1.
Stuffed Animals
Over the last few years, stuffed
animals have become very popular on EBay.
Once you look into this niche a
little bit, you will be very surprised at the demand. Stuffed animals, like
other items, can be sold used, new and the coveted ‘new with tags’.
As with other categories, stuffed
animals become sought after items because many children’s items are
manufactured in limited runs, and when they’re gone off store shelves, they’re
gone.
There are collectors out there as
well as individuals looking for a particular toy so you have a nice customer
base that will be interested in your auctions.
Watch for popular movies for
children that get released and begin making stuffed animals as part of their
marketing. Stock up on stuffed animals that you find, keep the tags attached
and pack the products away for safe keeping until you are ready to sell.
Stay away from selling stuffed
animals that are not clean. If the stuffed animal is a retro piece and has
signs of wear, make sure to describe clearly any defects that stuffed animal
has. If you are clear to your buyers in your descriptions, they will be more
apt to trust you for subsequent purchases.
2.
Seasonal items
A bathing suit you never took the
tags off of is not going to sell easily in January. However, your second pair
of ski boots will fill someone’s winter sport need quite nicely.
When you’re buying items to resell
on EBay, think about what time of year it is and what people will be looking
for during the upcoming season.
You can start listing items just
before or right at the beginning of a season.
This way as people look to get
geared up for the upcoming season, your items will look much more attractive
than if you’re trying to sell beach volleyballs in February.
When you clean out your closets each
season, look for items that are still in great shape and put them in a
box. Label the box with Ebay, and the month you think is the best month to
list the items.
Store the box in a clean, dry place
until the month you have indicated on the box. As you clean out items
throughout the year, eventually you will have boxes labeled for every month.
This will give you a great base of items to sell each month on Ebay without
having to search around your house for items.
3.
Made in Occupied Japan
Items that were made in occupied
Japan after WWII (between 1945 and 1952) are identified in two different ways,
either being stamped “Occupied Japan” or “Made in Occupied Japan.”
Over the years there has been some
confusion as to what types of items fall into this category, which was thought
by many to only include ceramic items like cups and saucers.
However, the items that were
produced in Japan during this time period and exported to other countries
actually fall into a wide variety of manufactured goods including cameras, toys
and Zippo-inspired lighters. These finds will most likely attract bids on
the higher end of the scale.
Japan was occupied for a period of 7
years and items made during this time are more valuable to collectors. The
rarity of the pieces and the historical significance of being made in occupied
Japan, are two reasons collectors place more value on items with this coveted
stamp.
At the time, items made that were
stamped “made in occupied Japan” were cheap novelties meant for export
throughout the world. They also made copies of European ceramics that were
popular. Because these items were made cheaply, many have not lasted throughout
the years and are difficult to find.
4.
Clearance Items
Stores like T.J. Maxx, Marshall’s,
Home Goods and even Kohls are already discount department stores where you can
get great prices on everything from clothes to toys to small kitchen
appliances.
When retailers in the discount
segment then put items on clearance, it can be a great opportunity to snap up
items for pennies on the dollar that can be sold at a nice profit.
The clearance section of the toy
department at T.J. Maxx is a great place to look for limited run variations of
popular toys that have been discontinued.
People will be looking on EBay as
traditional outlets deplete their stock. If you combine coupons with
clearance items, your earnings can go even higher.
If you are a savvy shopper and you
have the time to go through clearance racks, you can make good money reselling
the items when the right season comes along.
Selling clearance items takes
patience and planning. To get the most money back on your investment, wait
until each clearance item you have purchased is back in season.
Clearance items are on the rack
because they are currently not selling and the store is making room for new
merchandise to arrive.
5.
Zippo Lighters
Zippo lighters are a great way to
turn a couple of Washingtons into a couple of Jacksons and possibly a lot more.
As with most collectible items, with
Zippos, the rule of thumb is the older the better. Many companies have
contracted with Zippo to produce limited runs of promotional lighters.
These were then given away to
customers or employees so it’s not impossible to find a never used model still
in its original packaging.
There are also sets that collectors
are looking to complete so once you have some on hand do a little research so
that you set your pricing accordingly.
Zippos can be found at flea markets,
estate auctions and even tag sales. Some people have no idea what they have
when they are selling a bunch of old things at a tag sale, so look through the
junk piles and see if you can come up with a Zippo winner.
Zippo began producing lighters back
in 1932 and these models are easy to identify because by 1933 the length of the
Zippo lighter was reduced by ¼ of an inch.
Check the Zippo to see if
replacement hinges have been used, because this will reduce the value a bit.
6.
Everybody Loves Disney
Disney items large and small are
very popular on EBay. If you have any type of Disney item sitting around
gathering dust then you should certainly consider selling it on EBay as the
audience is definitely there.
Disney items can include stuffed
animals, pins, collector packs, statues, animation cells and all types of
trademarked items.
Disney items can range in price on
EBay anywhere from $5 to $1000 depending on the rarity of the item. Just
remember everyone loves Disney, so it will be easier to sell items that have such
a large following.
Disney is always coming out with new
collections and their marketing should be studied by any business that wants to
be successful.
Pin trading has been a big deal at
all of the Disney Parks and early pins can bring in some extra cash. Pin
trading started officially in October 1999 in all Disney Parks. Guests can walk
up to any staff member and trade a pin from their own lanyard collection with
one from the staff member.
Pins include Disney Characters,
Attractions and Theme Parks. The earlier pins are more valuable as are pins
that have been retired.
7.
Character Jugs
A Character Jug, or what is often
referred to as a Toby or Royal Doulton by collectors, is a mug in the shape of
a person or person’s head and shoulders.
Some collectors might get technical
and say that the Toby jugs are the ones from the 1800′s and the Royal Doulton
are the ones from the 1900′s.
Either category is highly desirable
on EBay. If you’re cruising weekend yard sales and see one for under $25, you
should buy it, since Royal Doultons can go for two, three or four times that
amount.
You can find Royal Doulton Character
Jugs on just about any historical figure you can think of. The jugs can be
easily overlooked, mistaken for a cheap collectible from a discount store.
If you find an authentic character
jug, look for cracks in the porcelain and for repairs that have been made to
the paint. Clearly, the fewer cracks, the more valuable the piece is.
Keep in mind that character jugs are
fragile and if you are selling one through Ebay, make sure that you package the
item well to avoid breakage. The last thing you need to happen is to sell a
valuable character jug and have it break on delivery.
Do your research, don’t get too
emotional, and get out there and make some money!
Step
#1: Sign up as a seller
The first step to becoming a
successful Ebay seller is to sign up for an account. According to Ebay, you can
list your first 50 items for sale for free.
Once you’ve sold your fifty-first
item, you pay Ebay a fee that’s known as the final value fee.
This fee is calculated based on several factors including shipping costs.
If you and the buyer agree to cancel
the transaction, you can apply to have the fee credited back to your account.
You can also ask for the fee to be
credited if your buyer refuses to pay you. This way you don’t get charged for
an item that you haven’t been paid for.
When it comes to signing up for
Ebay, you have two options. You can sign up with a personal account or a
business account. The personal account is usually good enough for most
beginners.
You can list up to fifty items per
month and you only pay the final value fee after an item has been purchased. If
you own a brick and mortar store and would like to have that name on your
account, then you’ll want to sign up for a business account instead. Don’t
stress yourself out over deciding which account is right for you.
Ebay will let you upgrade
your personal account to a business one later on.
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