Thursday, February 20, 2014

Craigslist Sales

So a week ago I posted about my awesome Little Einstein score on Craigslist. (I've since sold another set of figures as well from that lot, still waiting on the big boy to sell though.) Well this week I want to talk about selling on Craigslist! Ebay and Etsy have been pretty good this month but I am in major purge mode right now since I know that garage sale season is coming up really quick I want to be sure I have lots of room to store all those fabulous treasures when I find them!

I have been listing all of my old inventory online and have also been going through closets, kids rooms and the garage too! I have had a couple of awesome sales on Craigslist the last week so since eBay has been meh and not too exciting I'll show you what I've sold locally!


I purchased these two Pottery Barn Bar Stools from a lady off my Facebook shopping group; I knew that I could flip them and flip them I did! Originally she had them for $50 ($25 each) and I thought about snagging them then but I waited and a couple of weeks later she dropped the price to $25 for BOTH and I jumped on it. I listed them the same day I bought them because less time in the garage the better - we don't have an abundance of space out there.

Well I started the listing at $200 since I looked them up and they still sell these exact stools at Pottery Barn for get this - $269 EACH! Crazy! But there they sat so I lowered them to $160 for both and a week later they sold to a lady who was buying them for her 2nd home. Hubs was a little upset about it but I let her take them for $140, I was happy with that since I only invested $25 but he thinks I should've stuck firm at $160 since they are totally worth it. They are gone out of my garage and I am happy with my $115 profit. Plus the lady got a great deal, good karma right?!


This is the reason that, as a mom, I buy 2nd hand. I purchased my Ergo carrier when Mason was just a wee little sprout a couple of years ago from a nice fellow mom off Craigslist for $75. This was a good deal because they retail for about $129 and in my area this was the carrier to have. I was excited to try it out because I knew when Naomi was born that I didn't like the Baby Bjorn, it hurt my back and I liked this one because you could wear baby on the front or on your back up to 45 lbs. I used the HECK out of this carrier for the last 2 1/2 years, almost daily for a long while when he was between about 4-12 months old. In fact, I was still using it up until a few months ago when he decided that he absolutely would not ride in it anymore! I loved this carrier. Here is a picture of us using it at the Grand Canyon!


Sadly since Pickles has decided that he won't be riding in it anymore I decided it was time to pass it on to another mom who could love it as much as I. I listed it yesterday afternoon while Mason was napping and within an hour I had set up a meeting with another mama who is in her 2nd trimester. Smart mom preparing ahead and buying second hand! This is the best part of the story - I sold it hours after listing it for $80! I bought it for $75, used and loved it for 2 solid years and sold if for a profit.

This is why I'm an addict people!!

I have bought and sold Ergo carriers in the past on Craigslist as well. I sold one that was a really popular pattern along with a waist extender and an infant insert with it for $120 - I had bought it at a yard sale for $25 and sold it just a day or so later! I also bought a less desirable color Ergo for $5 once at a yard sale and sold that one within a week for $65. In no uncertain terms - if you see an Ergo Carrier or any of the accessories that go along with them at a garage sale for a good price, buy it, you won't be sorry! They do well on eBay too but with fees and shipping I usually have a higher profit just by selling locally.

...And finally, do you remember the My Artsy Husband post from a while back?



My hubs made these awesome lamps out of salvaged vintage plumbing pieces. He turned nothing into something by simply adding a lamp kit a neat light bulb. Well they sat on craigslist for a loooong time and I was going to add them to my antique store booth (when that happens, I'm in the process...) and price them high. I had tons of emails and intrest but never anything serious, mostly it was: Hey I'll give you $25 for the parts or I want to buy them for a wholesale price of $50 - no and no.

I knew the right buyer would come along and voila, there she was! My husband met up with her this afternoon. She was super excited for the lamps and gave us $200 for them! Now hubs is validated that what he made is actually really cool and hopefully it will motivate him to make some more and maybe we can find some cool parts this summer when out at estate sales! What a fun hobby and a great profit; I told him he should sign them, maybe someday far down the road they will be on Antiques Roadshow... haha!

I've also sold 2 bikes and other random things this week, its been a busy week with lots of meet ups and I love it!
 
I hope you've enjoyed my stories this week and maybe I've inspired you to clean out your garage or start creating as well!

7 comments:

  1. Nice Work! I bought an Ergo at a garage sale for $5. It was brand new in the package. I kept it for our 2nd one. I never really liked it. Eventually I sold it on CL's for $75. Love that kinda profit. It's like renting for free.

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  2. I recently started purging and selling stuff on my local FB group with great success. It is easy, peasy, lemon squeezy, no fees and quick turn around. Most of the stuff I have sold was left over from my last yard sale. I have had repeat customers, so hopefully I can keep finding things they want. Thank you for sharing your BOLO sales.

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    1. I love my Facebook groups for lots of things except furniture, I can almost always get a better price for any furniture on Craigslist!

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    2. Good luck with your purge as well! Feels so good to clean things out!

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  3. Well done! I have some larger items that i need to get listed on craigslist asap.

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    1. Seems to be a good time right now, I sold a coffee table I was planning to refinish yesterday for $40! I never would've paid $40 for it but I had 3 buyers on the line, and my husband is soooo happy it's out of the garage!

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