Make Money Buying and Selling Used Items | Second Hand Items Buying and Selling Business

What is resale? Is it a profitable business idea? How does one go about starting a resale shop? Read this article and find out the answer to these questions. In this article we will be sharing with you our tips and advice on how to earn some extra income for your family, and even how to turn trading used goods into your part time or full time job! In 2013 more than ever we are consuming products faster than we can make them. As we are sure you have noticed this economic depression has lead to a large amount of stores closing. The used market is still thriving strong and we are going to share with you why you should be and how you can be involved in this often fascinating and extremely rewarding market!

We will break this article down into sections so you can refer to your desired section in the future for ease of use. The sections will be the following.

• Why should you get involved in the used goods market?
• What item's should you pick up while you are learning the ropes?
• Where to buy items from?
• Tips on when to purchase certain categories of items.
• Where to sell the items you have?
• Tips on how to add character and value to your items.

Where to buy items from?

This is where people get lost in the market and start to question if they can actually make money by doing this. While on the hunt for items you will more often than not come across items that literally are junk and have no market for resale, but don't let this deter you.

We have found the best places to buy from are the following.

• Car Boot/Garage Sales - Search around your local area for these sales, this is where I get a large amount of my items from. People are usually selling items to get a quick sale, regardless of their value on the market. This is the best place to find special/first editions!

• Second Hand/Thrift Stores - Again the same as the above, on the odd occasion you can find an item that is being sold by a store way under it's market value. Make conversation with the owners of the store and see if they will give you a discount on multiple purchases.

• eBay - eBay is really hit and miss with finding items for resale. The best advice I can give is to only buy items that are in an auction bid. Buy items that are in a bulk/job lot. e.g. 20 pairs of jeans. If you research the listings you can usually find some good deals.

• Friends & Family - Ask your friends and family if they have any unwanted items that you can buy from them for a reasonable price. If someone you know is having a clear out check what they are throwing out, you never know what gems might be heading for the dump!

• Items Around The House - More often than not we all have a good amount of unused and unwanted items around our house, you can use these to gain yourself the starting money to begin your journey!

Where to sell the items you have?

This is one of the more daunting areas of buying and selling used items. More often than not you will buy items that sit around for months without a sale, this doesn't mean that the item is useless and was a waste of money, it means you just aren't advertising it to the right market. I will list some of the better places to sell your items.

• eBay - This speaks for itself, security of purchasing a good quality item, from a trusted seller, one of the biggest markets on earth to sell items. The downside to eBay is the increasing prices of fee's and trusting your items in the postal services hands.

• Carboot/Garage Sales - You bought items from here so you can sell them here! You can make a good mark up here without having to pay the fee's and postage costs of eBay. Here you allow people to physically see an item and make a better judgement of whether to make the purchase.

• Advertising Services - Make use of sites such as Gum-tree and Craigslist. You can advertise items on here and it is another way of advertising your items. The downsides to these sites are you tend to get a large amount of time wasters and scammers, so be careful with who you deal with.

• Experts & Collectors - If you have an item that is unique then get it valued and if it is valuable then contact local collectors and experts and arrange a meeting to show your items and close in on sealing the deal.

It can’t be argued that a certain sector of our society is hard up on cash. This folks would appreciate any opportunity to stretch their hard earned dollar. Resale shopping is a good way to find what they need at a much lower cost. A resale shop is an offshoot of the retail industry. In a nutshell, resale shops are retail stores that sell slightly used or secondhand goods. This business is a good start up opportunity especially for those with limited funds because it requires very little in terms of capital.

There are several things you need to consider before venturing into this business.

• First, assess yourself to see if you have what it takes to run a retail business. This business requires determination, desire, enthusiasm, hard-work and perseverance. Do you have these qualities? Can you mutli-task? Do you have a knack for spotting good deals? Are you energetic? Are you familiar with the basic business management concepts? 

• Second, decide on the manner by which to sell your products. The most capital intensive avenue is a storefront or a fixed retail location. Of course, this is not your only option. You can sell your merchandise via fairs and flea markets. And then there’s the internet. There are a number of auction sites at your disposal. You can post your goods there and do your bartering there. If you prefer, you can have a website with e-commerce capability built for your business. The cost for development and upkeep of such site is relatively minimal. If you think you can manage it, you may want to combine all these options. Also, explore alternative marketing channels, some resale retailers conduct home parties, some use independent sales consultants, and so on.

• Third, your product inventory can be acquired in a number of ways. You can stock up on items from garage sales. You can buy items in bulk from auctions sites. You can ask your friends and family if they have items they wish to donate or if they know of people who wish to sell their items on consignment basis. 

• Fourth, the prices you assign to merchandise shall depend on its quality and demand. You must strike the perfect balance between your customers wanting the best deal and your need to earn extra profit. If you set too high a mark-up price, then expect your customers to walk away without a purchase. Of course, don’t count on them to refer your store to their friends because they won’t. 

• Fifth, you should give a lot of thought to location. The best place to set up your shop is in a highly visible area with a lot of pedestrian and vehicle traffic. The parking shouldn't give your customers any hassle and it should be easily accessible. As a general rule, choose a place that is near or where your target market is.

In setting up your store space, you will need shelving units, racks, counters, display cases, cash register and credit card machine. You don’t have to purchase these items brand new. Given the nature of your business, slightly used equipment's will do just fine. Usually, you can find items such as these in liquidation sales.

Related Articale:

• How to Make Money Buying and Selling Used Items

Reference:

• Second Hand Items Buying and Selling Business