Buying and Selling on eBay for profit?

johnnyleeds · #1 08-16-2013

Hi everyone!

I've been toying with an idea for a while that I'd like to find out if anyone else has any experience of. I've bought and sold things on eBay for years and I'm thinking about getting into buying things on eBay cheap that I can get for a good price and then immediately selling that item for a decent profit, but instead of having the person I bought the item from sending me the item, have them send it to the person who bought the same item from me.

I dunno, some folk are a bit funny about shipping to a non-Paypal registered address which could cause a problem. Does anyone understand what I'm suggesting? I was thinking the beauty of this strategy would be I wouldnt have to pay postage costs or handle / pack items / take them to post office etc because the person I purchased the item from would be shipping directly to the person who bought the item from me, albeit they wouldnt be aware of this.

For example if I bought an Iphone 4 for £100 then sold it for £150, I'd get the person I'd bought the Iphone from for £100 to post it to the person who bought it from me for £150, then I've made £50. I realise it might not always be as simple as this, but could it be done? Has anyone ever done this? Where could I find out about it?

many thanks!

Johnny

AuctionsDenied · #2 08-16-2013

I for one would prefer to have the product on hand.
Never know the quality of product until you can have it in front of you

What happens if the seller you buy from flakes out on you.

Then you are out both ways, you as the seller will have to deal with the buyer and either get them the product or deal with the drama.

You as the buyer will have to go through the hassle of getting your money back.

johnnyleeds · #3 08-16-2013

Thanks for that AuctionsDenied, yes I appreciate there is an element of risk involved, although I'd like to think if I were to be buying from sellers with a good reputation there shouldnt be any deception.

I just wondered if this was a strategy that anyone had tried or had any success with? It could be very lucrative if it were possible.

GreenBean · #4 08-16-2013

Current thread below on the topic.

Flawed plan to be blunt.

Issue of control of delivery is out of your hands.

http://www.aspkin.com/forums/ebay-di...1-account.html

Gman91189 · #5 08-16-2013

Wouldn't work, one it has to be shipped to the shipping address on ur eBay file or Paypal account. Specially on high items like iPhones etc always needs sig conf and track #. Seems me a big headache and mess unless u get it in hand then resell it

Sandy D · #6 08-16-2013

I would not risk one of my accounts because I simply do not trust sellers to do things the way I want them done.

From packing to quick shipping etc I see it as extremely risky myself.

GreenBean · #7 08-16-2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnnyleeds

Thanks for that AuctionsDenied, yes I appreciate there is an element of risk involved, although I'd like to think if I were to be buying from sellers with a good reputation there shouldnt be any deception.

I just wondered if this was a strategy that anyone had tried or had any success with? It could be very lucrative if it were possible.

A really really really naive point of view.

Only person to rely on for goods delivery is yourself.

JamesNorth101 · #8 08-17-2013

As a long term business plan this just would not work.

What if for example you bought something off a selller, sold it to a buyer and then the seller sent the item but the buyer claimed it was not received. You would have to issue a refund, and then try to get a refund from the original seller who may well have sent out the item in the first place and is in effect getting scammed though no fault of their own.

Just does not work

Another issue is for expensive items very few sellers will send to an unconfirmed address. I know I woudlnt.

joesshooze · #9 08-18-2013

Just don't think it isn't presently being done or been tried in the past. Not trying to insult but not unique. The world would love to do business like this and some do. Eb not a good idea.

tinyurl · #10 08-21-2013

No, I'd never do it.

I have ordered one of the same item I sell from another seller, I did this to see the packaging, no way, and their shipping rate was higher than mine.

The item was somewhat fragile, it was wrapped in a folded priority mail envelope with the beige shipping tape around it and sent in a mailer.

I have no problems with mailers, I use mailers.

Upon opening it this type of padding looked tacky and cheap, a roll of bubble wrap doesn't cost that much, a baggie with cotton around it would have looked better than how this was padded.

This seller is asking for a negative, neutral or a case being opened. Naturally the seller had negatives but sells a lot of items so it doesn't affect their feedback too much. Small sellers not so. I left a positive, I rec'd the item on time, undamaged and less than my sell price, as mentioned I only did the purchase to see how it was shipped.

I like my items to look as I would like to receive them.

Depending on how much you sell, supplies pay for themselves, buy them keep what you need and resell them.

Sandy D · #11 08-21-2013

I buy items to re sell almost every single day but I buy it, have it delivered and re sell it.
I want the item in my hands and do not want someone elses poor ways of handling things, slow shipping, poor packing messing with my accounts.

davsar · #12 09-13-2013

It is a great idea, an idea that I myself and I bet lots of people have thought of. There is way too much stuff involved to make it work though. All of the other posts are right. This won't work, you will be spending way too much time and effort trying to get sellers to ship to another address. I for one almost never ship to another address. That will leave me unprotected on the item. All of the other risks: packaging being poor, item not as described, etc. will set your eBay account up for suspension for low DSR's. Spend your time finding products that you can sell yourself. If money to buy the items is an issue, buy used items locally on craigslist or thrift stores. I can find $500 to $1000 of items every single day to sell on eBay just looking in my local area.

best of luck
Dave

arpichelago · #13 09-13-2013

Isn't this basically what drop shipping is? I think you should get the pros to do this.

Otherwise, resell the stuff after it's mailed to you. If you need to save on shipping to profit... then you need to rethink things.

jeffweico · #14 09-13-2013

You lose too much control. Aside from what others have already brought up, what happens when a buyer finds out, feels cheated and leaves you negative feedback?

zoneout · #15 09-14-2013

I agree with everything that's been said. The advice is spot on. What happens when the other seller puts a statement/invoice in the box that shows the item cost less than the buyer paid? What about confusing notes about return policies that you didn't propose. Basically, it's a disaster waiting to happen.

vogeltron · #16 09-14-2013

Bad idea, I agree. Personally I have bought from other sellers in out of season stuff etc. Then resold later in the year. But relying on other people to send items for you to someone you sold to. Quality control etc. Sounds like a nightmare. Especially when dealing with different people supplying the product each time.

jeffweico · #17 09-14-2013

There is a PART of this idea that will work. I often find something listed on eBay (and to a lesser extent, Amazon) that is listed at a below-market price. If the margin is high enough, I will buy the item, have it shipped to me and re-list it. That way, I have no shipping issues and I can verify the condition before listing it for sale.