Selling Secondhand Goods Comes with Challenges, So Why Do It?

A content creator I follow on YouTube is big into selling products online, but not secondhand items–he imports and develops private label items and apparently does well at it. But so far his YT channel seems to be focused on critiquing full-time resellers who focus on secondhand goods and he points out all the problems and challenges with this entry-level type of business and why it’s a grind and not a smart way to work or make money. While he is fairly condescending, he does make some good points.

Challenge #1–Sourcing secondhand goods. Unless you’ve built up a list of contacts and connections who will reach out to you when they have stuff, sourcing for secondhand stuff is both a time sink and wildly unpredictable. It’s a constant round of thrift stores, auctions, estate sales, yard sales, storage lockers, rummage sales, etc. trying to find stock. Crazy right?

And personally I’m finding it harder to find good older stuff out in the wild that’s priced with meat on the bone. Take for example my favorite boutique thrift store (an American Cancer Discovery Shop) just a few miles away. I was there yesterday and found three things I loved and would happily have bought and sold in my Etsy store but I couldn’t buy any of them because they were all at antique store prices. The sweet vintage 5″ cloisonne vase was $75. The gorgeous 1800s lacquer tea caddy with abalone shell inlay was $375 and the Victorian Eastlake-style frame was $85.

Yes, the store has every right to charge whatever price they want on their upscale donated goods (and they get some seriously nice things), but are they really a thrift store? On the American Cancer Society website it states: “Make Discovery Shop the first stop on your thrifting circuit.” But their prices are not thrift store prices.

Challenge #2–Creating single-sale listings for all these unique items is time consuming. The bulk of my time is spent creating listings. It is a slog. Unless I have multiples of an item, each listing has to be created as a one off.

Challenge #3–Not all items sell. Many of us have to deal with “dead” inventory that we end up donating. I have a unique Italian pottery compote that I have tried to sell for years. I never would have imagined it wouldn’t sell, but I’ve finally put it in the donate pile.

Challenge #4–In the “I’m the boss” reselling world, you’ve got to bring in enough $$ to make up for all the benefits a salaried job brings which is insanely hard. If one of my daughters were to say “I’m going to quit my job and follow in your footsteps”, I would be aghast and strongly dissuade her. At their current jobs they have a guaranteed income. They work the hours and they get paid. They get paid holiday and sick days. Plus they both have health care coverage through their employers. (That’s a big, big deal here in the U.S.) And they have 401k benefits. It all adds up.

So why do it? Why bother selling secondhand things?

First, just to be clear some folks actually make a full-time living doing this. They pay their mortgage, buy their groceries, maintain their cars, etc. It is their livelihood and they love doing it.

Here’s why I do it…

Reason # 1–Vintage and antique things are a passion of mine. I have loved old stuff since my teen years and was a collector long before I started selling. I bought vintage purses, antique sterling silver, vintage sterling charm bracelets, old photos, vintage blazers. So buying antiques now to resell instead of keeping them is a wonderful way to stay connected to that passion without accumulating more stuff. I would not be in this biz if it weren’t for this deep connection to older things.

Reason #2–It’s fun. The thrill of the hunt is real. Finding fabulous undervalued antiques in the wild is an adrenaline rush…when it happens! I’ve done 9:00 to 5:00 jobs for decades and they rarely gave me this rush.

Reason #3–It keeps me learning. All the time I pick up items that require me to spend time researching them and that’s a good thing. Every week I learn a little more and that’s good for my brain!

Reason #4–I can work as much or as little as I want, when I want. In a regular job you typically have a defined schedule and are expected to work at certain times and fulfill a certain number of hours. I love the freedom of my biz.

Reason #5–My biz income is extra money and not necessary for survival. It comes in super handy, but if sales plummet, as they did in May and June of this year, I don’t have to worry that I can’t pay my bills. That takes the pressure off.

---

Of course just working part time, I’m sure many would consider me more of a hobbyist.

A person who engages in an activity or subject for pleasure or relaxation, rather than as a profession. They are an amateur who pursues their interest for fun and personal satisfaction, not for a primary source of income.

Which has a lot of truth to it, still I have to treat it as a biz and track my income and expenses and pay taxes. While that YouTube content creator I mentioned in the beginning is a big naysayer of selling secondhand goods (and thinks most of us who do it are a bit dim and unenterprising) for me it’s a good fit for this season of my life.

Wishing you happy hunting,

Karen