The Numbers: July 17-23, 2022

[Jay]

We put our store on “Time Away” while we’ve been in NYC and had half the sales as last week. We’re grateful we had any sales at all while on vacation
[See the full post at: The Numbers: July 17-23, 2022]

[The_SEAM_Store]

Total Items in Store: 3661 listings for 5665 items
Items Sold: 40
Gross Sales: $3150.81 (including eBay fees, shipping, and taxes)
Net Sales: $2331.72 + $350 yard sale = $2681.72

Cost of Items Sold: $755 ($123 mine / $632 consignors)

$Highest Price Sold: $299.95 Dehner Riding Boots
Average Price Sold: $78.77
Returns: 1
Money Spent on New Inventory This Week: $6
Number of items listed this week: 30

Also had a 3 day garage sale, which was not too successful due to the heat. But we still brought in exactly an extra $350 for the week. Probably barely worth the effort, but I always really enjoy chatting it up with the neighborhood. So, I’m fine with it.

[ChristineR]

Total Items in Store: 384
Items Sold: 6
Gross Sales: $321.24 (including eBay fees, shipping, and taxes)
Net Sales: $199.47 (minus eBay fees, shipping, and taxes)
Cost of Items Sold: $16
Highest Price Sold: $100 (’60s cat gravel art picture, paid $3.99)
Average Price Sold: $35
Returns: 0
Money Spent on New Inventory This Week: $3
Number of items listed this week: 14

Solid week on Ebay but I didn’t break 400 listings unfortunately.  Should make it this week even with my daughter off. I’m trying to get up a handful of listings each day to keep my account active.  I have a few boxes of RA left in inventory but recently listed vintage is mostly what’s selling off now.

Last time I used time away it did cut my sales and then I got a little short bump on expiration.  If anyone can find treasure lying around NYC it’s you two.  Happy Hunting!

[Sharyn]

Week of Jul 17 – 23
Total Items in Store: 1620 eBay, 33 Etsy
Items Sold: 13 eBay, 0 Etsy
Cost of Items Sold: $8 + $51 Commission
Total Sales: $196.36 eBay, $0 Etsy; includes fees but no shipping
Highest Price Sold: eBay $25 POLAR A1 Heart Rate Monitor Watch (on commission)
Average price: $15.10
Returns: 0
Money Spent on New Inventory This Week: $0
Number of items listed this week: 30

I ended and did a “sell-similar” for about 200 items this past week. It did help generate a few sales, but all were low value. In all, it was a very slow week.

I don’t see the types of things you find in NYC, but occasionally I find a thing or two in my neighborhood. Yesterday, I picked up a wine bottle holder and a vintage projector. That particular neighbor has a famous (A-list) actor son. I don’t remember what the father does, but I believe he is pretty successful and works in NYC. I’ve picked up stuff in front of their house before. I’ve heard that they bought another house and will be moving this year or early next. Maybe they’ll have an estate sale or just keep putting out more for free.

I can’t believe, though, that your sales were below $1k and you have over 9000 items in your store!

[Jay]

I can’t believe, though, that your sales were below $1k and you have over 9000 items in your store!

Tell us about it. We’ve ended and relisted old items. Active sales. Send out offers. Everything promoted.

People just dont want us stuff right now.

[craig rex]

This is the week of the National Sports Collectors Convention in Atlantic City, which is about an hour’s train ride away. I am a small fish in the huge pond of the trading card world, so I won’t be selling. Dealer booths cost $2,500 and up for the weekend. I have a nice sized inventory for online sales, but it’s nothing compared to the scope of sellers who work these shows.

I have attended a few smaller shows, so I have a good idea what to expect at this show, but the scope of the National is just gigantic. There will be thousands of sellers with probably millions of cards for sale, from $0.10 junk that no one wants to expensive $10,000 and up cards and everything in between. All the five day passes sold out weeks ago, so the show will be quite the spectacle.

I don’t love big crowds, but I am going to push through my anxiety and enjoy the show for as many days as I can manage. I’m confident there will be plenty of great buying opportunities and the consignment company I use offered a 30% discount on their fees if you drop off at the show.

My consignment sales have reached the point where I have been able to cash out $500 each week for the last 6 weeks, so now is the right time to add to that pipeline and see how much more it can grow as we approach the holiday season. I removed 150 listings from my eBay store last night and will continue to pull all week. I’ve built up a nice backlog of items to build my eBay inventory back up, and it will be rewarding to work slow and steady on getting all of it listed.

I have had this plan in my head for a few months, and it’s exciting that it’s finally time to see how it goes. Change can be scary, but its also a lot of fun. I think its best to experiment with change when sales are decent than wait too long and change out of desperation.

7/17/2022 – 7/23/2022

Total items in store: 1799 (down from 1968 last week)

Items sold: 56 (43 via best offer, 5 via seller initiated offer, 26 via promoted listings)

Gross sales: $2687.30 (down 12% from one year ago)

Net sales: $1902.15 (down 8% from one year ago)

Average sales price: $47.99 (up 26% from one year ago)

Time spent searching through online auction listings for new trading cards inventory: 15 hours (same as last week)

Highest price sold (net): $145.54 — Jadon Sancho Panini Obsidian Tmall red #01/22 BGS 9.5 gem mint

Lowest price sold (net): $14.66 — Nomar Mazara Onyx authenticated game-used batting gloves

[Jay]

That’s really exciting. I know big crowds are weird right now, but I think it’ll be fun hanging out with your people. We still wear masks in big groups.

[craig rex]

I know big crowds are weird right now, but I think it’ll be fun hanging out with your people. We still wear masks in big groups.

Yeah me too. My local post office still has a sign on the door to recommend that you wear your mask so its been easy to keep up with. When I’m not selling on eBay, I really enjoy live music (one big reason I still live in the high COL northeast) and I’ve found that I like wearing a mask at concerts. I can sing as loud and off-key as I want.

I am not a real social guy as far as the card community goes, but I have been monitoring social media and message boards a little bit over the last few weeks to get a feel for everything. There will be a lot of high rollers who will buy, sell and trade thousands in cards each and every day. But there will be plenty of sellers with scavengers type of boxes — all cards $1.00 each, even as low as $0.10 each. I enjoy that kind of dig so I assume that’s where I’ll spend a lot of my time. I buy enough inventory online that I don’t really need to come home with anything for the trip to be worth it, but it will be interesting to see how the deals and steals compare to searching through auction listings.

[Retro Treasures WV]

Do the dealers mind if you comp while going through their bargain bins?

 

A couple months ago I was at an industry expo in Columbus and there was a comic shop in the comic shop in the convention center. They had large bargain bins of graphic novels and I so badly wanted to scan a bunch of stuff. I scanned a couple things indiscreetly but I was afraid of ticking off the ship owner.

[craig rex]

Do the dealers mind if you comp while going through their bargain bins?

Not at all and it works both ways, buyers and sellers both look at comps. Less organized dealers don’t price all their cards and the worst of them will look up comps (and quote eBay prices) when you bring them a pile to buy. I usually skip those tables and look for boxes which are already priced.

It’s funny, when I buy from online auctions I have Terapeak open the whole time and I am constantly comparing solds. I have a good idea what most individual cards are worth but doing the research offers a much clearer idea of value. But when I am scavenging at a card show or, more often, a library sale, I rarely look anything up. When items cost $5 or less, I always lean towards buy it and worst case, I will donate it down the line.

I did break this pattern last week at a library sale where there was a long line at the checkout. I found a quiet corner to organize my finds, looked at solds for just about every item and put a number of items back without buying them. It is funny how things can appear rare and unusual, or old and interesting, and instead they’re mass produced junk.

I suppose some places where we scavenge can get fickle about scanning, but I think by now most of them know that’s how they make their money.

A couple months ago I was at an industry expo in Columbus and there was a comic shop in the comic shop in the convention center. They had large bargain bins of graphic novels and I so badly wanted to scan a bunch of stuff.

I have a few graphic novels and comic books in my to be listed pile boxes of books. Do you bag and board every individual comic that you sell, or will I be fine with bubble wrap and cardboard? The most valuable ones I have are hardcovers, but there were definitely a few thin magazine-style books as well.

[Antique Frog]

I was at a car boot a couple of weeks back, saw a guy holding a spanner in one hand and his ‘phone in the other, looking at a listing for a similar spanner. He checked and then put the spanner back on the ground. That put a spanner in his works. What a spanner!

Re posting flat floppy things like magazines- I’ve used scrap pieces of electronic circuit board (like Veroboard) in the past for post cards. That’s unbendable.

[The_SEAM_Store]

Do you have veroboard for sale? Electronic tinkering is my hobby.

 

Edit, just realized you are across the pond….. shipping probably would make it cost prohibitive.

[Retro Treasures WV]

I have a few methods.

Sometimes in a pinch I’ll break federal law and use a flat rate cardboard mailer and then a poly mailer.

I keep a stack of cArdboard trimmings and will fold that in half and tape seams as a sleeve for other thin books/magazines/comics. Then put in polymailer.

For larger format thin books I’ll use my 12×12 adjustable record mailer boxes.

[craig rex]

Thanks, this is really helpful.

I keep a stack of cArdboard trimmings and will fold that in half and tape seams as a sleeve for other thin books/magazines/comics.

I do cardboard sandwiches with the individual trading cards so I have lots of bundles of boxes. Staples discontinued a particular brand a few months ago and I stocked up on 12 x 6 x 6 and 12 x 8 x 6 boxes for 25 cents per box (probably $0.10 or less after coupons and rewards). At some point in a year or two, I will finally run out of boxes and that will be a sad day.

For larger format thin books I’ll use my 12×12 adjustable record mailer boxes.

I have avoided buying record mailer boxes so I have a built-in excuse to avoid learning about another niche with collectors who are very picky about condition, lol. But now that I am starting with plans to expand my store beyond trading cards, it is probably almost time to order some LP boxes. I like to sell CDs and DVDs so records are a logical next step.

[Retro Treasures WV]

I have avoided buying record mailer boxes so I have a built-in excuse to avoid learning about another niche with collectors who are very picky about condition, lol. But now that I am starting with plans to expand my store beyond trading cards, it is probably almost time to order some LP boxes. I like to sell CDs and DVDs so records are a logical next step.

underpromise, over deliver.

Even if I have a record I know officially qualifies as better, I still max my ratings out at VG+.

That keeps me out of the Uber collectors realm.

I also have a disclaimer on all my record listings that basically states “I don’t know what I’m doing. Don’t buy my stuff if you want collector quality”.

[craig rex]

underpromise, over deliver.

This should be part of the New Scavenger Manifesto, along with list every day, promote your listings and send offers/run sales/end and reprice to move your listings up in the search rankings. I’m sure there is other stuff I’m not thinking of right now.

I have the same attitude with my trading cards listings. Max grade NM (equivalent to PSA 8) in the title of almost all ungraded cards even when they look nicer and I am meticulous about detailing any flaws in the seller notes and item description.

Maybe once or twice a year (out of a few thousand transactions) I get a buyer is really picky about condition, or maybe I miss a little flaw. I just refund them and move on with my life. So many other forums are filled with complainers grumbling about how much it sucks selling on eBay, buyers all scammers, fees are too high and all of that. But my experience over and over again has been that 99% of eBay buyers are happy as long as they get what they purchased in a reasonable amount of time. I am sure there are some niches (like expensive electronics) that are more challenging though.

[Liz]

Total Items in Store: 387
Items Sold: 14
Gross Sales: $468.86
Net Sales: $263.49
Cost of Items Sold: $30
Highest Price Sold: $90 (dirt bike kick stand)
Average Price Sold: $33.49
Returns: 2 ($200 worth of stuff, boo)

Slow week, oh well. Some old stuff that I’ve had for years finally sold, and it was all stuff that I got for free. I also sold a bunch of empty glass yogurt jars, metal tea tins, and sold all our scrap metal to the recycler. Literally selling our trash for cash! Gotta love it.

[The_SEAM_Store]

My apologies to anyone who may have visited my profile and clicked on the website link. I just realized it was out of date and updated it.   Sometime in Q4 of 2020, I discovered that 6 months earlier, ebay had discontinued the 3rd party service where I purchased the domain name for my store, and sold it to a Chinese porn site.  I had that web address for about 8 years, had maxed all SEO and was able to be found at the top of any search engine.  All my advertising, package inserts, ebay feedback left for buyers, social media site posts, etc., were directing my customers to the porn site without my knowledge for up to 6 months.

Fortunately the .net was available, and I was able to purchase that, but that was a lot of work undone, and probably quite a few offended customers, and lost potential buyers.

[Jay]

It’s seems inevitable that most URLS eventually just become spam or porn sites.

[The_SEAM_Store]

Unfortunately, I found out about it when my mother forwarded it to the youth pastor at her church to shop for some clothes.

[Lukastreasure]

@the_seam_store

Unfortunately, I found out about it when my mother forwarded it to the youth pastor at her church to shop for some clothes.

Ouch! Doubly embarassing.

[Retro Treasures WV]

Items in Store 2049
Items Sold 30
Total Sales $1,030.00
COGS $144.00
Total Profit $886.00
Average profit $29.53
Average sales price $34.33
New Listings 43
Items scavenged 15
Listing 2022 weekly Avg 49
Sourcing Allotment 17

Ahhh, now that was a good sales week!  Sold lots of items, listed lots of items. I actually have 70 more completed drafts that I didn’t get photos for, so this week should be a good listing week too.

 

This past Saturday I didn’t really want to go to any yard sales. I already have too much stuff and I was more interested in listing. So I come back in the house around 11:30am and my wife and kids are all dressed and ready to go hit a few yard sales and then on to other things to do for the day.

You all know how this goes – every time you try to back off scavenging something big comes along to drag you back in. One of the yard sales has a few neat older items. I pick out a few while pondering a box of old die cast cars. As I’m getting ready to check out I see a really old toy box for something called Major Matt Mason. I knew what this was because it was my father-in-laws favorite toys as a child and he’s told me all about them. The box was behind the people in the garage, but I asked if it was for sale.

The  husband lights up, grabs another big box and starts showing me all his Matt Mason toys. He occasionally throws in the line that he “has sold some of it on ebay” so I figure this is a lost cause scavenging wise, but still fun to look at. In the end he says “I’ll sell it all for $100.” Sure thing!

After sorting, inspecting, and comping I decided to just throw it all up as an auction for a bit less than what I would get fully parting it all out:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/265795131135

 

I’ll part it all out if I don’t get any bites at auction.

I asked him as I was paying what other toys he had sold off. He had a huge collection of Hot Wheels Red Lines he sold to a guy the previous week. I mentioned I had never actually seen an original red line in person. He said “hold on a second”, went in, and came back with a red line hot wheel that was missing a wheel. He let me have it.  What a cool dude.

Already listed and sold too!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/265794812304

 

I would have missed these awesome finds if I had scrapped yard sales for the day.

[Retro Treasures WV]

A couple of quick stats for year over year based on my listings push.

In 2021 through the end of July:

New listings: 735

Average weekly active listings: 1484

Items Sold: 676

Total Sales: $25488

 

In 2022 through End of July:

New listings: 1463

Average weekly active listings: 49

Items Sold: 786

Total Sales: $27243

 

So year over year, I’m up 16.3% on my average weekly active listings.

I’ve sold 14% more items, but my total cash sales is only 6.5% higher YoY.

I listed TWICE as many items this year. NICE!

My weekly average active listing will compound throughout the 2nd half of the year since I keep listing at almost 50 new items a week.

Unfortunately I’ll run out of YoY comparison data next month because of my extended 2021 Covid illness where I shut my store down from middle of august until middle of october. Then I didn’t list anything for the last 7 weeks of the year. I have to compare to 2019 which is not really a fair comparison since my store was about half as big then.

 

My year really hinges on what happens this fall and Q4 with a store well over 2000 items. I’ll likely have close to 2500 active listings by the end of the year. I’m in uncharted territory here. Could I surpass my 2020 numbers? Possibly. That year was front loaded with bonkers sales during lockdown and shortages. The second half of 2020 wasn’t as impressive. My 2022 numbers so far match the last half of 2020, so if I have a phenomenal fall and winter I could definitely match/exceed 2022.

My initial goals were this year were:

• Minimum 1500 new listings, Stretch goal – 2000.
• 1500 sales
• $52500 in sales
• Empty out the garage

I’m going to blow my listing goals out of the water.

I am not currently meeting the sales goals, but if I can average 33 sales per week for the rest of the year then I will meet all my goals based on my $35 ASP.

…now for that last goal of the garage….

Well that one got a bit complicated. First off, I gave up a large portion of the garage to my wife. She now has a large dedicated space for her vinyl crafting. She also has a large dedicated space for her pottery stuff.

Yes I’ve listed alot but I’ve also been bring alot of scavenged stuff in. Technically I have alot less stuff in the garage but I lost a significant amount of space to store it in. I still want to have the garage cleaned out and largely empty by the end of the year. Maybe I’ll start to tackle that harder once yard sale season is over.

 

[Lukastreasure]

Took most of last week off for a trip down to Florida and used the Time Away feature.  Didn’t have time to put together my numbers for the previous week, so both weeks are here.  Considering how slow things have been, I was pleasantly surprised that my sales didn’t dip.

This was my first time taking time off since starting to sell on Etsy.  I was surprised to find that Etsy doesn’t have a good method for continuing sales while you are away.  You can turn your whole store off, but there isn’t an easy way to extend shipping time across the store (like eBay does with policies).  I use Sixbit, and in theory I should have been able to make a bulk change, but for some reason couldn’t get them to stick and in the process lost part of my sync so that I have more items in the store than I have in Sixbit.  A lot of wasted time trying to straighten that out and still have a call scheduled with Sixbit support to see what happened.

We will be taking a 2 week break starting next week for our yearly trip to Belgium so probably won’t be on the forum for several weeks.

Week Ending      7/16/22            7/23/22
Gross Sales:       $560.30             $548.70
Net Sales:           $426.70             $439.24
Total Items in eBay Store: 1039
Items Sold eBay:   12                               12
Total Items in Etsy Store:
Items Sold Etsy:      2                                0

Cost of Items Sold:    $36.75        $179.85
COGS Percent              8.61%            40.95%

Highest Price Sold:     $100.00      $169.95
Average Price Sold:        $40.02       $45.73
Returns: 0
Money Spent on New Inventory: $0.00

New items listed:             17                      0

[Jay]

Have a great trip to Europe. Why Belgium every year?

[Lukastreasure]

Why Belgium every year?

Cecile is Belgian so we go every year to visit family.  We want to keep our kids, who have dual citizenship, familiar with their Belgian heritage and in touch with all their cousins.

[Antique Frog]

A typical Englishman takes a look at Belgium.

[Lukastreasure]

<p style=”text-align: left;”>I’ve seen that one before.  Very funny and largely accurate.</p>

[Antique Frog]

Belgians make fantastic beer out of sugar. And then they make lambic beer by leaving the ferment in open troughs in an attic so the wild yeasts can fly in and sour the beer. Then they add cherries…

Two 19th C Belgian engineers, Belpaire and Walschaerts, invented the late 20th C steam locomotive.

A Belgian king helped in the development of the rubber industry <cough>

 

[Lukastreasure]

A Belgian also invented something that makes most scavengers hearts quicken: bakelite!

[Antique Frog]

(looks forlornly at death pile) Bakelite? In there somewhere.

[Author]

Posts