good things to buy in bulk to sell?

Trollydolly_2

My friend has started doing lots of longhaul flights to America, Malaysia, Japan, Hong Kong etc and we have been trying to think of things she could buy in bulk from those places and then sell on ebay. Anyone got any ideas?

We were thinking Memory cards because they are cheap to buy and easy to package. But what type sells well? Ive no idea about gadgety stuff.

reehsetin

problem is she'd need to have some idea about memory cards and a way to check them. we just got some memory cards from dubai and they didnt work properly. you dont want to be in a situation where youve paid a few hundred pounds and they dont work if you dont have anyone reliable to take them back to
also customs may take an interest something to be warey of

frivolous_fay

There are a lot of fake memory cards around. (Probably why they're so cheap!) I wouldn't risk buying any to sell on as they're becoming a real problem on ebay.

Marvo434

also be careful, I am only guessing but with your user name and avatar ... I have a friend who USED to make a few quid bringing in a suitcase of "Tiffany" and handbags etc when doing long haul flights as aircrew, until the airline starting sacking people! If customs don't get you, your airline might.

Hintza

Trollydolly wrote:

Ive no idea about gadgety stuff.

I think this quote covers it. If you have no idea then don't touch or alternatively you need to learn enough to have an idea.

For people to move successfully from selling odds and ends to doing it to make some serious money does not come cheap in terms of time and effort. Yoiu must know and understand your market inside out.

For example with memory cards what was the price 2 years ago what was the price 1 year ago etc? What factors drive the price? Who are the manufacturers? How many more plants are coming online in the next year? What scenarios could see the price of memory rise again?

I bought a 1Gb SD card 2-3 months ago for £30 I can now buy it for under £20 can you build in enough margin to cover that?

Best thing to buy and sell is something you are interested in and have some knowledge of. Be prepared to work hard if you are serious. I sell on average just under 10 items a day (high value) and it is a full time job; listing, answering questions, P+P, dealing with returns finding new products, finding new suppliers and constantly checking prices. I work at it every day it is never ending. Customer service is king...two negs on your front page can kill your sales, most folk just glance at your most recent feedback.

One tip for a potential fast buck is try and decide what the next kids craze will be if you can nail that and hit the Chriostmas market you could get lucky thats how I started but it only lasted two-three months but enabled me to accumulate enough capital to get started.

If an item is not selling remember the first cut is the cheapest. Be prepared to slash prices to get rid of slow moving stock, this will free up capital for more lucrative products.

The moral is research, research and more research.

Good luck

bleugh

one of the first rules of making money

know the product!


follow Hintza's advice :-)

rdwarr

Bear in mind that you'll need to pay VAT and Import Duty on whatever you bring in as well. There is no exemption for commercial goods. Don't be tempted to try smuggling stuff - the penalties far outweigh the few quid you could make on a bunch of memory cards.
If you're doing this properly it's a good idea to be VAT-registered. Then you can claim it back.

natjay_2

As said before on here memory cards and E Bay are a minefield at the moment

There are that many fakes and Far East garbage that are being sold as genuine and original memory cards you can’t sort out the wheat from the chaff
I for one wouldn’t touch a memory card from e bay because of this fact, we use compact flash for our camera and only buy one make because write speed is very important with a digital SLR, So even if you get the best memory cards in the world you will not get a top price for them on E Bay

Trollydolly_2

Thank you guys and gals for your help.
Its not me looking for stuff im afraid im stuck on short haul flights so the best i could get is some belgian chocolate lol
Ill tell her what you have all said and advise her to sell her stash of shoes and clothes that she will never wear again first. So she can get used to ebay and how it all works.
Thanks again! and happy ebaying!!!

rushnowt

Hiya Trollydolly,

you've kinda asked the same question i've been wondering.

Does anyone know what products seem to sell the best and for the best profit ? i've been mooching round ebay for a few weeks now and find the array of stuff on there overwhelming.

Tbh, i don't really know where to start looking, i've noticed some things go for silly money and wonder if the bidder was actually bladdered when they placed their bid other stuff seems to go for next to nowt and i feel for the seller thinking they must have made a real loss

How do you know what to price things at to get the most interest ? i've started mine at 99p cos i just want rid and i'm happy for someone to get a bargain and make good use of summat i dont need anymore. but if i was buying to sell on i'd be in tears if it actually cost me to sell it :eek:

Oh while i remember too, how do some people manage to sell more than one item at less than 99p, i tried it and it wouldn't let me

i've just realised that no one's actually gonna say what sells best or we'd all be selling it :rotfl:

soolin

rushnowt, quite often it is quirky niche type products that do well, it is just the problem of knowing what they are and getting in before the big sellers hit.

I'm terrible at knowing what really sells, if I am offered two products to sell and plump for one, I can guarantee it will be the one I turn down that turns out to be the money spinner for other sellers!

It is also worth being in a position to get in and out of a market quickly as trends move on, last year buyers went crazy for the charity wristbands, now you can't even give them away.

Good luck in your hunt.

SOo