an auction starting at $42, and it sold for $53. Not quite the $200 price, but more than what I would have started it with. It sold to Shop Airlines, which is a drop shipper that buys for Japanese people. I’ve sold a few things to them in the past. Their website says that they are eBay’s largest buyer.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/183234464093

I purchased this vintage heated rollers set for styling hair from an online auction with other heated rollers, a bonnet hair dryer, and several electric trimmers. In my research, I found that heated roller sets sell very well – definitely a BOLO. This one sold right away, and the other one sold yesterday. I think I paid about $5 for the whole lot. I haven’t listed the trimmers yet.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/183227143118

I bought this vintage, working sewing machine for $25 over a year ago. Apparently, it’s just a department store that had a manufacturer brand machines for them. There are a number of brands like this, and they aren’t worth as much as Singer and other better known brand names. I was able to sell it at my counteroffer of $125, so I still made some good money.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/182564248917

This took quite a while to sell, but I think I priced it too high originally. This was an item I ended and re-listed because it was close to getting stale. I originally paid $5.50 at an online auction, and it sold for $40.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/183214848163

I don’t seem to do too well in retail arbitrage. I bought this weather station for $10 from a warehouse sale. It was also an item that was re-listed because it had been around for so long. Sold for $40. I think these were originally sold in at Williams Sonoma for around $130. I guess people want the newer models, and this is not a good item for resale.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/182631428938

This was a Goodwill outlet/bins purchase for $0.25. It is a 1993 recipe and instruction book for an old Vita-mix. It sold for $24 through GSP to someone in Canada.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/183227567379

This is just for giggles. This was purchased for about $1 in an online auction lot, sold for $15.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/183114285498

I always like to pick up Judaica when I can. I saw this menorah at a yard sale for $10. I don’t like to negotiate much, but I did ask them to throw in something else for free. After I came home, I started to think that I way overpaid. Then, I took a second look at it and did my research. It sold for $120 in just a few days.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/183237523587

[SilverFoxFinds]

Love that Hot Damn hat; I’d have a hard time letting that one go. 🙂 Thanks for the heads up on new things to BOLO for…Vietri, Johnny Was.

Here are some highlights from last week:

Vintage J Crew leather jacket in great condition. Think I paid $10 (but might have been more) at an estate sale; sold for $80. Would liked to have listed it for more, but comps weren’t supporting it (and I can’t shake my current theme of trying to sell more, rather than store it). Went GSP: https://www.ebay.com/itm/EUC-Vintage-J-Crew-Black-Thick-Leather-Jacket-Coat-Bomber-Motorcycle-Med/323163016216

I’m feeling a lot of self-doubt these days on the china and dishware pieces I’ve picked up, as they seem to just sit and sit and sit on the shelf. I think it’s just that my inventory isn’t composed of “hot” items, but rather the occasional sales sought out by collectors. Case in point: this Hull brown drip veggie bowl, picked up for a few bucks at an estate sale, sold for $50:https://www.ebay.com/itm/MINT-Hull-Pottery-Brown-Drip-10-Salad-Serving-Bowl-SB10/323014594788

I pick up fiberglass shades anywhere I see them. This was an especially inexpensive find, part of a lot of lamp shades, fixtures, etc I got in an online auction for cheap. Might have paid $1 for this shade; sold for $50: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Mid-Century-Fiberglass-Lamp-Shade-Natural-Textured-Black-Lacing-7-25/323212862648

This weathered and beat up cast iron horse hitching post came with our house, and is part of the ongoing liquidation of its former decor. Went GSP for $40: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Cast-Iron-Horse-Head-Hitching-Post-Top-Finial/322938104515

Poorly photographed and slightly damaged still sells! Got this tridacna clam shell in a buyout of the contents of a house’s kitchen cabinets a year ago (for like $11 dollars? and likely a day of my time+). Have had a few good sales come from it, such as this, for $30: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tridacna-Gigas-Clam-Shell-8-5-x-5-5-x-2-Deep-Flattened-Base/323144785704

These cowboy boots were one of my first purchases beyond selling my own items, nearly 3 years ago or so, sigh. Really thought they’d sell much faster, and for more. They’re in great shape, though lack a brand name. Paid $10. Finally sold for $30 – good riddance, great boots! https://www.ebay.com/itm/EUC-Vintage-Womens-Brown-Leather-Western-Cowboy-Amazonas-Boot-Sz-8-5/323165944033

Lampshades take up a lot of storage space (but can be nested) and typically don’t sell in a rush, but you can get good money for them. Try buying high quality ones at full retail, ouch! Picked this up at a thrift store for ~$3, and sold it for $25.

Enjoy your weekends!

[Doublythumbs]

Not a whole lot of exciting sales last week. Summer slowdown appears to be starting for me. Here’s some of the more notable sales…

I acquired this old 1967 brass dog licence tag and paperwork in a box lot a couple summers ago. I can’t figure out what compelled me to price it for $35, but it finally sold for full price. I paid about $3 for it.
1967 Dog License

This was my big sale of the week. This four-drawer document cabinet came from an estate sale. The sellers were trying to sell it and all the stuff inside it for I think $50! I told them I wasn’t interested in the things inside (which looked to me like old Kodak photo paper and maybe some manuals) but I would pay them $10 for just the box. We settled on $15. I used it for a while until I found something better. I listed it for $200 and it sold for full price a couple months later.
Ward’s Scientific Document Cabinet

I found a bunch of these 2-XL talking robot cassette tapes in the bins at the Goodwill Outlet, so I only have a few cents into each of them. I found that some of the titles are really rare and can go for quite a bit of money. This and another one were the first to sell ($25 and $15).
Tiger 2-XL Talking Robot Cassette Tape

Here’s a nice little BOLO for ya. The brand is called Vietri, and they make handpainted pottery kitchenware. I picked these up in a Goodwill down in Georgia while I was vacationing. I paid $3 for this set of four salad plates. It took a few months, but they sold for full price of $70. You’ve got to look at the bottoms for the name, cause they look like 75% of the dishware you see in thrift stores and I would have passed over them if I hadn’t. But I guess people want them for the brand.
Vietri Pottery Salad Plates