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I passed up a good library sale this weekend to enjoy some good friends and family time and pursue some of my other interests. It’s important to find a pipeline for quality inventory, your sales will slow down if you’re not adding good new items, and those spots where you can get inventory again and again help that so much.
But as @Jay says all the time, it’s always worth thinking about why are you scavenging in the first place? What else do you want to do with your life? How can scavenging help those goals?
For me, the opportunity to take time whenever I want is the best part of selling online. It’s allowed me the opportunity to do so many things that I would have missed either because I would have had to work or because I would have just needed the downtime on a rare day off. I’ve only been doing this full-time for two years and started with a ton of debt, and it’s just night and day how I look at life compared to a few years ago. It’s kind of amazing to think about where I might be in a couple years…and how different my life might be if I had never found this podcast or community.
I may not have scavenged out in the world this week, but this is the best time of year for buying online in the trading card world. It’s because Q4 is coming up and all the big consignment sellers are back in the swing of things, maybe working through some backlog that accumulated in late summer after the National card show in late July. My consignment site also ran a late summer promotion on fees which has led to a nice amount of activity, so I am have been in a nice routine where I pick up some bargains on sale on COMC and then get the pile shipped to me to sell on eBay. And the manufacturer Panini has been restocking their Rewards site a few times weekly with items, so I’ve been on a nice run of searching eBay for Panini Rewards Points auctions, submitting bids and reloading my account with points as often as I can.
For reference, here are a few of the cards I’ve acquired from Panini Rewards site in exchange for points.
Steve Nash autographed Lakers patch #01/10 — 4200 points, my pricing might be slightly aggressive but he was an all-time great point guard and there are a lot of Lakers fans out there.
Charles Barkley autograph — 1500 points, sold in less than 10 minutes to a buyer in Australia for $135, I was able to buy a few of these so maybe I’ll price the next one a bit higher.
Chris Bosh jersey booklet card — 600 points, this is my third card from this set acquired for 600 points, the set is well collected since it’s jersey booklets of all star and Hall of Fame caliber players, but none of mine have sold yet despite a healthy watcher count on each.
Naz Reid red white and blue autographed rookie #/99 — 150 points, these types of items are my favorites from the Panini Rewards site, as an example of when they load autographs of fairly obscure players and I can load up on them in large quantity. $10 and $20 sales aren’t very exciting individually, but when you can repeat that sale 10, 15, 20 times, it’s a wonderful thing. I bought this guy’s autographs in quantity because he’s a talented young backup/borderline starter for the Timberwolves and I’ve had some success with selling cards of another young player for the Timberwolves, Jaden McDaniels, also purchased from the Rewards site for a similar point amount. A lot of those Jaden McDaniels sales went to Minnesota so I thought I’d try again with Naz Reid. It’s interesting how some teams have a really strong local collector base — I send a lot of New York Yankees or Mets or Knicks packages within the tri-state area, and same goes for the local Philadelphia teams, but I also do very well with Atlanta Braves, San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay Packers and the Minnesota teams among others.
It’s all arbitrage, figuring out what sells best on different platforms and figuring out the timing. It is nice to have strong sales and a healthy flow of new inventory coming in.
So, scavenge of the week. I picked up this Anthony Perkins autographed Playbill for just under $10 and this 1944 College Basketball program for just over $10 along with lots and lots of cards. I am confident that I will make a nice profit on the Perkins autograph, the initial listing was very sloppy. Less sure about the basketball program, but there were a few promising sales of similar old programs in Terapeak and this seems like the kind of item that a college basketball history buff would love.
What did you find this week?
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https://www.ebay.com/itm/235232044257 and https://www.ebay.com/itm/235232045914 You can bet I got the term outsider art from the podcast. These I got for a buck in the garage of an estate sale. I also bought a big stack of 1960s large art magazines. The person was not at all a good painter but I thought these etchings were interesting.
My other favorite item was this 70s boat sculpture https://www.ebay.com/itm/235232304766 that I got for $10 at the flea market.
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can’t wait to see the art magazines (hint hint) as you push towards 1000 listings! I had a nice sale a month or two ago of FMR (Franco Maria Ricci) magazines from the 1980s.
That boat sculpture is so intricate. craig rex who used to be intimated by items that don’t fit in a flat rate envelope or box took one look at your listing and went, Oh no, that must be a nightmare to ship. But I have grown and changed and I know better now. Your sculpture is metal and wood so it’s pretty sturdy and it’s not like gigantic or anything. I think you’ll do well with it and will probably pack and ship it in…15 minutes or less?
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@Craigrex https://www.ebay.com/itm/175878253822 These are the type of books I picked up. They are large and have beautiful illustrations. I’ve got a lot of paper backlog and never seem to get to listing it. But definitely needed to save these from the landfill.
I think shipping is just having the right materials. I use protective foam and mainly large bubble. I think my packages tend to get larger than some sellers but my breakage record is pretty good. This will probably take about 10 and I’ll use tissue or packing paper around all the random metal. The worst part is finding the right box. I try to keep them organized by size but it gets a bit out of control.
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https://www.ebay.com/itm/266438112782
Allen Edmonds Leather Bag Large Tech Backpack Black Messenger
Hoarder item. When I went to list it I realized the backpack straps had been cut out. Damn…
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266438112302
Sansone EUROPA 5 Liter INOX 18/10 Stainless Steel Oil Wine Water Fusti Tank
Saw it, looked it up, bought it, listed it. Another unique hard good at the hoarder place.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266438109817
Vintage Deagan Dinner Chime Model 206 With Box & Mallet
Now this is a cool piece! I priced super high because it is in original box with mallet and in great shape. Comps were in the $200 range, but I had a feeling the solds were only that high because that’s as high as people would list. “When in doubt, moon it out” That’s my favorite new scavenger phrase. I can always take offers after a while.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266436523180
Polo Ralph Lauren Canvas Barn Chore Fireman Horseman Jacket Coat Red Size XL
A hoarder item. I love finding these really unique ralph lauren items!
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It’s not a surprise that you’re finding all these other hard goods at the hoarder place, but so smart that you’re taking the time to research and add to your haul. Were the dinner chimes also from the hoarder house? It feels like the kind of thing you’d see in an old movie or something. I have a good feeling you’ll get a nice sale on that one, probably after you’ve completely forgotten about it in your inventory.
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Yes the chime came from the hoarder house. The dude had all kinds of crazy stuff! Not all of it makes it out to where I get a crack at it. I’m mainly the “Ralph Lauren” Guy.
Oh and I forgot to share this one:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266435218628
LW WARDY Black PinStripe Velvet Satin Collar Smoking Jacket Blazer XL Vintage
Also from the hoarder collection. I don’t smoke but I kinda want to lounge around in this badboy with a fake pipe in my mouth.
It’s the second smoking jacket I’ve ever found.
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