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Feb 21 – 27
- Total Items in Store: 4,081
- Items Sold: 47
- Total Sales: $1,162
- * ABOVE yearly average of $1,070
- Highest Price: $150 (1960s Grants Electric Popcorn Corn Popper)
- Average Price: $25
- Returns: 0
- Cost of Goods Sold: $70
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 39
Good week of sales over here. That popcorn popper was a nice treat! I bought it at a yard sale for $2. It looked brand new and unused other than the opened box. The fact that it came in a nice red color probably helped the high price I got for it. It sold within a matter of days from listing.
We got our taxes back from our CPA. UPH!! We both got hit with a pretty tax big bill. And of course they raised their prices AGAIN on us! It looks like we’re going to start shopping around for a new CPA this summer. As for the tax bill, I think the reason it was higher than 2019’s total was due to several higher tax write-offs from the previous year including the business van. That’s what I’m going to tell myself anyways. I’m still going to look over this really carefully just in case they messed something up which wouldn’t be the first time.
Feb 14 – 20
- Total Items in Store: 4,085
- Items Sold: 59
- Total Sales: $1,794
- * ABOVE yearly average of $1,082
- Highest Price: $170 (KENNEDY KITS Machinist Chest Model 520)
- Average Price: $30
- Returns: 0
- Cost of Goods Sold: $143
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 39
This was the best week of sales I’ve had in awhile! And I set a new record for number of items sold in a week. That was thanks to two different customers who browsed my store and bought a bunch of stuff. The first guy sent me an offer on 13 different items. He got a pretty good deal, but I was thrilled to move some old inventory. I created a custom listing for him to make it easy. The second person went through and bought 15 of my advertising pencil toppers. They must be just starting a collection.
I’ve been debating about downgrading to a Premium store. My renewal is next month, so I think I’ll give it a try. If I did the math right, I’ll be saving over $150 a month, but I’ll be losing $100 in free packing supply coupons. But that’s fine if I’ll ultimately be saving money. And I believe that upgrading again is free so if they do away with the free collectable listings, I’ll just go back to being an Anchor store.
Feb 7 – 13
- Total Items in Store: 4,100
- Items Sold: 49
- Total Sales : $1,258
- * ABOVE yearly average of $1,079
- Highest Price: $100 (Vintage Zondervan Eyre & Spottiswoode Calfskin Bible)
- Average Price: $26
- Returns: 0
- Cost of Goods Sold: $52
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 11
I sort of put eBay on the back burner for the week as I took care of some things around the house, and more importantly got our taxes prepared for our CPA. I feel like he’s been charging us a bit more than he should, so I made sure to present all of the numbers in a very clear manner. Theoretically it should only take him an hour or so of work after all the work I’ve already put into it, so if he ups the bill again we’re off to find a new CPA.
Can are continuing to sell well for me. I’ve now sold almost $400 worth. I’m going to finish listing what I have setting out tomorrow, and then I’ll be done with the first batch. I’ll be glad to be on to listing other things!
I had an awesome sale yesterday (not included in my number above). I had a buyer go through my store and send me offers on 13 items. We worked out a deal that was good for both of us. It came to $426 + combined shipping. I’ve had people buy 2 or 3 items at a time, but never anything like this. It took a little bit of work to create a custom listing, and then go through and end everything once he paid, but I would love it if more buyers shopped around my “store” like this.
Jan 30 – Feb 6
- Total Items in Store: 4,132
- Items Sold: 41
- Total Sales : $1,159
- * ABOVE yearly average of $1,076
- Highest Price: $116 (Vintage Brown Top Grain Cowhide Leather Doctor Bag w/ Key)
- Average Price: $28
- Returns: 2
- Cost of Goods Sold: $40
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $135
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 64
Congratulations on the 500th episode milestone! I’ve been listening to you two for over four years now. I’m so glad that you’re still pumping out the podcasts each week.
Last week (and still this week) has been full of customers with all kinds of questions. I usually get a question on something once a week or so. But lately they’ve become relentless and I’m losing track on who I answered and who I’ve ignored. What the heck is going on??
So my soda can experiment continues with great success! I’ve listed over 100 cans and have made almost $250 so far (plus ~$100 in current bids/waiting to be paid). I’ve spent a lot of time researching and gained a ton of knowledge on soda can collecting, knowledge that will help when I get to listing the 700+ other remaining cans. I’m gonna take a break with them and get back to listing normal random stuff now though. I don’t want to completely flood the market.
Just an estimated guess, probably close to 800. I bought four 19x19x29 wardrobe size boxes full of them. Three of those had cans neatly stacked to the max while the fourth was about half full. Just based on my findings with that half-full box, I’d say most of these are from the 1960s-1970s. Unless I find some super rare ones, I’ll probably be able to get an average of $10-15 each for them if I’m patient.
Man, that’s terrible. I feel for ya. It seems like they screwed themselves in a way. You mentioned you had plans for more money saving improvements. Will you even feel like trying now? They sort of shot themselves in the foot by not treating you to the promotion that you deserve.
I was sort of in the same position at my last job. Year after year without a raise just demoralized me. Starting my eBay business was really the best decision I ever made. Once I had a thriving business and a nice little nest egg, I finally felt comfortable enough to say ‘screw you, I’m out.” I hope you can reach that point soon. It’ll be much harder with a large family though I presume.
Jan 24 – 30
Total Items in Store: 4,103
Items Sold: 33
Total Sales : $1,356
ABOVE yearly average of $1,074
Highest Price: $225 (MCM Hanging Brass and Glass Light Fixture)
Average Price: $41
Returns: 0
Cost of Goods Sold: $72
Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
Number of New Items Listed this Week: 46
Another good week on my end. I also had a lot of higher priced items sell which raised my average more than usual. I hope this will continue like it did last year.
Last week I mentioned my vintage soda can experiment. I bought a huge collection for a few dollars at an auction and have since delved into the crazy world of pop cans. It’s sort of amazing how much some sell for. I’ve listed about 40 so far and two have sold for a total of $50. And I’ve got hundreds more to go through. I’m listing a bunch as auctions for now just to get an idea how much people are willing to pay. Once I’m more comfortable with my pricing, I’ll start listing them BIN. My biggest concern is going to be inventorying and storage. I’m going to have to come up with a system to keep them organized and easily searchable when each one sells.
Jan 17 – 23
- Total Items in Store: 4,093
- Items Sold: 47
- Total Sales : $1,395
- * ABOVE yearly average of $1,070
- Highest Price: $250 (Pair of Empty Wood Speaker Cabinets)
- Average Price: $30
- Returns: 0
- Cost of Goods Sold: $81
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $436
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 19
I had a fantastic week of sales last week. Lots of bread and butter kind of stuff, but a few things sold which really boosted my numbers. Numerous trips to FedEx last week too. I sold a bunch of large items which really makes me happy, at least after they’re packed.
I sort of took time away from listing last week to focus on inventorying a huge online auction haul. This was the third auction from the church hoard near me. I went hard on some of the box lots, but I must say I didn’t get as many winners as I did the last time. The big ticket winner was a 1st edition The Queen’s Gambit book that I listed immediately. If it sells, it’ll pay for almost what I spent on everything.
The speaker cabinets were an awesome sale (other than packing them!). I bought these on an online auction for $2. There was zero description beyond “speakers” and just one lousy picture. But I could tell from the construction that the cabinets were at least high quality. Turns out that the speakers were high grade too. I sold them the week prior for the same price as the cabinets. So I made $500 on a couple dollar gamble. Not bad!
This week will be spent mostly listing soda cans. I scored three huge boxes of someone’s vintage soda can collection for $6 on an online auction. I don’t know how well they’ll do, but I’m just going to do a few dozen at a time. There’s hundreds of cans here and I don’t want to get burnt out.
Jan 10 – 16
- Total Items in Store: 4,118
- Items Sold: 36
- Total Sales : $952
- * BELOW yearly average of $1,061
- Highest Price: $250 (Pair of Stephens Trusonic 80-FR 8” Full Range Speakers)
- Average Price: $26
- Returns: 0
- Cost of Goods Sold: $28
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 45
Another fine week of sales and productivity. I’m getting through my inventory pretty quickly and will need to replenish pretty soon. Fortunately, there will be another online auction from that church building turned eBay store which has been liquidating their hoard. I had really good success from the last auction, so I have high hopes that this will land some good inventory.
I did some rough numbers and I think I’m going to downgrade my eBay subscription back to Premium when it comes time to renew in March. Since Managed Payments sellers get an additional free 10,000 listings in the Collectables category, it might save me over $150 a month since over half of my store is Collectables. Does anybody have any insight as to whether this will be a permanent thing?
Dec 27 – Jan 2
- Total Items in Store: 4,106
- Items Sold: 31
- Total Sales : $896
- * BELOW yearly average of $1,054
- Highest Price: $100 (Sony TC-800B Tapecorder Portable Reel-to-Reel Player)
- Average Price: $29
- Returns: 1
- Cost of Goods Sold: $31
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 34
It was a pretty good week of sales. Almost $900 is way above my survival point, so I’m happy. Not much new going on over on my end. Just sipping some Costa Rica BP coffee and staying busy.
You know, it really wasn’t so bad. We went with the same bank that held our original loan, so I think that helped. They just asked for some sales and expense paperwork that I was able to download from GoDaddy Bookkeeping. Otherwise, the self-employment wasn’t brought up.
She’s unfortunately not quite as committed to the business as I am. We’re finding out that she’s the type to respond better to a job where she’s not her own boss. But having savored the freedom that this career entails, I don’t see her going back to a normal job. So while she’s making enough to pay her share of the bills, there doesn’t leave much room for much else. But she’s happy so that’s what matters the most.
Dec 27 – Jan 2
- Total Items in Store: 4,103
- Items Sold: 42
- Total Sales : $1,293
- * ABOVE yearly average of $1,042
- Highest Price: $160 (Lenox Renaissance Christmas Nativity Shepherds)
- Average Price: $31
- Returns: 0
- Cost of Goods Sold: $77
- Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
- Number of New Items Listed this Week: 50
It was a great way to end the year! Items were flying off the shelf this week. I’m betting people have been spending their eBay gift cards that they’ve received for Christmas.
It’s interesting to think about all the types of sellers there are. My style of selling evolved since I started close to 5 years ago. At the beginning, I had dreams of making it big with this business. I was working non-stop, sacrificing most of my free time and even straining some relationships. Over the years, I’ve mellowed out and found a happy balance. I still work a little more than I feel I need to, but I’m beginning to understand what success really means to me… being happy. Making 100K+ a year would be nice and all, but if I’m killing myself to do it then what’s the point? Now, I take a more easy-going approach. It’s still my main job and source of income, but I work enough to make a nice little profit but not too much to cause added stress. Though I would argue that all of the zealous work I’ve done at the start is paying off now, allowing me to begin coasting a bit more.
I’m enjoying a cup of Broad Porch Burundi coffee this morning. It’s got an interesting flavor for sure! A bit too bright for my taste, but a nice change over my go-to Eight O’Clock brand. Steph got me a sampler for Christmas, so I’ll be enjoying the Costa Rican and the Sumatran here soon.
Dec 20 – 26
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<li aria-level=”1″>Total Items in Store: 4,093
<li aria-level=”1″>Items Sold: 29
<li aria-level=”1″>Total Sales : $831-
<li aria-level=”2″>* BELOW yearly average of $1,031
<li aria-level=”1″>Highest Price: $180 (Lenox Renaissance Christmas Nativity Animals)
<li aria-level=”1″>Average Price: $29
<li aria-level=”1″>Returns: 0
<li aria-level=”1″>Cost of Goods Sold: $56
<li aria-level=”1″>Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
<li aria-level=”1″>Number of New Items Listed this Week: 37I had a pretty good week considering it usually slows down on the days right before Christmas. I’m currently experiencing a customer who’s very displeased with the shipping time on her package. I mailed it on Dec 10th and it’s still sitting at a distribution center. I’ve been trying to placate her but she’s been sending me daily messages and becoming more hostile by the day. I have a bad feeling that when it finally gets delivered, she’ll return it out of spite.
I’ve got some great news to share! We successfully refinanced our home mortgage. We’re going from a 25 to a 15 year loan. Our interest rate is going from 4.9 to 2.125 percent. The monthly payment will go up $46, but that’s not a big deal. In the long run we’ll save tens of thousands. It cost me $1200 and an hour of paperwork, but it was totally worth it.
I’ve got to throw in my opinion on the chili dog debate. While I have to agree with Ryanne that chili dogs don’t belong on the full-time menu of a coffee shop, I have an idea for a compromise. Make them a special, limited run item akin to the McDonald’s McRib. Manufacture some allure to them and only make them available one or two weekends a year. The mystique might intrigue the customers and bring them in. They’ve got to be some really special chili dogs though!
Dec 13 – 19
Total Items in Store: 4,090
Items Sold: 35
Total Sales : $939
BELOW yearly average of $1,040
Highest Price: $75 (Vintage R. F. Brown Sailor Boy Oyster Tin Can)
Average Price: $27
Returns: 1
Cost of Goods Sold: $50
Costs of Goods Purchased this Week: $0
Number of New Items Listed this Week: 37
Another very decent week of sales here! Lots of lower priced items were selling and nothing over $75, but I can’t complain. I was curious to know how I’m doing compared to my old job at the university, so I did some quick calculations this morning. Taking into account estimated tax payments and health/dental insurance (as well as eBay fees and COGS), I’ve profited over $6,000 more so far this year than I did at my old job. That’s a really nice feeling, knowing that this business that I started from the ground up is succeeding. And not to even mention all the other benefits of working for oneself…
I’ve been working on a pile of Kensington aluminum kitchenware this past week. I got it really cheap at an auction and thought I scored a winner. This stuff is really cool with fancy art deco etching and ornate handles. But unfortunately the market just isn’t there for this kind of stuff. I was surprised, given the age and the history of the company, that very few people desire it anymore. Judging from my research, just 15 years ago this stuff would have sold for 10x what it’s worth now. I guess I just missed the market.
