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https://www.ebay.com/itm/267194876019
Misfits Fishnet Long sleeve Dog Pile Tag Goth Vintage Size
This was from a hoarder collection. It sold within an hour of listing for full price.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266693686783
Disney’s My Very First Winnie the Pooh Lot of 26 Books Hardcover Series Stories
We picked these up years ago at a yard sale for next to nothing. They were in our book collection for a long time, but they got the boot in the last cleanout.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266548142304
Polo Ralph Lauren Linen Blazer Sport Coat Men’s Size XXL 3 Button Black
Hoarder item. Sold on offer for $180. COGs would be around $10.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266985517604
Patagonia Women S Stellar Blue Turtle Shorts Little Flippers Baggies Drawstring
I bought a bunch of these 0on clearance at Dick’s a couple years ago for $4 each. I think this is the last pair.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266932886968
Marching Mickey Mouse Disney Hasbro Romper Room Club Vintage
Neat item. Sold for full price. I think I paid $1 at a yard sale.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266416052086
Fantastic Four Movie Trailer 35mm Film 2005 FLAT Version 1
Sold on offer for $35. I bought a bunch of these film trailers a few years ago at a yard sale – $10 for the lot. I’ve Sold about half of them at this point. Truly rare items you can’t find in the wild. They were “supposed” to be returned to the studios, but all of these were from the very end of film before theaters switched to digital. I guess they didn’t want them back at that point!
Items in Store: 2935
Items Sold: 17
Total Sales: $745.00
COGS: $87.00
Total Profit: $658.00
Average profit: $38.71
Average sales price: $43.82
New Listings: 47
Items scavenged: 16
2025 weekly new listings Avg: 19
2025 avg gross weekly sales $1,287.17
2025 Avg weekly Items Sold 25
2025 ASP $52.01
2025 projected total sales $66,932.67Well that’s a little better this week. Most of the new listing was done at the very end of the week so hopefully this week picks up based on my renewed efforts. This week I’ve been hit hard with the reality of our housing situation. We REALLY need more space and bedrooms and the only way it can happen in this absurdly unhinged real estate market is if I make more money. I’ve gotta drive the ebay business to the moon and list as much as possible and hope that results in extra sales. I also did some end/sell similar of old listings throughout the week to try and get my store more active.
I still have a lingering cough but I’m feeling better every day. I so hope we’re done with sickness and can role into spring healthy.
This weekend we went to Columbus to get away. I always scavenge on these weekend trips in order to deduct travel expenses on taxes. I also use the Hhonors points I accumulate on my business credit card to get free hotel stays. In this case it was two free nights at an Embassy Suites. These little weekend getaways are great to reconnect with our children. At home my wife and I are always under pressure to get stuff done, and combined with kid’s natural utter lack of pressure to get things done, chaos typically reigns supreme. LOL! A couple days somewhere else where we don’t have to cook, can spend hours in the pool playing, and just hang out without (most) of the pressures of a daily grind is wonderful.
Ebay is the main reason we can do this. Traveling with 7 kids is an expensive undertaking!
I actually wanted to try the bins in Columbus this weekend but they must have closed their bins location. I didn’t see it anymore in google maps.
It is obvious which Goodwills in bigger cities have a better ecommerce program as those goodwills will consistently have next to nothing in their stores worth sourcing. Fortunately, not all Goodwills are the same! One of the Goodwills I tried this time I’ve checked my last 3 trips and I bought nothing all three times. It is “off the list” now.
There’s a couple Goodwills I like hitting every time I’m there. I avoid al the other chains as they are way too high priced. Goodwill is CHEAP compared to the other two big local chains – Ohio Thrift Store & Volunteers of America.
Anyways, I didn’t get to go to the one I refer to as the “ghetto goodwill” this time. It’s not really in the ghetto but inside the workers are rude, it is messy, cluttered, and AMAZING. They put everything out at low prices. Definitely no ecommerce presence there. It’s a great place to scavenge ( My wife HATES this Goodwill though, so it is difficult to make time to go to it). When I went to get directions to this Goodwill I noticed that the reviews over the last 6 months kept mentioning that there was a short pudgy dude who stays there all day every day and treats each new cart like the “bins” and grabs all the good stuff. I sooo wanted to go and meet this guy.
The “good” goodwill I did get go to go to this time is also my wife’s favorite. Not quite as ghetto, but close. I even found a Nintendo DS on one of their new inventory carts once for $5 – that’s UNHEARD of for a thrift store anymore. This Goodwill gets alot of immigrants shopping there that don’t speak much English. This time it was much more of an issue. I couldn’t even find a cart initially as there were close to 10 of these folks who had 1-2 carts each sitting over by where they bring out new carts of stuff. Every time a new cart comes out they would swarm it then go back to their spots with their carts. They stay there all day long just hanging out.
Now do I care that they are doing this? Nope. I was just annoyed that I had to shop without a cart for a while. Why doesn’t it bother me?
- There’s soooo much stuff they can’t get it all.
- They are mainly looking for stuff to take to swap meets.
- I’m confident that my general sourcing knowledge is higher than theirs.
For instance, one of them put back a pair of boots. They were Danner womens casual booties in like new condition that will sell for $100 on ebay. For a swap meet those will never do well. But for my legitimate, tax paying ebay business they are great!
The Danner boots were the scavenge of the week. I was hoping the scavenge of the week was the Oxygen concentrator I picked up for $6 there, but it has a “needs service” error once I tested it at home. I lived with one of these concentrators for 6+ months when I got really sick in 2021, so I knew what it was as soon as I saw it. I can’t really sell it, but I’ve been wanting to have one “just in case” ever since I turned mine back in to the rental company. If I could figure out a way to sell it, it is worth several thousand dollars. I’ll check with a local rental company to see if this one can be serviced since it only has 4500 hours, but I’m not holding out much hope.
I haven’t been scavenging for the last few weeks. I did pull 4 OLD bins of shoes out of my death pile so I can start listing them. There were some great shoes in there! Shame on me for letting them sit for so long.
It’s about time for yard sale season to start up, so scavenging will pick up soon. I need to get my space cleaned up a bit more to prepare.
Oof, twas a rough week. This week is even worse so far with only a single sale!
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266321247432
Nike Flex Runner 2 Barely Green DX6068-301 PS Size 13.5C Kids Slip On Shoes
The power of shoes. I picked these up for $1 at a yard sale. Sold on offer for $25. They’ve been listed since July 2023. That’s just the way the ball bounces with used shoes – you have to have alot of listings and just wait for the right buyer in order to generate regular sales. I have close to 1000 pair of shoes listed. That takes up roughly 60 bins of storage.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266589028834
Rip It Original Defense Softball Fielder’s Mask Youth Black
I picked up a couple of these masks at Walmart last summer on clearance for $15 each. They’re now all sold. I went ahead and listed them immediately but I knew I would have to wait until this spring to sell them out.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266471186182
Tang Soo Do ITF Track Suit Size Small Navy Blue Lined Warm Up Windbreaker
One of the oldest items left in my store – probably listed in 2018-19. I’m so happy it FINALLY moved on to it’s new owner. Sold for full price.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266774654681
Nike Total 90 Laser FG Soccer Cleats Size Mens Size 6 Yellow Gray
Man these took FOREVER to sell! When I originally listed them I was trying to get $100+. In the end though they were never in good enough condition to ask that much.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266970530433
Ralph Lauren Purple Label Dark Blue Jeans Size 42 Made in Italy 41×32 Actual
Hoarder jeans, so my COGS average out to around $10.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/267098662571
Bill Blass Mens Corduroy Cotton Robe Smoking Jacket Vintage Lounge Satin Lined M
Sold on offer for $40. hoarder item .
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266889519868
Giorgio Armani boots men’s lambskin upper size 45 black new
Buyer made the right offers on a slow week. I was hungry so I negotiated a price of $300. Hoarder item so COGS was $20
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266888263027
Donald J. Pliner Men’s Beaded CHAMARRA Loafers Made in Italy Size 10.5 UK M
Another pair of hoarder shoes. Sold on offer for $152
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266534150053
Jack LaLanne’s Power Juicer Model CL-003AP Original Classic Juice Pulp Extractor
I’ve sold a bunch of these Jack lalanne juicers over the years, but they don’t sell as quickly as they used to. When I pulled this one from inventory I saw another identical one out there I never listed, so right back up the listing went.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/267125105014
UNCLE ARTHUR’S BEDTIME STORIES Volumes 1-5 Maxwell Complete Series Set 1950
I don’t sell alot of books, but when I do I prefer to make money like this! Bought the lot at a yard sale for $2.
Week of 3/3-3/9/2025
Items in Store: 2915
Items Sold: 24
Total Sales: $1,250.00
COGS: $171.00
Total Profit: $1,079.00
Average profit: $44.96
Average sales price: $52.08
New Listings: 0
Items scavenged: 0
2025 weekly new listings Avg: 18
2025 avg gross weekly sales $1,441.50
2025 Avg weekly Items Sold 27
2025 ASP $53.39
2025 projected total sales $74,958.00My large inventory is really carrying me through this rough stretch. My family has been sick one virus after another since the beginning of February. I’ve been through 2 sets of antibiotics and a heavy course of steroids. Now we all have the flu. I’m very thankful my day job is flexible and I can do most of my work from home. I’m also thankful that my ebay store is robust enough to keep on chugging even when I do the absolute bare minimum.
There is also some management shuffling going on at my day job. A regional manager unexpectedly left the company so our site manager is moving up earlier than expected to fill the gap. My boss is now the interim site manager. While he is still technically the engineering manager for now, odds are high that I’ll end up being asked to become the engineering manager at some point this year. I don’t really want to be a manger. We’ll see how it shakes out.
I tried posting my numbers in both threads and the forum broke both times. Oh well.
Here’s a couple highlights from the past week:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/267097312835
Polo Ralph Lauren Hampton Red Line Selvedge Blue Denim Jeans 46Bx34
NOT a hoarder item. Found these in the wild at Goodwill recently. Unfortunately the closest Goodwill now charges an outrageous $12 with tax for jeans! I only pick up $50+ jeans from there because of it.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266453562113
Frye Men Philip Harness Boots Black 3487870-BLK Size 11 M New In Box
Sold on offer for $225. $25 pair of hoarder shoes.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266968063756
Jacob Cohen Men’s J620 Handmade Luxury Blue Jeans Button Fly Size 40×36
An uncommon brand to keep an eye out for. Sold 3 pair of hoarder designer jeans to the same person. My cost on these jeans averages out to $12 a pair.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/266457411336
LOS ALTOS Men’s Red Ostrich Leg Boots 6X Pointed Toe Size 11.5 EE 1960512
Sold on offer for $350 after I revised the BIN price. Originally had $500 on them. Hoarder shoes so $25 COGS.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/267091197695
California Raisins Vintage Halloween Costume 1987 CALRAS – Adult Med With Hair
And here’s a fun little item I ‘bought’ this summer. My older kids did a yard sale at their grandmother’s house. Some of our stuff we normally would donate to goodwill plus whatever grandma brought out. I picked up a few things when it was time to close down. I paid them a couple bucks for this item that came out of grandma’s house.
I’ve sourced some pretty awesome stuff from Grandma’s house over the years. She’s been a goodwill shopping hoarder for a long long time.
Week of 2/17/25-2/23/25
Items in Store: 2959
Items Sold: 24
Total Sales: $1,599.00
COGS: $144.00
Total Profit: $1,455.00
Average profit: $60.63
Average sales price: $66.63
New Listings: 2
Items scavenged: 0
2025 weekly new listings Avg: 22
2025 avg gross weekly sales $1,470.88
2025 Avg weekly Items Sold 28
2025 ASP $52.53
2025 projected total sales $76,485.50What happened this week? I can’t remember. We were all working on recovering from illness still. Had some great sales.
In the arcade and pinball hobby, the age old lie is “ It’s probably just a fuse”
Spoiler alert, It’s never just a fuse.
I have a wholesale account with a video game parts company and get the 72 pin connectors for four dollars. I always keep a couple on hand in case I come across Nintendos. I’ve done this multiple times so I can change out the pin connector in about five minutes. It makes the Nintendo work like new. I can also get dirt cheap AC adapters and aftermarket controllers.
I prefer to sell these in fourth quarter so I may hold them for a little while.
Oh and don’t forget old polaroid 600 instant cameras.
the rare color schemes are worth huge money, but any common color one is an easy $30. They’re built like tanks. Unless you see major physical damage they work. Most of the time the company who makes the film now will be who buys it from you. They buy a ton, returb them, and sell them on their website.
Canon ae-1 is the gold standard for old slr’s.
really any camera is worth looking up. Super valuable 35mm point & shoots can look quite crappy!
No need to use actual film. Put in a battery to test the meter. Make sure the shutter mechanism works on all settings, aperture control works, then check the seals on the door. Most buyers understand that they will likely have to replace the seals as I don’t do that. I have a working knowledge of SLR and DSLR cameras which helps. I got into photography 10 years or so ago. Then I got an iphone that could take excellent pictures with decent bokeh and moved on.
I bought some cool stuff at thrift last week but I’m too lazy to go through it to pick out the nice stuff to mention. Just know that I did indeed get some cool items. LOL!
Yesterday I saw a Nintendo lot on Facebook marketplace. I picked it up yesterday evening and of course the whole experience makes me question why I bother with FBMP. I drove out of my way, then the person kept me waiting an extra 30 minutes. Had their girlfriend meet me instead of meeting themself. Said girlfriend was apparently ticked off he sold the lot and she pulled out a game. They deleted the post so I couldn’t pull up the listing photos, but I told her which game was missing and she said “oh you wanted that? well I guess I can go get it”. Then she whined more about the fact the boyfriend sold the lot so cheap.
….they lived literally next door to the place I was meeting them…they made me wait 30 minutes….and all they had to do was walk 100 feet over to the parking lot…
In the end I paid $100 for two NES systems (dirty and missing one adapter), 4 NES games (nothing earth shattering, the best game is only worth $20), and one xbox 360 game.
The xbox game is the one she took out and had to go get. In the photos I could only see the side spine and this appeared to be a $70 game – Need for speed Most wanted. The whole deal was worth it because of this game. So YEAH I wanted that game! Then when I got it and saw the front…bummer. This was the “deluxe” edition, which is only worth $10. They appear identical on the spine.
Anyways, I’ll refurb the two nintendos with new 72 pin connectors and sell as refurbished bundles with a game for $150 each. The extra games from this will net me $50. I’ll make about $200 profit on the deal.
Plus, I really like having items like this in my inventory. It’s just fun and fits with my brand!
