Make Money Selling Pound Shop/Dollar Store Items on eBay

Many people would like to make extra money selling items on eBay but often sourcing stock is a problem for hobby sellers. It can be hard to obtain stock from wholesale suppliers without proof that you are a legitimate business but there is another alternative.  One thing you may not have considered trying is buying your stock from a Pound shop or Dollar store to sell on for a profit on eBay.  Using this method of stock-sourcing can see you making 100%-400% profit per item if you choose the right products! 

Here are some tips on how to get started:

Step 1

Visit your local pound shop or dollar store to scout for re-saleable items. The trick is to find the real bargains;  The way these shops make money is to sell a good proportion of  their more cheaply sourced stock for more than it’s worth, whilst enticing you in with the higher value propositions on better quality items.  Try to find the real quality bargain items that you think people would be willing to pay a higher price for.  Items such as tools, picture frames and low energy lamps are often very keenly priced and ripe for a mark-up when you resell in an eBay auction.

Step 2

Selling on eBay is all about reputation.  If you are going to do well then establishing and maintaining a good feedback score and detailed seller rating is essential. It’s a good idea to buy a few items to build up your feedback if you are just starting out on eBay.  When you have a few positive feedbacks under your belt try running a few test auctions to see what the maximum you can get for each item is.  It doesn’t matter if they don’t sell first time- the important thing is to get a feel for how much profit you can add onto each item.  Once you are able to, consider opening an eBay store so you can list all your items together and enable potential customers to browse your listings.  More people looking= more sales.

Step 3

Keep track of your sales to identify your better performing or more profitable items;  Then it’s simply a case of concentrating on these items to maximise your profits.  Once you know how it’s done you’ll be able to repeat your results.

Warnings & Tips

• Start small and build up- Don’t blow a fortune on items to sell before testing the market.
• If you have not sold on eBay before, consult the eBay University  for guidance in best practice.
• Always include good quality pictures of the items you sell. This will help to increase the price achieved for each item.
• Don’t forget to factor in the cost of postage and packaging into your profitability calculations!
• Read this guide to writing a good ebay auction description.