She Thrifts

Thrift. Flip. Repeat.

Adventures in Mercari

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I finally opened up a store on Mercari back in November. To begin with I was enjoying something new. At the time I was working on listing all of the costumes I had recently purchased, so that is what I was also mostly listing on Mercari. And I did get a few sales right away.

I shared recently what kinds of items have been selling for me on Bonanza, and at first it was my intention to use that data to inform what I would be listing on Mercari. Basically, I was planning to list costumes, plush and loveys on Mercari but no clothing. But then for I don’t know what reason I did end up listing a dress on Mercari that wasn’t a big name brand and actually had a flaw, and it sold almost immediately. So that made me question my plans. Should I just list everything?

Answer? Ugh. I honestly don’t know. But I have been listing this and that and like PM it feels haphazard and also like PM I’m not getting the best results. I have had 18 sales total since opening my account in November.

I do appreciate Mercari’s low fees. Shipping is a bit of a pain though because I am offering free shipping on all of my listings. When purchasing the shipping I go through Paypal if it is under a pound and can be shipped First Class. If it is over a pound and smallish I will purchase shipping through Pirate Ship because it is a bit cheaper than Paypal.

Interested in what I have sold on Mercari since November? Here’s the scoop:

I have sold a few clothing items, including another 49ers shirt, a baby Columbia jacket, Hanna Andersson training pants, men’s dress shirts and a dress.

A few miscellaneous items, including a Dora plush lot, a Princess Leia hologram potato head, and a fancy Mario pencil box.

And a bunch of costumes, since that is basically all I listed for the first month or two. I sold two of the Blue Ranger costumes.

I do like having another platform on which to sell my items, and to have a bit more money coming in. Crossposting takes a little time but very little brain power so I don’t mind it too much. I did try using Vendoo when it was free and liked it okay, but felt like I was double and triple checking everything to make sure information transferred correctly so I didn’t feel like it was necessarily saving me time. I am currently doing all crossposting manually.

I would love to hear from others who are selling on Mercari. What do you love? What bugs you about the platform? Do you have specific categories of items that sell best? I’m all ears!

Bonanza! A sales update.

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Something has been going on with Bonanza. I have my listings set up to automatically import from eBay to Bonanza. Usually I have one sale a month on Bonanza, maybe two. But the last week of December I had three sales! That seemed like a lot all at once. And in the first few weeks of January I sold EIGHT more items.

I actually starting writing this post last week, so in the final week of January I have had zero more Bonanza sales. It seems my streak is over. I think it is still worth sharing though because from what I can tell almost all of my Bonanza sales come from people randomly searching online and stumbling across Bonanza items. The majority of my sales are to people who I can tell just created their accounts to be able to purchase my item.

Wondering what has been selling on Bonanza?

Boys Referee Costume
Paid: $0.49 @ WM, Sold: $14.80
(listed since Dec, 2019)

Pink Kellytoy Plush
Paid: $0.99 @ VV, Sold: $17.77
(listed since July, 2015)

Sheep Blanket
Paid: $2.39 @ VV, Sold: $24.70
(listed since Oct, 2019)

I sold not one, not two, but THREE lollipop costumes to the same person.

Paid: $3 @ Target (each)
Sold: $24.70 (each)
(listed since Nov, 2019)

Mickey Mouse blue lovey
Paid $1 @ ys, Sold: $14.80
(listed since May, 2018)

Little Miracles Chevron Blanket
Paid: $3.19 @ VV
BO Accepted: $35
(listed since Nov, 2019)

Men’s Joker Costume
Paid: $2.99 @ WM
Sold: $29.65 + shipping
(listed since Nov, 2019)

Kellytoy Plush Bunny Rattle
Paid: $1 @ ys, Sold: $24.70
(listed since June, 2019)

Carter’s Musical Dog
Paid: $1 @ rummage sale, Sold: $17.77
(listed since April, 2019)


Although there were more than usual, these are the types of items I typically sell on Bonanza. Of my 200ish lifetime sales on Bonanza, I can only remember selling a couple of clothing items, and those that I do remember selling were coats. I just went looking for a place in my account that lists my total sales and while I didn’t find that, I did find this:

Which confirms that the majority of my sales (at least over the last 30 days) came from Google. I think this holds true in past months too.

Side note. If there is a way to automatically import from eBay to Bonanza, why can’t this be done for PM or Mercari? Do they not want to be flooded with eBay listings? Are eBay and Bonanza affiliated in some way? I’ve actually wondered this for a long time, and it seems like I even looked it up once but wasn’t able to confirm it was true.

Does anyone else still sell on Bonanza? How is it going over there?

Costume Sales Update

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Back in November I shared that I had spent $812.41 on Halloween costumes that were on clearance at 90% off. I said I hoped to hit $1000 in gross sales by the end of December. For a long time I thought I was going to make it. On December 23 I was up to $879.36 in costume sales. And then I didn’t sell another costume for the rest of the year …

Sales in general slowed down that last week, but they’ve picked up again and by January 6 I had sold another 7 costumes which pushed my total gross sales for recently purchased costumes up to $1028.26! So I have met my $1000 goal, just six days later than I was hoping. Still not bad.

The majority of sales came from eBay, but I also sold some of my newly purchased costumes on Poshmark, Mercari and Bonanza. I am happy to get a sale anywhere I can make it! All of the costumes shown here are some of those that have sold in the last few weeks – for several I have sold multiples of the same costume.

Costumes!

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This is what I have been up to this last month … times five. Yes, I bought five carts full of Halloween costumes on clearance. I wait until the price drops to 90% off. I think I did my biggest haul yet, split among four different stores. I spent a grand total of $812.41(!) earlier this month. (Which means that the initial retail price of the costumes was $8124.10.) My best guess is that I paid an average price of $2 per costume, which equals about 400 new items. The great thing is that I bought duplicates of quite a few, some in different sizes, meaning I can list it once and sell it again and again.

I am at least 2/3 of the way through listing them all. I have sold 14 of the newly listed costumes so far, and am approaching $300 in sales. I am keeping track of my gross sales from the haul, and am hoping to hit the $1000 mark by the end of December. When I hit that I will feel like I am close to making back my initial investment.

Here are some of the costumes I have already sold from my new listings – and I have sold multiples of the PJ Masks, Fancy Nancy and Puffer Fish costumes.

I will say that buying and selling costumes in this kind of quantity is not for everyone. There is, of course, the initial financial investment, not to mention the physical space all of the costumes will take up. You definitely need to take the long view because most won’t sell right away. But, I do sell costumes every single week. The sales come in slow and steady most of the year, and then mid-August to mid-October I sell costumes like crazy. The past few years September has been my highest sales month of the year.

Because the prices are so low, I do almost no research before purchasing. If I like it, into the cart it goes. The research starts when I get them all home. For some costumes the market is so saturated that they end up selling below retail price. Most sell right around retail price. And there are always a handful of costumes that are actually quite rare and sell well above the initial retail price. It’s a mixed bag for sure, but I enjoy it. And so I will continue to buy and sell costumes.

Favorite Flips Friday, Costume Edition

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I just had the worst week of sales – probably the worst week I have had in years. Dismal. But instead of dwelling on it, I thought I would share with you something that has been selling. Costumes!

Seems random, right? Talking about costumes in January?

Costumes are one of my favorite things to sell. In September and October 2017, I sold a LOT of costumes, and those two months were some of my highest sales months ever.

Unfortunately I timed things wrong after Halloween that year and I missed out on all of the post-Halloween costume sales. I wait until stores have costumes at 90% off, and unfortunately I waited too long and missed out on the good sales. Which meant that when Halloween season 2018 rolled around my sales dropped dramatically from the year before because I had almost no costumes left to sell.

Fast forward to post-Halloween, 2018 and I was determined to stock up once again on costumes. And stock up I did. This year I timed it exactly right and shopped 90% off sales at three different stores, and purchased around $500 worth of costumes (making the retail cost around $5000!). Costumes are pretty easy to list, so I got them all up in a month or so. And guess what? They’re already selling. Below you will find images of costumes that I purchased in November, 2018 that have sold in the last month and a half or so. A handful of those shown have had multiple sales of the same costume.

The costumes above are mostly just bread and butter sales, nothing jaw dropping.

Yard sales are also a good place to pick up costumes, I have picked up some in years past selling for $$$! (Adult talking Eeyore/Pooh costumes have been my highest sellers!)

If you’re interested in past costume sales I have posted about them quite a bit in the past. You can find some of them HERE.

Have you had any costume related flips you were excited about? I would love to hear about them!

Costumes!

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‘Tis the season to sell costumes!  One of my favorite things to sell.  I just did a quick tally, and I sold 47 costumes in September, and another nine the first four days of October.  Here’s hoping they keep selling!

I went to a consignment sale yesterday and found an adult Winnie the Pooh costume from the Disney Store which I picked up for $8.  It isn’t one of the talking costumes which sell for more (I’ve sold a couple in the past in the $150-$200 range), but I’m still hoping it will be a good ~ and quick ~ flip.

What costumes are you always on the look out for?  And are you dressing up for Halloween?  Do tell!

Favorite Flips Friday, 4/28/17

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Here are a few of my flips from the past couple weeks.  Nothing major, just slow and steady.

I always like to start with plush.  I have another just like this pup that I picked up at the same time, only it is black and brown.

Kellytoy 29″ Floppy Plush Dog
Paid: $3.99 @ VV, Sold: $34.95 (month after listed)

This plush has been listed for awhile.  I got several inquiries about it, and every one of them was international, which I found interesting.

Boo Boo 1985 Applause Sheep Plush
Paid: $0.25 @ ys, BO: $25 + shipping to Canada (listed since July, 2016)


All three of the blankets above were sold when I was running a sale, for $22.45/each.

My best recent costume sale:


Suicide Squad Killer Croc Teen Costume
Paid: $2.49 @ Wal-Mart, Sold (on sale): $37.15 (listed since December, 2016)

A few clothing sales:

This dress is so pretty.  I got a really nice note from the buyer.


Betsy & Adam White Dress
Paid: $2 @ VV, Sold: $29.95 (listed since January, 2017)

I picked up three of these last year, NWT.  The first two sold long ago, the last one *finally* sold.


NWT Tracy Negoshian Sunbathers Dress
Paid: $3 @ TJ Maxx, Sold (on sale): $26.95 (listed since February, 2016)


Ralph Lauren Crest Blazer
Paid: $2 @ VV, Sold (on 7-day auction): $30.95

And other random sales:

Fossil Crossbody Shoulder Bag
Paid: $0.50 @ ys, Sold: $29.95 (listed since November, 2016)

I had a couple totes of vintage Little People that I had been collecting for awhile.  In January I separated them all out into lots to list, and they have been selling here and there since.

5 Chunky Vintage Little People
Sold: $16.95

The same person bought both lots below:

8 Vintage Wooden Figures / Farm Lot
Sold: $44.90

If you have a fun or exciting flip, I would love to hear about it!

Favorite Flips Friday, 4/14/17

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Here are a few of my sales from the past couple weeks.

As always, I love to sell loveys!

Baby Gund Sprinkles lovey set
Paid: $2.99 @ VV, Sold: $34.95 (8 days after listed)

I thought this pig was super cute.


People Pals Pig Plush
Paid: $2.99 @ GW, Sold: $24.95 (a month after listed)


Circo Chevron Elephant Blanket
Paid: $1.79 @ VV, Sold: $29.95 (one month after listed)


Cutie Pie Truck Blanket
Paid: $2.99 @ VV, Sold: $29.95 (listed since June, 2016)

I really liked the design of the blanket below!


Circo Cloud Blanket
Paid: $2.09 @ VV, Sold: $29.95 (two weeks after listed)

I still sell costumes fairly consistently.


Kaos Skylanders Costume
Paid: $1.99 @ Wal-Mart, Sold: $24.95 (listed since 2015)


Katana Suicide Squad Costume
Paid: $2.49 @ Walmart, Sold: $29.95 (listed since December, 2016)

And clothes.  Never my favorite, but still a consistent addition to the bottom line.

I really liked the dress below.  I was hoping it would sell high, but no such luck.  I sold a motorcycle dress of the same style last month for more, and a bit faster.


Chevrolet Wrap Dress
Paid: $2 @ VV, BO Accepted: $20 (sold two months after listed)


Cherokee 5X Scrubs Lot
Paid: $6 @ VV, Sold: $29.95 (8 days after listed)

A couple s-l-o-w sales


Kristen Blake Green Coat
Paid: $2 @ VV, Sold: $34.95 (a year after listed)


London Fog Coat
Paid: $2 @ VV, Sold: $34.95 (a year after listed)


St. John Brown Pants
Paid: $2 @ VV, Sold: $33 (on 7 day auction)

I love these hats.  I bought about 15 of them last year (in both tan and blue).  I paid 75¢ each, and have sold them for $19.95 each.  The tan ones sold quickly.  I’ve sold three of the blue hats in the last couple weeks, and only have one left.

NWT Columbia Blue Olympics Cap
Paid: $0.75, Sold: $19.95

And a couple random sales.

The Lego figures below were in a bag I picked up at a thrift.
I gave some of the Legos to my boys, and sold these.


Series 3 Lego Figures
Paid: $2.44 @ VV, Sold: $24.95 (5 days after listed)

These were listed for-ev-er!

  
NEW 6 packages 3.5″ x 5″ photo album pages
Paid: $5.94 @ VV, Best Offer Accepted: $35.00 (listed since 2015)

As you can see, not everything I sell is a quick flip.  I’d rather not hang on to things indefinitely, but it does seem like everything will sell . . . eventually.

Favorite 5+ Friday, 2/17/17

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Here are some of my favorite sales of the past week.

I feel like I have to include clothing in this list because it is something I sell regularly, although it’s not my *favorite* thing to sell.  I thought this jacket was really cute though, great for spring or Easter.

Ann Taylor LOFT jacket
Paid: $2 @ VV, Sold: $24.95 (listed since Dec)

Build a Bear can still be one of my weaknesses.  I love picking up the outfits, but they’re often not worth the amount of time I put into listing them.  This is probably my best BABW sale recently.

Build-A-Bear Merida (Brave) Outfit
Paid: $3 @ ys, Sold: $24.95 (listed since June)

I was super excited about these when I picked them up!  I couldn’t believe someone was selling their P&P collection, obviously some effort was spent in collecting them and all the books looked/felt new.  I knew it wouldn’t be a super fast flip, but I hope the person who receives them loves them!

Pride & Prejudice PBK Book Lot
Paid: $3 total @ ys, Sold: $34.95 (listed since June)

Costumes sell all year long!

Suicide Squad Katana Teen Costume
Paid: $2.49 @ Walmart, Sold: $29.95 (listed since Dec)

This sale is most notable because someone from Germany purchased it.  I shipped it directly to him, not via GSP, but shipping was still pretty spendy.

NWT Puma Plush
Paid: $3.99 @ GW, Sold: $34.95 + international shipping (listed since Dec)

The last two items I listed two days ago, and both sold within hours!


Folkmanis Llama Puppet
Paid: $3.59 @ VV, Sold: $34.95 (less than 2 hours later)

And the frog below currently has a 100% sell-through rate, which is kinda crazy.  I listed it Wed night, it had sold by Thurs morning.  Check out completeds here.


Natural Wonders Big Frog Plush
Paid: $2.69 @ VV, Sold: $39.95 (morning after listed)

I’d love to hear about your favorite sale(s) of the week!

HAPPY (thrifted) HALLOWEEN (costumes)

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hinton-and-kasonRocket Raccoon and Jack Sparrow,
trying to give his most pirate-y expression.

Of course I thrifted my boys’ costumes, and was able to pick them up for $2/each!  + $6 for the Rocket mask on Amazon.  Whadda deal.

I love selling Halloween costumes, and usually sell a bunch, but it doesn’t seem like I have sold as many this year.  The ones below I sold in the $15-$35 range:

charlie-brown chosun-turtle cleo cow  darth-vaderhello-kittyghost elephantlemur gymboree-flight-school  jessie-pantsowl minions nala-3495 pig power-ranger red-ninja skull-ninja skye spiderman sulley thor tmnt vampire vampire2 werewolf

I guess that was quite a few costumes, and for a few I sold multiple of the same costume.  Usually I have a handful of higher-selling costumes (in the $50-$100+ range) but this year notsomuch. Costumes are fun though, something I really enjoy selling all year long.

P.S.  I did get the following cute note with the costume below:

crazy-cat-10Thanks so much.  My daughter is dressing up as a
crazy cat lady and wanted her little brother [to be] a cat lol

Happy Halloween!

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