June 21, 2025
Let’s take the plunge and open a reselling business! The first question is what to sell. Look around your house. Do you have items lying around that you wouldn’t mind parting with? I personally wanted to invest as little money as possible right off the bat, so this was a great and free way for me to start. You may be surprised at the great stuff you have gathering dust in your closet. I know cameras are really popular right now, and old video game consoles. Keep an open mind.
Talk to your family and friends. Chances are, they also have some stuff they’ve accumulated that they wouldn’t mind passing on to you. It’s amazing how generous people will be to help you out. My family was incredibly supportive and still bring me inventory and shipping boxes. Don’t be shy! Let people know you want to resell and chances are they will be thrilled to help you out while clearing up a little space in their house.
Another good place to start is by following your passion. What do you know about? Niche and unusual items can be very successful if you can tap into the right market. And it’s easier to sell something you love and believe in. I’m starting with women’s clothing because I know what I like and where to find it, so for me, that’s an easy place to start.
Do some research first. Before you invest a lot of time and money in your inventory, check eBay to see if your items are listed. How many are there? What price are they selling for? And the most important question: How many have sold? I sometimes pick up something I think is amazing, but don’t check the comparable listings, and it turns out the market is oversaturated and I’m probably not going to make my money back. Go onto your platform of choice and look up an item that you would like to sell. Search to see how many are listed, then filter it to see how many have sold. We’ll dive into the sell-through rate later, but for now, if the numbers are pretty even (50 items available, 45 sold), then you can be sure it’s a pretty popular item. On the other hand, if there are 50 available but only 4 have sold, it’s probably not the right time for that item. So follow your heart, but be smart about it. Do your homework and put in a little time and research so that you don’t end up with a basement full of stuff that you can’t sell. And don’t be too hard on yourself if you make a mistake. I am the queen of falling in love with an item and just knowing it’s going to make me rich. I go ahead and buy it, and don’t do any checking, and then when I get home I realize there are a hundred of them on eBay and none of them are selling. Live and learn. We’re in this together!