I’m devoting full-time to my eBay Business
Mostly, I am buying Pallets of Merchandise
Over the past 6 plus months of my new life in the USA, I have been toying with different businesses or activites to earn a living. All of the things I have been doing have been making money, but each of them is making small amounts of money.
I feel that by focusing more on one business, I can get better and better at it, and grown mu success. Really, I have always believed in “small streams of income” – doing multiple things that each make smaller amounts of money. Now, I want to try doing one big thing!
Starting in March this year, I have been buying pallets of merchandise. I have decided to expand on that, and go all-in.
What are these pallets?
Well, a pallet is a wooden base that you stack boxes or other things on. They are commonly used in the logistics business. Of course, I am not just buying “pallets” but rather, I am buying a bunch of merchandise stacked on pallets!
I am buying goods from various classes:
- Customer Returns
- Shelf Pulls
- Out of Season Merchandise
- Warehouse Damaged Goods
- Whatever people are selling that I can make money on
Customer Returns
When customers return an item to the store for a refund, in most cases, those items can no longer be sold as new. Many retailers, instead of dealing with these customer returns, just sell them off at pennies on the dollar to liquidation companies.
These customer returns are combined onto pallets and shipped to the liquidation companies.
Shelf Pulls
As items go out of style or just need to be refreshed in the stores, the items are pulled off the shelf and liquidated by the retailer. These items are brand new, never used, and usually in excellent shape. From time to time, with shelf-pulls, you will get4 items that might be dusty or have minor damage from people handling them while on display in the store.
Many shelf-pull items are things that go out of style or are seasonal. It is just time to refresh what is being sold in the store. The store has made its money and is ready to liquidate the merchandise and get some fresh new styles on the shelves. One common shelf pull item is sunglasses.
Additionally, many shelf-pulls are things that have an expiration date and will soon be going out of date.
Out of season merchandise
These things are highly seasonal. Things like Christmas Merchandise, or Summer goods. When the season is over, many retailers will liquidate the items and move on to the next season of goods.
Warehouse Damaged Merchandise
Some percentage of goods in warehouses gets damaged. Maybe a forklift is going to pick the items up to move them, and it hits the box, leaving the box damaged. However, in most cases, these items are only box damage and no product damage. These items are liquidated, keeping merchandise pristine.
Where am I getting these items?
I have bought 8 pallets in the past 6 months or so. Three of those pallets were purchased just last week, so you can see that I am increasing my pallet purchases.
I have dealt with three different liquidation companies so far. Some of these liquidators are better than others, but so far all have been acceptable and I would deal with any of them again.
I generally scour the websites of these liquidators and choose pallets that I believe I can make a nice profit on.
How much do I pay for pallets of merchandise?
It varies. I used to pay as much as 40% of the retail value of the merchandise. Now, though, I am more selective. On the pallets that I bought last week, on each of them I paid 8% of the retail value. That means that if the pallet had $1,000 worth of merchandise (retail price), I would have paid $80.
To keep my costs down, I try to always buy pallets that are within 100 miles of where I live, so that I can drive there and pick up the pallet myself. On many of these pallets, shipping can be quite expensive. In the past, I have paid as much as $300 just for the shipping, and that was on a pallet that I paid $400 for, so $700 including shipping. I did, however, still make nice money on that pallet.
Paying 10% or less of the retail value, though, the profits can be quite nice.
How do I sell the items?

I use several different ways of selling the items.
Amazon
My first choice would be to sell on Amazon. I am an FBA Seller (Fulfilled by Amazon). That means that I ship the items to Amazon, they sell the items and pay me a percentage of the sales price.
On Amazon, though, the item has to be pristine. No damaged boxes, no defects, etc. So, when selling palleted merchandise, it is not common to be able to sell on Amazon, although it is my first choice, if possible.
eBay
If the item is of a lighter weight that makes it easy and inexpensive to ship, eBay is the platform of choice. If the box is damaged that is not an issue on eBay. Also, even if the product is damaged, it is OK to sell on eBay. The key is, if there is any type of damage or imperfection in the item or packaging, you should disclose that on your item listing, so people know exactly what they are buying.
Generally, if there is damage to the packaging or item, as long as it still works fine, the buyer can save a lot of money compared to buying in the store. eBay buyers like that, they are usually looking for a bargain.
Facebook Marketplace
I like selling on FB. It is a local sale, so even if the item weighs a lot, you can still sell it nicely, because you don’t have to worry about the shipping cost.
I recently sold a high-value item on eBay that was also about 120 pounds. You can imagine, shipping was very expensive! I shipped it to a customer in Ohio, so fairly close to me, but the shipping was nearly $100. The customer paid the shipping and still got a great deal. However, if I could have sold that item on FB Marketplace (I tried, but it did not sell), I could have made more money on it!
Word of Mouth
Sometimes I sell just by word of mouth. Friends or even family members buy from me, and I always give them an extra-good deal. That makes for a simple and quick sale.
My Reseller Setup
Right now, I am working out of my house. Since we live upstairs, it can be a pain in the butt hauling all of this stuff up and down the stairs. But, I plan to expand this and probably move to a different location in the future. I want to build the business up to a higher level of sales to make sure that I can afford the rent of a retail building.
When or if I am able to open a retail location, I will still sell online through the outlets that I mentioned about, but I will also have a Thrift Store where people can buy merchandise in the store. I think this will be ideal.
Just this past weekend, I set up a better space for my business. I bought some shelving units to hold the items that I am selling, bout some equipment that I need to do this right, etc. So, as I said in the title of this article, I am all-in now.
Well, I better go and check the pallet liquidator websites to see what new items I can buy!
I think this is a very smart move on your part. Adding the retail component is intriguing (providing it works for your local market). That being said, you always do your homework!
Thanks, Tom. Of course, I owe a hat tip to you, you are the person who turned me on to this idea. ๐
I think that the retail part will be a big plus, but I want to build the business first before I strain my finances trying to support the building.
You have a real talent for coming up with out-of-the-box or off-the-wall business ideas. In these pallet loads, do you ever encounter merchandise that would sell overseas, particularly in the Philippines?
Yep. All of the time, Marc. That will be part of my marketing strategy.
The Philippines is a viable marketplace these days.
Hi Steve – Yes, I am working on some things that will result in offering items for sale in the Philippines. I agree it is a viable market.
BTW, welcome back to the USA, Bob. Indiana is a beautiful state. I was there in 2008.
We have had pretty good luck with Shopee selling second hand books. Lazada attracts a lot of buyers too but it is strictly for new merchandise.
Thank you, Steve. We have really come to like Indiana, especially after buying our new house, which we love. At first, the adjustment was a bit difficult since we arrived in the dead of winter, and it was very cold, especially after coming from the warm Philippine climate!
Your so awsome.bob.you.are a good money.makeing guy
Thanks, Dave. ๐
The pallet man at your service Bob is a good source he will guide you
Ha ha, thanks for the nice comment, Robert.
It is good to read that your business ideas are working for you. Can you give us your Ebay name so we can look at things you are offering for sale ? I have been selling off some of many things I have held on to for too long. It is interesting that some buyers will bid something up to a point you did not think possible and other items get little or no bids. Some older or somewhat collectable stuff that used to bring high bids, no longer seem to and I am guessing that those that collect those items such as very old telephones have what they want now, have lost interest, or have passed away. My best sellers were a bunch of New Old Stock audio output tubes that I used to buy in bulk when I was in that business in the 70’s and 80’s.
The main problem I have in using Ebay, is I start looking at stuff and end up spending money on things I don’t really need LOL. At other times though when I do need something I usually check out Ebay before looking elsewhere.
Maybe your next move should be to get a house with a garage, that might be a good place to run your business from ?
Hi Bob – I also buy stuff on eBay, but so far it has been only a little. I sell way more than I buy, so that is a good balance. ๐
We do intend to buy a house in the next year or so, maybe 2 years. I would like to get the retail location set up first, because I think it will get some good cash flow moving.
My eBay name is “bobintheusa” – easy to find if you know this site!
Hi, Bob. I’ve been trying my hand at reselling and it’s an incredible journey. The bulk of my acquiring merchandise comes from thrift store hauls. I mainly focus on Goodwill and The Salvation Army. That initial reselling venture focused mainly on used clothing. Lately, I’ve gotten into electronics and that has proven to be a real money maker for me. Most of that comes from items people throw away. I wouldn’t quite call it dumpster diving as I do this at my night job. Each day presents a new opportunity to me and I’m enjoying it. It takes a lot of work, but the end result is most gratifying.
*I messaged you on eBay.
Cheers!
Hi Henry, yeah, reselling is great! Lots of money to be made.
Unfortunately, I am not able to find many good items at our local Goodwill.
Hey, I already replied to you on eBay! ๐ Good luck on your reselling.
Hi
Bob
Before our son was born Emily and I were selling used VHS tapes at a Flea Market on the weekends would pay about 25 Cents for them and sell for 2.50 and 2.75 for Children we were making about 600 Dollars per day. We would buy at estate sales garage sales and Ebay it was a lot of fun. Would enjoy doing it again. I am 3 and a half years from retiring. Looking for something to keep me busy .
Have a wonderful day.
Nathan
Hi Nathan, that sounds great. Actually, selling VHS tapes is still a good business believe it or not! I know of many people who sell them on eBay at a huge profit. They get the tapes from places like garage sales, estate sales, and so on, just as what you said. Go for it! Nothing better than having fun and making money at the same time.
Sounds like Christmas every day. Sounds like you should do well at this.
Regards,
Tony
hi Tony, nice to hear from you. I have thought the same in the past. While unloading some of the pallets, unboxing the items, and such, I have thought that is kind of like Christmas, and it really is. It’s a lot of fun, and I’m doing very well with it so far. My intention is to keep on buying more and more pallets more frequently.