Expert: Marvinator - 1/9/2007

Question
I've found some sites where I can buy single items at what appear to be
wholesale prices.  Thousand dollar name brand handbags for half price, is what
they claim.  However, I have looked on eBay and these same items are not going
for enough to make a profit, sometimes lower than the price at which I can get
them.  Is there some way to sell things for the normal retail price?

Answer
You've at least got the right idea and that is to check the viability of an item BEFORE you list it.   But the problem is not HOW you sell those items, it is the venue itself.

Ebay, the venue, is the problem.  Ebay is not made to make you rich.  Ebay is a BUYER's venue.  The BUYER sets the price, not the seller.  You can be selling $10,000 Rolex watches, but if the highest bid you get is $100, then that's the Ebay Price!  Sure, as a seller you can set a reserve, but that only guarantees you won't sell if you can't set the price - and as we've already seen - the Buyer sets the SELLING PRICE.

The reasons for this are obvious, not the least of which is that everyone wants to get the 'best deal.'  That's the whole idea behind Ebay.  Add to this the fact that many of the so called "seller's" are actually individual owners attempting to sell a few personal items.  Because they have no vested interest or 'wholesale price' to fuel their pricing, they start items very very VERY low.  Impossibly low.  Then, you add to THAT mix a large number of buyers who can get the item YOU want to sell at cheaper than YOU can buy it.  (In fact, many times, the people you are wanting to buy from are ALREADY SELLING the SAME ITEM ON EBAY!)

As I say, you're ahead of the game by far in that you're doing your research before you buy a handful of bags and find out you've no where to sell them.  Don't set yourself into one area (such as handbags). Keep looking and you are bound to find the item you can buy and sell for a good profit.  

I hope this has helped.