Goal to New Orleans

I mentioned last week my goal to raise $1400 by September 11th for a trip to New Orleans. September 14th is Courtney's birthday and she FINALLY (😃) allowed me to plan the day. I decided on a trip to New Orleans and am now on a mission to raise the money. I've been listing all my inventory that's been just sitting around the house; I don't have much left. Today, I called ebay and raised my monthly selling limit, so my mission isn't derailed. Btw: people complain about ebay but every time I've called, the phone call was quick and their staff was polite and very helpful. 

Here is how I have budgeted the trip and the progress I am making (in case you'd like to follow a similar model): 

New Orleans Budget (on the high side): 

Hotels: $600 

Gas: $75

Food: $300 

Misc Spending Money: $425 

Total: $1400

Progress as of August 13th: 

Ebay Income: $550

Companion Job: $300 

Total: $850 

TOTAL NEEDED TO ACHIEVE GOAL: $550 

Here are some of the items I sold this week. They aren't big money earners, as they've been sitting around the house for a while; but some money is better than no money! 

     Harley-Davidson button down shirt 

               Purchase Price: $4.49 

                    Sold: $47.00 

       J. Crew 100% cashmere sweater 

               Purchase Price: $4.49 

                    Sold: $24.00 

          Lord Jeff 5x plaid shirt: NWT 

               Purchase Price: $3.37

                    Sold: $19.99

 Tommy Bahama 100% silk men's pants

               Purchase Price: $1.14 

                    Sold: $27.00 

     Cypress Hill 1995 Blacklight poster

     I received a large poster collection 

     From my brother: all vintage. 

               Purchase Price: $0.00

                    Sold: $14.99 

     North Face pearl snap men's shirt 

               Purchase Price: 50 cents 

                    Sold: $15.99 

     Ted Baker women's denim shirt 

               Purchase Price: $4.49 

                    Sold: $11.99 

        Ariat women's fleece jacket XS 

               Purchase Price: $3.00

                    Sold: $13.99 

We realize most of these items were not big money makers, which is why they had been just sitting in the closet. We all purchase items we think will sell for a nice profit, but actually won't. I am on a mission to New Orleans and these items won't make money sitting in the closet. Even if it's just a few dollars, I'd rather sell the items then allow them to take up valuable space in my house any longer. 

What goal are you currently working on? 

Last and Next Vacation.......

We spent last week in San Antonio for work, but it felt more like a vacation. Over the week we sold 11 items on eBay. Not bad......

Now, I'm focused on the next vacation. Every year I try to do something big for Courtney's birthday in September. Last year I kicked my ebay sales into overdrive and made enough money to put a down payment on a new car for her. It was my best month on eBay ever! This year I'm planning a long weekend trip to New Orleans. Depending on how much I can make on eBay, determines how amazing of a trip I can afford. My goal is to save $1400 by September 14th. Let's see if I can do it! 

Here are some of the recent sales: 

     Tommy Bahama men's XL silk shirt

TB shirts with large designs on the back are very valuable. 

               Purchase Price: $4.49

                    Sold: $57.00

        Tony Romo youth large jersey

It didn't sell for much but sold within hours so I was alright with the price. 

               Purchase Price: $1.90

                    Sold: $14.99 

 

     7 For All Mankind gray skinny jeans

               Purchase Price: $4.50

                    Sold: $24.99 

     Chippewa Distressed Leather Boots

We spent more than normal on these boots. We don't shop the cases at thrift shops, we stick to cheaper items. Still, we couldn't pass up these amazing boots. You shouldn't pass up Chippewa boots either. 

               Purchase Price: $10.99

                    Sold: $60.00 

       St. John by Marie Gray sweater

Always pick up St. John items when you see them. Know the difference between St. John and St. John Bay. We always but St. John and never buy St. John Bay. 

               Purchase Price: $4.50 

                      Sold: $39.99 

Considering we've gone thrift shopping maybe three times all summer and have been listing a lot of our excess inventory, we feel really good about our sales. Hopefully, the trend continues and I can reach my New Orleans goal! 

Week in San Antonio, Texas

We have spent the last week in hot San Antonio, Texas for work. The city is beautiful and the people are amazing. Our job was to take Daniella around San Antonio and had a great time. We've created some amazing memories and had some ebay sales in the process. Check us out! 

Some of the sales from the last week: 

     Notre Dame Under Armour jacket

               Purchase Price: $8.00

                    Sold: $49.99

     Ariat XXL men's button down shirt

               Purchase Price: $2.15

                    Sold: $29.99 

          FSU 3XL men's T-Shirt NWT

               Purchase Price: $2.49

                    Sold: $19.99  

        Lucky Brand women's jacket 

               Purchase Price: $4.00

                   Sold: $18.00 

July ended well. We got to visit a beautiful city (for free!) and sold a few things in the process. 

What to do?

Emergencies happen. Unexpected situations occur. On Friday, we discovered we'd be flying to San Antonio, Texas on Monday. We were required to make the trip for our other job (as Daniella's caretaker). So, what to do with our ebay business? What would you do? We've learned that having someone cover the ebay business is difficult and we didn't have enough time to teach someone. We don't have a store to put on vacation, so we had to get creative. Basically, we contact any buyer and offer them free shipping in return for their patience. Yes, we will lose some money but at least we are still selling items. How would you have handled the situation? 

Every month we set the goal of selling at least 30 items. It's not much, but we are a new business and 30 items can be difficult to sell in a month. We are VERY excited to have sold 31 items this month even though: it's summer (normally slow) and ebay cut off our listing on the 23rd of July (we HATE the selling limits). So, we feel really good about our month. How has your month been? 

Here are some items we sold in the last week: 

               BKE women's jeans 

               Purchase Price: $2.50

                    Sold: $24.99

     Vintage Pendleton plaid shirt NWOT

               Purchase Price: $4.49

                   Sold: $24.99 

     Harry Potter American First Edition 

We found this book in the clubhouse at our neighborhood pool. You never know where you'll find valuable items. We keep our eyes open at ALL times. Thank you Vintage View for your free book giveaway! 

               Purchase Price: $0.00

                    Sold: $49.99

          Harley-Davidson XL shirt lot 

We cleaned out our closet and decided to sell random stuff we had collected. These shirts were in the closet. They weren't a big money maker but they weren't making any money in the closet. 

               Purchase Price: $6.00

                    Sold: $23.00 

     Florida Gators Nike Dri-fit Polo Shirt

               Purchase Price: $4.49

                    Sold: $27.99

     Harley-Davidson women's shirt 

               Purchase Price: $2.49

                    Sold: $11.99 

        Jamie Sadock women's shirt 

This is the only Jamie Sadock shirt we've ever found, but we will be on the look out for more! 

     

               Purchase Price: $0.00

               (Free with loyalty card) 

                    Sold: $34.99 

        Polo University vintage blazer

               Purchase Price: $3.00

                      Sold: $19.99 

 

            True Religion black jeans 

               Purchase Price: Free 

                     (Loyalty card) 

                    Sold: $23.99 

     Daniella, Anna and Courtney at the Alamo! 

We are happy with our summer so far. How about you? 

Busy summer finally begins

I was supposed to spend the summer as Daniella's companion. I was going to take her on trips and watch A LOT of Barney! As a disabled person, I've learned to acknowledge my limitations and knew I couldn't work 8 hours a day with Daniella and put much time into my ebay business. My mind is ready for the challenge but my body won't cooperate. In anticipation, I stocked up on some inventory. I've slowly been listing that inventory all summer. They might not be huge money makers, but it clears space and puts some money in my account. 

My busy summer got delayed by Mono but it's off to a crazy start now. Here are some pics and items we've sold: 

Daniella and I on the carousel at Wild Adventures in Valdosta, Georgia. 

               Vigoss women's jeans

  

               Purchase Price: $4.50

                    Sold: $21.99

        Vintage Banana Republic jacket 

               Purchase Price: $4.50

                    Sold: $24.99 

     Vintage Lacoste cardigan. I thought this would sell for more, I won't be buying any more unless I find them really cheap. 

               Purchase Price: $4.99

                    Sold: $17.00

            Jordan XIII child size 8c 

               Purchase Price: $2.99

                    Sold: $29.99 

       Men's Lucky Brand jeans NWT

               Purchase Price: $4.99

                    Sold: $74.99 

 

       Christian Audigier men's jeans

               Purchase Price: $5.99

                     Sold: $49.99 

How has your summer gone so far? 

Watch me whip! Watch me Nae Nae for lower Goodwill Prices!

My reaction when I discovered our local Goodwill lowered ALL of its prices! The prices were a little high; I've seen higher and lower. A dollar decrease per pairs of jeans, skirts, ties and pants might not seem like a huge deal to the everyday Goodwill shopper but to flippers: it's HUGE! 

http://youtu.be/-Bdvl4WKpw4

At least we have some sales.......

I've had Mono for 5 weeks now. It's definitely slowed our business down. Sales are still about the same but I've only been thrift shopping twice in the last 5 weeks (1 was almost a waste of time) and haven't listed much either. Maybe our sales haven't declined yet but if I don't start feeling better soon; they could be! Here are some of the items we've sold this month: 

          Hudson black skinny jeans 

               Purchase price: $4.50 

                    Sold: $48.00 

     Chicago Blackhawks Reebok hoodie 

               Purchase Price: $4.50

                    Sold: $32.00 

     Naked & Famous Men's black jeans 

Naked & Famous are great jeans to pick up for resale. Every pair we have found has sold REALLY well. 

               Purchase Price: $2.50

                    Sold: $39.99 

               Hawaiian shirt L Lot: 

Tommy Bahama, Reyn Spooner & Tori Richard. At times I feel like we could run a business just selling Hawaiian shirts. If you can find quality brands, don't pass them up! They sell like crazy on eBay. 

               Purchase Price: $17.00

                    Sold: $49.99 

     Harley-Davidson button down shirt

We found 7 button down Harley-Davidson shirts on one trip to Goodwill in April. My Dad got one for Father's Day, we have one still for sale and we made hundreds of dollars on the others. We were beyond excited with this find! 

               Purchase Price: $4.50 

                    Sold: $44.99