Do You Sell Vintage on eBay? Do This Instead

by Michelle Lake · March 4, 2024

Ebayers – I know you’ve got this treasure trove of cool finds in your shop, but have you ever thought about simplifying things a bit?

Imagine instead of juggling a ton of listings, you focus on a small, killer line of products.

Or maybe even just one product.

I noticed a shop on Etsy that sells homemade suntan oil and lotion.

That’s it. That’s all they sell.

Some searching turned up three other websites where they sell their suntan products, including eBay.

Contrast this with someone – maybe you- who sells vintage items sourced from thrift stores and estate sales.

If you’re selling vintage items, then you’re spending a good deal of time shopping, right? Because you’ve got to find the items you’ll resell. Then you’ve got to bring the stuff home, photograph it, do pricing research and list it.

That takes time, but you’re not done.

When someone asks a question about an item, you’ve got to find the item to figure out the answer (like how big is it? Or does it have a so-n-so thing attached? Or is it brown or maroon?)

And when it sells, you’ve got to package it. Little boxes, big boxes, bubble wrap, fragile stuff, heavy stuff, oddly shaped items… because everything is different it needs different packaging as well as different postage.

But what if you had a streamlined process where you’ve got a handful of items, and you know the weight, dimensions, and shipping costs like the back of your hand?

You make a listing once and then duplicate that listing each time. You already know all the product details and you put it all in the listing, so you get very few questions. If you do get a question, you already know the answer.

Packaging is a breeze, postage is simple and it gets even better because now you can brand your product line.

Having your own product collection with a specific theme makes your shop stand out. You can choose ultra-specific branding and tell a story with your listings. Buyers get to know you and your products. You can add a personal touch. Marketing becomes a breeze when you can home in on a niche audience.

And let’s not forget quality control. With a small product line, you can ensure that every item you ship is top-notch. No more playing detective with vintage items’ quirks.

So, what do you think? A curated collection with less hassle, more branding power, and a shipping process that’s practically on autopilot. It might just be the game-changer your eBay shop needs.

But how do you create your own product line? You might start with something as easy as white labeling. These are products manufactured by others and customized with your own labels and branding.

Vitamins, cosmetics and skincare items are often white labeled and the mark-ups can be incredible. Choose quality products, add your own branding and you can charge several times what you pay. It’s all about the branding and marketing to get initial customers and then the quality to keep those customers coming back time and time again.

You could even ‘cheat’ a little bit. Let’s say you heavily market your brand of hair care products. These are top notch products with a big price tag, available on your own site as well as Poshmark and a few other places.

But then you sell the same identical products for half price on eBay. Suddenly people who didn’t want to pay $40 are thrilled to pay $20. I’ve seen this done and the results are impressive.

Of course, if you’re making plenty of sales at the higher price, then don’t bother going this discounted route.

I’ve digressed, so let’s get back to my main point. If you’re already doing the vintage/used/arbitrage items on eBay, why not spend a few days researching what it will take to make your own line of products?

If you’re successful, you’ll never need to spend hours in thrift stores or packaging oddly sized items again. The time you save can be invested back into your branding and marketing, creating a brand that grows from your back bedroom to something the size of – who knows – maybe Gucci?