Building My Collectibles Business from Marketplaces to My Own Online Store - Looking for Advice

Hey everyone,

I’m from Portugal and I currently run a small reselling business focused on collectibles, action figures, toys, and video games. Most of my inventory consists of second-hand items, which I source at low prices and resell for a profit.

I mainly sell through Vinted, but I also use Facebook groups and other marketplaces. My inventory includes:

• Action figures and vintage toys
• Japanese figures/sofubi and other collectibles that i import
• Hot Wheels and other cars
• Video games and gaming-related collectibles
• Other random niche collectibles

At the moment, my business is relatively small, and most of my sales depend on marketplace traffic. I want to move beyond that and start building something more sustainable.

My current situation​

I already have inventory and experience buying and reselling products. My business model relies on finding underpriced items, purchasing them cheaply, and reselling them individually or in bundles.

However, I face a few challenges:

• Sales can be inconsistent, and I rely heavily on existing marketplaces.
• I want to build a recognizable brand instead of simply selling through marketplace profiles.
• I need to find ways to attract customers without spending a lot on advertising.
• I have limited capital, so I need to reinvest profits carefully rather than spend heavily upfront.

What I want to achieve​

My main goal is to launch my own online store for collectibles, toys, figures, and video games. And in the future a brick and mortar store

My priorities are:

1. Launch a low-cost online store - I'm considering Shopify and other alternatives, but I'm unsure which platform makes the most sense for my situation.
2. Increase sales in the short term - I don't want to spend months building a website that gets no traffic.
3. Build a brand - I want customers to recognize the business and eventually buy directly from my store rather than relying exclusively on marketplaces.
4. Develop organic traffic - I'm interested in SEO, Instagram, TikTok, short-form videos, and other low-cost marketing strategies.
5. Scale gradually - reinvest profits into better inventory, sourcing opportunities, marketing, and eventually a larger operation.

I'm particularly interested in strategies that work for niche e-commerce businesses selling collectibles and mostly second-hand products.

What I'm looking for advice on​

I'd appreciate input from people who have experience growing small e-commerce businesses:

• Would you start with Shopify with a low budget?
• How would you generate the first 100 customers without a significant advertising budget?
• Would you prioritize growing marketplace sales first or focus on building an independent store immediately?
• What marketing channels would you test first for collectibles and vintage toys?
• How would you approach SEO and content marketing for a store with a relatively small inventory?
• Are there any effective ways to turn social media followers and marketplace buyers into repeat customers?
• What would your first 90 days look like if you were starting from my position?

I'm not looking for overnight success or a get-rich-quick scheme. I want to build a real business, keep costs low, learn what works, and reinvest the profits to grow.

If you've built a similar business, especially in Europe, I'd love to hear what worked for you, what didn't, and what you would do differently starting today.

(This text was made with the help of chatgpt so i could organize my thoughts better)

Thanks!

Marketplace buyers won't follow you to a new store on their own, so I'd start with a small insert in every Vinted parcel pointing to an email signup, and list only your rarest pieces on the store at first

I’d keep pushing Vinted and other marketplaces while building the store on the side. You already have inventory and sales experience so use that to generate cash flow instead of putting too much money into a website upfront.