Reselling & Flipping
Reselling, or flipping, means buying items for less than they're worth and selling them for more. I run a resale business out of Bolingbrook, Illinois, selling on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Poshmark, and I source a lot of my inventory from storage auctions. Here's how to get started the smart way.
Why reselling
- Bigger margins. One good find can earn more than a whole shift of deliveries.
- You're building something. Your skills, your inventory, and your seller reputation all grow over time.
- You set the pace. List at night, ship in the morning, and fit it around your life.
The tradeoff: it's slower to start, it takes money for inventory, and there's a real learning curve for pricing, photos, and shipping.
Where to sell
- eBay: the biggest audience, and it's good for almost anything that ships.
- Facebook Marketplace: great for local pickup items like furniture and bulky things you don't want to ship.
- Poshmark: built for clothing, shoes, and accessories.
Where to find inventory
- Storage auctions. This is my main source. You bid on a whole unit, so there's more risk, but also more potential.
- Thrift stores and garage and estate sales: low cost and good for learning.
- Your own home. Start by selling things you no longer use. It's the cheapest way to learn how listing and shipping work.
The one rule: research before you buy
Before you pay for anything, look up what it has actually sold for, not what people are asking. On eBay, search the item and filter by sold listings. Then subtract selling fees and shipping. If there isn't enough left over to make it worth your time, walk away.
Supplies to get started
- A shipping scale. Accurate weights keep you from overpaying or underpaying for postage.
- A thermal label printer. It's optional at first, but a huge time-saver once you're shipping regularly.
- Poly mailers and boxes in a few common sizes.
- Packing tape and a tape gun.
- A measuring tape. Buyers want dimensions.
- Good light for photos. Clear photos sell items.
Beginner mistakes to avoid
- Buying without checking sold prices
- Forgetting to count fees and shipping in your profit
- Letting unlisted inventory pile up. It only makes money once it's listed.
- Spending too much on your first buys before you've learned what sells
Is reselling right for you?
Good fit if: you like the hunt, you have some space to store items, and you can put a little money into inventory.
Need cash sooner? Start with food delivery or grocery delivery, then roll part of your earnings into inventory. That's the path I took.