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Don’t think I’ve ever had a scavenger dream. After reading all three of your dreams, I’d have to say that if they were mine, the nightmare part would’ve been the realization that the tamales were gone.
Linda, if I had a very limited amount of money to invest in inventory and a larger store, I agree that ROI would be a greater consideration.
No matter what, though, I can’t imagine turning down a quick $200 profit because it didn’t meet my ROI threshold.
Sonia, I definitely agree about a minimum profit expectation when your upfront investment is higher. Not only is more money tied up in the inventory, but you’re paying Ebay and PayPal fees on the entire selling price, not just the profit.
Sold a Loro Piana Roadster jacket for $1,100. I paid $9 for it. Took a year or so to sell.
Personally, I don’t buy any long vintage women’s or men’s coats anymore unless it’s something REALLY special. Like Sonia said, even the 100% cashmere ones aren’t a sure thing like they used to be. I came across a couple of Trigere coats recently and didn’t even buy those as the sold prices were dismal.
I think there are a number of reasons why sales of these have dropped, including the trend toward more casual business attire.
Even if it were a name brand like Pendleton (unless it’s a blanket coat), I wouldn’t pay $10-$20 for it.
Listened to the podcast last night. A couple of thoughts.
As Paulo said this week more eloquently than I did last week, as far as I can tell, there’s no way for any of us who have a variety of items in our store to come up with meaningful data to support any selling strategy.
Like Christine, I like hearing people’s opinions on what they think works or doesn’t work for them even if they can’t provide proof. Perhaps, as J & R suggest, the tinkering is all about making people feel like they have, if not control exactly, at least something else to try when they’re in a sales slump.
As far as spending more to make more, I’m definitely willing to do it when it makes sense, but as others have mentioned, there are so many variables.
What I don’t understand is people who have a multiplier goal rather than a dollar profit goal. Someone in a Facebook group was sharing that he’d bought something for $200 and sold it the next day for $500. Another person commented that, while that was a quick turnaround and decent profit, he doesn’t buy anything unless he thinks he can sell it for 10x what he pays for it. So, I guess he’d rather pay $1.00 for something and sell if for $10, than turn $200 into $500. WTH?
What I consider to be bread and butter has increased over the years as I get better at this whole thing. I’m a slow lister because I’m anal about preparation and presentation. Because of that, I decided a few years ago that, in order for this whole Ebay thing to make any sense, I needed to up my game and shoot for an ASP of $50. My average cost of inventory is fairly consistent at $7-$9. As others have said, though, if I run across something that’ll sell for $30 but will be a breeze to list, I’ll definitely pick it up.
Linda, if I posted the brand, it’d be pretty easy to find it by searching sold listings and I’m always intentionally vague because I’m not comfortable with the hundreds or thousands of lurkers here knowing my Ebay ID. I’m happy to share a link to the sold scarf listing with you or any interested participating member but I don’t know how to contact you.
12/18-12/24/2016
Approximate # of Items in Store: 270
# of Items Sold: 19
Average Cost of Items Sold: $7.74
Total Sales: $957.40
Highest Price Sold: $125 Scarf
Average Price Sold: $50.39
Returns: 0
Money Spent on New Inventory This Week: $62.26
Number of items listed this week: 6Was in the Chicago area for Christmas visiting family from the 22nd until today. Didn’t put my store on vacation, just changed handling time to three days. Sold nine things while I was away. Early flight, so I was home by 11:00 this morning and had all nine sales packed and to the Post Office before their first load went out at 2:00 p.m. Need to get back into the swing of things and get some new stuff listed before the week is over or I’m sure sales will come to a screeching halt.
Haven’t had a chance to listen to this week’s podcast yet, but I did listen to the last two while I was flying. Actually, the plane was flying. I happened to be sitting inside.
I don’t sell and tell, and none of the “famous” were mega stars, so you probably would have had to google them anyway, but…
–Etro shirt to a woman who made a single appearance with her band on David Letterman
–Burberry nova check denim pants to a rap singer/DJ/producer
–Vintage Patagonia fleece to an actor/director in Hollywood–Vintage Gucci shoes to a design company in NYC
–Vintage Patagonia jacket to a design company in NYC
–Vintage Lilith jacket to a design company in NYC
–Vintage Echo scarf to someone at Echo in NYCI do the same. I don’t use a packing slip except on international sales, but I send an Ebay message thanking them for their purchase, telling them that I’m taking it to the PO that day, letting them know the estimated delivery time frame and also telling them that I’m confident they’ll find their item to be as it was described, pictured and measured, but to feel free to contact me if they’re disappointed for any reason.
I sign with my first and last name and I address them by their first name (the one from PayPal), rather than something like “Dear shoppingqueenmomof4grannie6348:”
Add me to those who’d love to see a time/date stamp. I don’t always stay on top of reading everything and it’d be really nice to know if a thread I’m reading is current or something that was discussed a couple of weeks ago. If current, I’m more likely to comment and/or do research.
Thank you!
I’d expect a warranty like that is intended to only apply to the original owner. I’d be surprised if Sperry didn’t ask for a receipt and/or some proof of an online purchase.
L.L.Bean has a lifetime guarantee, too, for their “customers”.
As an example, I sold a pair of L.L.Bean hiking boots a month or so ago. A few days after receiving them, the woman wrote to me and sent a picture of what happened to one of them after she wore them for less than an hour. It was the dreaded sole disintegration that happens to older shoes sometimes. In her message, she said that she didn’t blame me and she was going to contact L.L.Bean. I immediately refunded her entire payment and told her that, even if she got a replacement from L.L.Bean, I sold them as excellent condition and she didn’t deserve the hassle.
She wrote later and told me that L.L.Bean told her that they don’t warranty items unless there’s proof that they were purchased directly from them.
