posted on May 29, 2008 05:52:50 PM new
For my own edification (I'm thinking about getting into this niche) I have been following the business of an eBay clothing seller who stocks high-end women's clothing in her store.
Here's the interesting part: Her store inventory grows by about fifty pieces each week. Meaning, each week she buys fifty pieces more than she sells.
I'm pretty sure that unlike brick-and-mortar stores, she cannot simply RTV (return to vendor) pieces that languish unsold in her store. So the more unsold pieces she holds, the more money she has tied up. When I started watching her sales, she had about 1700 pieces. Now she has over 2600.
On the surface, it would seem a good idea to offer an ever-widening selection of designers, styles and sizes to increase your chances of making a sale. But it comes at a cost.
How DO you compute the cost of carrying all this inventory?
This turns out to be a question without easy answers. There are some factors to consider. Cost of capital (did you borrow the money to buy these goods?) or opportunity cost (how much are you losing by not having that money invested in a vehicle such as a T-bill that offers a guaranteed return?) is probably the biggest.
It is fascinating to me that the bigger and more invested eBay sellers get the more they will have to mimic brick-and-mortar retailers or suffer a crippling cash flow crisis.
Unless they can figure out a way to build an empire based on drop-shipping.
posted on May 29, 2008 07:18:53 PM new
Are they used clothes?may be she accepts consignment or she works for a wholesaler?
Since she is not the only seller on Ebay,it really does not matter if she is diversified or not,as long as Ebay is diversified.
If you tell us what is her seller ID,we can take a look,I remember a lady who has shop in Hollywood,her clothes came from the studios,and she gets these clothes after the show is completed.
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Google does not hire stupid people.
posted on May 29, 2008 07:21:08 PM new
Now,some booksellers have many books and list them all on AMZN and every day they sell a few books and books do not go out of style!
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Google does not hire stupid people.
posted on May 30, 2008 06:18:45 AM new
Fluffy, I've sold some vintage designer clothes in the past and I must say selling clothing sucks. I can't see how NWT clothing would be any better - but maybe it is?
It is hard work for a smaller profit. Storage of inventory alone is a great expense. The bidders in this category seem harder to please. Half the time they don't know what size they wear and don't have a measuring tape to compare to your measurements.
Unless it's a St John or Lucie Ann peignoir set - I pass on buying it now. I still have tons of stuff waiting to be photographed and listed.
I'm sure you will cover every angle before you decide but this is my 2 cents.
posted on May 30, 2008 06:28:36 AM new
hwahwa, these are NWT pieces.
Books have a low item cost. Shucks, it's not that hard to get all the books you could ever want basically for free these days. I don't know how people make money consistently by selling books. With books your main concern would have to be storage space, I'd think.
ladyjewels, you make some good points. What seems attractive to me about selling high-end clothing is the higher margins, compared to what I'm doing now. That, and I'm bored with jewelry.
posted on May 30, 2008 06:37:11 AM new
Need a mannequin?
Actually from what I've observed - a live model is your best bet and it would eliminate a lot of the work. With vintage - clothing on live models seem to sell higher.
posted on May 30, 2008 07:12:15 AM new
Fluffy, at one time with my last job, I did place unsold stock on Ebay from a boutique lable. We developed a store on vendio then of course linked it to Ebay. It was tons of work because you have to have a decent picture of the garment (mannequin), then you had to lay it flat to obtain the measurements. Of course, you do several at a time. but I could only do about 10-15 a day as I had other duties at this job. This was only a small faction of the job.
Our sales were terrific because of the label. Women would buy more than one item. On average they purchased 3-4 pieces at a time and became repeat customers. In the two years that I did this for the company, we only had one return but it was horrible as she purchased 8 items. supposedly None of them fit. It wasn't our policy to take returns as we had in various locations on the listing page, "ALL SALES ARE FINAL". It was the same as when I ran the factory sales, we erected a huge communal 20' by 20' dressing rooms with signs posted everywhere "ALL SALES ARE FINAL". The women had to try on the garments as there were no returns. I don't think that you could pull this all sales are final now on Ebay as Ebay has created a crazy buyer these days.
BOTTOM LINE: It is a lot of work!! I currently and new & vintage clothes in my store and they are not selling. Unless, you have a super item that you can get direct from the manufacturer or a jobber that has a high profile label, save your energy.
Mama
posted on May 30, 2008 07:22:56 AM new
In the postcard world, My inventory growth followed basically the same model. However, as my customer base and inventory grew, I saw a higher percentage of sales coming from my store than from the auctions I used to draw them there. It was difficult to grow my store beyond the 7,000 item mark. I was roughly selling the same amount I was buying and it was difficult to grow without hiring help. Now that eBay has reduced my listings to 5300+, it's another story.
posted on May 30, 2008 09:35:36 AM new
She said she will have consignment clothes sometimes in almost new condition.
Yeah,she has a lot of clothes and she took those pictures herself so she must have them in her possession.
It is possible to warehouse your goods in your home,I know one guy who had over 4000 pieces of Chinese jade carvings,porcelain,bronze and ceramic pieces in his house .He took out second and third mortgage to buy them and now after filing for bankruptcy ,he is living in a one bedroom apt.
Some booksellers buy remainder books from publishers or at auctions and store them in storage,they made enough money on some choice ones and the rest sold for as little as a penny so to make room for new arrivals.
I dont know what is a good money maker these days/if not jewelry,book,clothes,then what??
If we can find a way to pump the aroma of coffee or hash or poppy seeds through phone line while they surf on internet,providing them with an instant high??
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Google does not hire stupid people.
posted on May 30, 2008 09:44:45 AM new
If she is buying from a jobber and storing inventory in her home, then she could do it providing that she has rolling racks, stationary racks or something stationary such as built ins in a room or garage. Some racks can hold up to 150 to 200 garments depending on your thickness of your hangers. She would have to have some type of computerized inventory to keep track of the hundreds of pieces.
As these designers are well known name brands then she is not experiencing difficulty in selling them. but are they current styles or from last year season. You would have to know what is what if you are an avid shopper.
You can also go directly to the manufacturer to buy their closeouts for so much per hanger cheaper than going through a jobber. But you would have to have a wad of cash on hand and buy volumes.
Mama
posted on May 30, 2008 11:30:30 AM new
There was a clothing seller / family featured on 60 minutes years ago. They sold high end items purchased mostly through Neiman's, if I recall correctly. They were not direct buyers / vendors of the store. Salespeople notified them when high end items were going to be on sale 70-80% below retail. At the time they seemed to be doing well. Story told how they all quit their jobs, bought houses,etc.
The plus side to that kind of business is you can usually return items that do not sell. (remember when Ebay put that in a newsletter as a tip to sellers!! BUY WHERE THE STORE HAS LIBERAL RETURN POLICIES!!)
posted on May 30, 2008 12:49:57 PM new
This could be a large inventory left over after a store closing. She may be listing them as quickly as she can. Pricing seems to be full on retail.
posted on May 30, 2008 01:19:59 PM new
Ebay advice-BUY WHERE THE STORE HAS LIBERAL RETURN POLICIES!!)
But that would be buying retail and sell at fleamarket.
Unless you are lucky to find some pieces at the bargain table and hope to sell on Ebay for more.Once I saw some one picking up stuff at LOWE bargain table-security alarm,wireless door chime.
There are those who will buy from trade show exhibitors,everything they brought from their factory to the tradeshow and too cumbersome to take home!
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Google does not hire stupid people.
posted on May 30, 2008 01:26:40 PM new
Grocery is getting expensive.
If you know of certain type of food or household staples which people need regularly and you have access to generic brand and can ship them using USPS fixed rate box.
Just off the top of my head-coffee,baby food,escargoes,nuts,health bars,grains,dried shrimp.
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Google does not hire stupid people.
