The OFFICIAL eBay Buy & Flip thread - Part II - No Hustle Without Rustle - Make $$$

[Vyber]

INNNNN.

Starting my eBay business as soon as my product arrives. I'm going a different route than flipping but still think I can be profitable. Ultimate goal is to get the idea to retail.

Placed 2 orders from China. One today and one about two weeks ago. The first one was a large $1300 order for equipment and supplies/inventory. Placed another $400 order last night for the rest of my needed supplies.

Any experiences on how long it takes to get chit from China? I'm expecting a wait lol.

depends what shipping company they're using and what mode of transport (air/sea)
My current supplier uses DHL Express which is 48 hours fingers crossed. however other airmail can be a vague timeframe like 15-40 days lol.
better of just asking them

[Beastman09]

probable outcome from this situation?

I ship an item, with sig confirmation and insurance.
at one point tracking says "undeliverable as addressed"
I notify buyer, ask him to check his paypal address, since that is where I got his address from (it was confirmed too).
He says it is a Paypal problem on my end...which is bull**** since its a tracking status from USPS.
I contact other sellers who he has bought from, they have same issue currently with their sent items showing as "undeliverable as addressed", so I know the label/package didn't get damaged so as to be unreadable.
I call his local post office a few days after the tracking shows "undeliverable as addressed". They say the item would have been returned to me if the tracking info read "undeliverable as addressed". I guess tracking info doesn't update if something is being returned, so they couldn't tell me where my package was at the time.
The next day tracking info says delivered, which is a week after the initial "undeliverable as addressed"
Buyer says he didn't get item.
I have copy of signature confirmation showing address it was sent to along with a signature, but it isn't his and the last name is different.
Pretty sure he is going to open up a case saying he never got the item.
Am I still going to be on the hook for this and have to issue a refund?
If that is the case can I file an insurance claim with USPS?

You shipped the item to the address. Not your problem. Tell the buyer to deal with USPS.

[user782328]

Does anybody use a Zebra printer with a Mac? I'm too dumb to figure this out. PM me, I will rape aggresively.

post your answer in here cause I was gonna buy one but everything I read online says that the drivers aren't supported by ebay so you can't print labels. I'm getting tired of buying ink every month.

[The_Albatross]

You shipped the item to the address. Not your problem. Tell the buyer to deal with USPS.

I'm talking about in terms of getting screwed over by ebay/paypal...

[MousePad]

You shipped the item to the address. Not your problem. Tell the buyer to deal with USPS.

I'm talking about in terms of getting screwed over by ebay/paypal...

In for info on this too.. happened to a friend of mine recently. package was delivered and a signature but buyer claims he didnt do it

[Broseph82]

Your numbers seem a bit inflated. There is no way you paid $6 in fees for ebay/paypal on a $10.50 item. Also I find it hard to believe you paid that much on shipping, especially if only 1 state over as you said.

Not inflated at all bro. I had another pair of Burberry boots end at 45. They got me for both items with the $5 charge. And if you look up USPS Priority Mail large boxes its 16.85 to ship (look it up!!). The shoes in box weighed 2lbs 14oz.

Trust me, I paid that much! Not bragging about it just not happy and won't continue the eBay route.

https://www.usps.com/shipping/pm-retail.csv

6th box from the top. Large flat rate box

[newb123]

For some of you guys that are actually ordering "large" quantities from China, any tips on how to get started with this? How did you guys decide to just make the jump and start importing stuff?

[wowz]

For some of you guys that are actually ordering "large" quantities from China, any tips on how to get started with this? How did you guys decide to just make the jump and start importing stuff?

You just have to go back and forth between the different items from the different suppliers and and check ebay to see what will give you worthwhile profits.

[skyebr]

For some of you guys that are actually ordering "large" quantities from China, any tips on how to get started with this? How did you guys decide to just make the jump and start importing stuff?

Also look at the sections on OP about importing.

[Gsxr25]

Not inflated at all bro. I had another pair of Burberry boots end at 45. They got me for both items with the $5 charge. And if you look up USPS Priority Mail large boxes its 16.85 to ship (look it up!!). The shoes in box weighed 2lbs 14oz.

Trust me, I paid that much! Not bragging about it just not happy and won't continue the eBay route.

https://www.usps.com/shipping/pm-retail.csv

6th box from the top. Large flat rate box

Ohh you're referring to the flat rate boxes, why the fuk would you use that? You went full retard.

[KawRider]

Phew read about import duty fees and this is something I haven't considered. Glad I'm not looking at much, like 4.2% if I'm correct about my product category.

[Broseph82]

Ohh you're referring to the flat rate boxes, why the fuk would you use that? You went full retard.

Lol I was unaware. Haven't sold in years. Used to have tons of boxes around me, now I don't. Not again Sam

[The_Albatross]

Not inflated at all bro. I had another pair of Burberry boots end at 45. They got me for both items with the $5 charge. And if you look up USPS Priority Mail large boxes its 16.85 to ship (look it up!!). The shoes in box weighed 2lbs 14oz.

Trust me, I paid that much! Not bragging about it just not happy and won't continue the eBay route.

https://www.usps.com/shipping/pm-retail.csv

6th box from the top. Large flat rate box

Why are you paying anything for shipping? The buyer covers the cost of shipping. If you chose to eat the costs of shipping you fukked up.

I only use flat rate through USPS for shipping because its by far the most convenient way of doing things. If people don't want to pay the flat rate cost, I don't sell to them.

[Yobie]

Phew read about import duty fees and this is something I haven't considered. Glad I'm not looking at much, like 4.2% if I'm correct about my product category.

There are a few taxes you have to check on through customs. You can ad a freight forwarder to give you an estimate. Luckily my items have no import tax.

[Yobie]

Why are you paying anything for shipping? The buyer covers the cost of shipping. If you chose to eat the costs of shipping you fukked up.

I only use flat rate through USPS for shipping because its by far the most convenient way of doing things. If people don't want to pay the flat rate cost, I don't sell to them.

Convenient maybe but not the cheapest as said in my other post to those wanting cheaper options look at regional A & B boxes as well as other options only offered online.

But hey if their paying for shipping I guess it doesn't matter. But to me offering cheaper shipping brings in more customers.

[xes17]

Lol, wtf just got a neg (first ever) from an iPhone I sold 2 months ago to some idiot in Russia who didn't read the description and without contacting me first, strong wtf

[newb123]

You just have to go back and forth between the different items from the different suppliers and and check ebay to see what will give you worthwhile profits.

So do you just basically order from a site like alibaba and ship your items to your home? I'm tempted to try this just to see how it would go.

[rocknnrolla]

i cant get my limits increased from 200 due to detailed seller ratings being 4.6-4.7 instead of 4.8. Is it possible to make a second account with one of my parents name so i can list more items? would that work or no?

[wowz]

So do you just basically order from a site like alibaba and ship your items to your home? I'm tempted to try this just to see how it would go.

Yep. In my experience it takes trial and error. Dont initially order bulk quantities. It may cost more per unit but order fewer amount (less than 10) of items first to see the quality. I have ordered probably 20 different items and decided to bulk buy 3 or 4 of those to sell.

Edit: oh and wait for the feedback. You may thing you have a winner but get some bad feedback from the buyers.

[briiii]

Lol, wtf just got a neg (first ever) from an iPhone I sold 2 months ago to some idiot in Russia who didn't read the description and without contacting me first, strong wtf

Russia...not even once, srs

[notsostrong]

are you Canadian?

Fedex and UPS is guaranteed rapage (additional ~20-30% of total for duty fees)

yea, i'm in canada. i never use UPS because of the duty fees. i bought a $60 video card once that was shipped UPS. they wanted $62 in "duty" for the delivery on top of the $20 in shipping that I had already paid (took 5 weeks to arrive).

i usually have my items shipped to an american address just over the border but i couldn't do it this time because my passport had expired. This was the first time that i used fedex to ship in to canada. never again.

[BradInPhx]

Lol, wtf just got a neg (first ever) from an iPhone I sold 2 months ago to some idiot in Russia who didn't read the description and without contacting me first, strong wtf

I like the way you make your ads, just like mine. Translate that russian ****

[Glutamine1]

you guys that have extra cash and work from home...call your local scrap yards and see whats the price their offering on cars...i know my local yard is offering .13/lb for a car...

1. craigslist
2. find cheap car
3. have AAA tow it back to your house
4. remove catalytic converter and anything else you can (ie converter because it has copper). if the cat is good, should get an extra $75 on it. copper pricing is usually $2-$3/lb
5. call 2nd towing agency
6. take car to yard
7. collect cash
8. repeat 1-7

[skyebr]

you guys that have extra cash and work from home...call your local scrap yards and see whats the price their offering on cars...i know my local yard is offering .13/lb for a car...

1. craigslist
2. find cheap car
3. have AAA tow it back to your house
4. remove catalytic converter and anything else you can (ie converter because it has copper). if the cat is good, should get an extra $75 on it. copper pricing is usually $2-$3/lb
5. call 2nd towing agency
6. take car to yard
7. collect cash
8. repeat 1-7

Towing prices... margins?

[MilkIt]

In on this. I made a personal eBay account in '06, but it seems like most of you have eBay stores? What are the benefits of setting these up? I am weary because this will not be a full time thing (college student) but I could use some extra income. I already have 100% positive with 40 feedback so...

[myleftbicep]

Anyone a silver level or higher powerseller? I'm curious if there are extra benefits.

[Glutamine1]

Towing prices... margins?

Most of the tows were costing around $30, fortunately because the yard was only 3.4 miles away from my house. I was profiting roughly $180 - $210 for 2 hours worth of work. However, I didn't realize about the catalytic converter till the end of summer, and at that point - the price of steel dropped to the point where it wasn't worth scrapping the cars.

If you decide to go this route, look up minivans. They're heavy, and will yield a good amount, in addition, you can pick one up for $400. Best sale was I got a Toyota Previa for $300. Forgot how much the steel pricing was, but made $280 net profit. Lol, took the catalytic to them, and since it was an aftermarket I only got $5 for it, lulz.

[jujuB]

I decided to test the waters with a very niche product in the auto industry.. i ended up selling it 40 minutes after posting it on the forums. went out and bought half a stacks worth lol.

if you're shipping shoes-

[Glutamine1]

I decided to test the waters with a very niche product in the auto industry.. i ended up selling it 40 minutes after posting it on the forums. went out and bought half a stacks worth lol.

if you're shipping shoes-

where in GA? do you own one of the jujubee's in atlanta?

[Gsxr25]

Anyone a silver level or higher powerseller? I'm curious if there are extra benefits.

Gold son, nothing really changes.