Can you flip items from retailers?

I am starting off on ebay with limited funds. I am thinking of buying from retail stores with a receipt and returning if it doesn't sell. Obviously this is not optimal like buying in bulk lots but I hear it can be done and I'm just trying to get started.

Just curious if anyone does this or has.

Right now it seems like alot of spinning my tires, just looking at clothing there is so many different items that I don't know the value of....so I'm finding what is popular and the value first but now I have to source it to a store that has a discount going on....I'd prefer just a direct source so I can get inventory instead of alot of driving and shopping around to see if places have it.

so any ideas, do name brand clothing have allow wholesalers to sell their items? in pieces or very small bundles.?

..........Is this even worth it,, I think it's possible just so inefficient trying to get stuff that works,


Also theoretically, shouldn't the prices of items in stores also go down on ebay because now customers don't have to use ebay? Like now after xmas really people could just get deals at retailers marking down inventory right?

Ebay has high fees and there's always a chance of fraud with paypal.

If you're really dead set on making some bank by reselling products, buy them in bulk from something like DealExtreme and then resell it on Craigslist instead.

For example, buying silicone iphone4s covers and selling them for $5 bucks each.

If you want to make money, do something else that won't cost you any money and hustling to random people. Follow marusia's tumblr steps to make some cash. That should get you started

most likely what ever item you buy at walmart or newegg will be cheaper there than it will be on ebay or another online auction site

one of the best items to breakup is video games

many retailers sell the hardware with 3 or 5 games, sell the hardware as new with reciept, then sell all the software individually and you should make an easy $50-100 per bundle bought , just shop around toys r us are normally generous in their offers

The prices on dealextream are crazy high no profit. It best to order from china

bucknut said:

Just curious if anyone does this or has.

Click to expand...

This is how I make the majority of my money from eBay. This works extremely well for many reasons. One, not all big box retailer carry the same merchandise. Second, people are really pretty lazy. Third, as hard as it is to believe, not everyone lives near a big box retailer. Therefore buying from you at inflated prices will be cheaper than buying from their local markets.
When considering arbitrage (buying and reselling i.e. flipping) dont limit yourself to hard goods such as electronics and clothing. But, think of things that are used up and are needed again and again. Toilet paper and toiletries sell very well and will generate repeat business.
My favorite place to get merchandise is COSTCO Wholesale. Here you can buy items in bulk and break them down into smaller lots. My second favorite place is (promise not to laugh) Dollar Tree. I can purchase items all day at only a buck each and resell them for 8-10 bucks each.
I hope this has helped you. Please feel free to PM if you have any questions.

I think this is a tricky subject.

In Economics we learn that competition brings down the prices b/c consumers will purchase the same product at the lowest price. This prevents companies from over charging. This means no one will buy the item you sell if they find it cheaper on ebay. And ebay is inflated with the same shit. People will buy from "highest rated" sellers.

On the other hand, some people say that today's consumers will buy from a brand they trust. A lot think AMAZON is one big store and dont realize it has sellers like ebay. So any item, even if over priced, they may just purchase it thinking its from amazon and a good deal. And like a user said above, some are lazy and just buy it. However, if your goal is to aim for the lazy crowd, then im sure you may make a sale or 2, but it will be very limited in volume and not worth while.

What you can do is buy on Craigslist and bargain with the seller. Then turn around and sell it on eBay.
Same thing applies to yard sales ect.

I don't know that the consumers are lazy but more likely working long hours and then going home to more work. It's convenient and quick to shop on-line. And as stated above, not everyone has the same products and merchandise a few miles a way that you may have access to. You offer a service. I am a top-rated power seller and hit up plenty of stores in my area for resale. I have a great formula that works for me.

I live in the South, and had a friend who would hit Good Will a couple times a month, coats don't sell well here, and he would actually make a few bucks on E$ay with those, or even find nice handbags or games he could turn a few dollars on. Was enough to get his bankroll up, and on to better things.

Thrift store clothing works very well on ebay. A friend of mine would go to thrift shops, salvation army, etc....and buy brand name clothes. She would focus on Nike, Abercrombie, hollister, etc....whatever is in style. She would then bundle the items into lots.....For example, she would sell a lot of kids clothes size 6.....and do very well with it.

It is a lot of work, but you can get ahead with short money and not a lot of risk. Worst case scenario is you can dump it on craigslist and get a small profit most likely.

Even though I'd hate to bump an old thread, i'll give some advice of mine that wasn't really mentioned on here. This advice works a lot better with electronics, but i've never tried it with anything else yet.

A good thing to do is to go to the clearance sections of stores, look for any unwanted stuff that no one wants in clearance, then look how much the stores selling it for and on your phone look up the item on Ebay. I'll give you a good example of when I did this. In the clearance section of MYER, I found an Internet Router that was going for $20. I sold that router on Ebay with an Auction starting at $50, I managed to get up to $110 at the end of the auction.

Still, after ebay and paypal fees, its hard to make margins

Yea, but it depends on the item at the end of the day, I made a good healthy profit off of the router.