You've seen the videos and heard people talk about liquidation pallets. Maybe you've decided to give it a shot. While its not rocket surgery, there are a few things you should know before you get started. Below is a quick overview of how to sell liquidation pallets (amazon return pallets) along with what we think are best practices to minimize risk and maximize your profits.
If you are more of a visuals and bullet point type of person, you can see our short presentation HERE.
How are you going to sell your liquidation merchandise?
This decision will determine how you pick your pallets. If you plan on using a local marketplace like Craigslist, Mercari, FB Marketplace and others that require meeting people in person and bartering, you'll want to know that before you pick your pallet. Same goes if you are planning on selling in online channels.
The point is to know how you are going choose your pallets to match your selling strategy so you can operate in the sales channels you are most comfortable. You don't want to buy a pallet with oversized items if you plan on selling strictly online, for example as your profit goals may be hard to reach as they get eaten up by shipping costs.
Finding Your Supplier
The liquidation industry is not regulated, which means that there are a lot of pallet sellers offering pallets at amazing prices or engaging in all sorts of shady practices. Finding a supplier with integrity is worth its weight in gold. You'll want to make sure your supplier can do at least the following:
- Keep you regularly stocked
- Not cherry pick your pallets
- Guide you to picking the right pallet for your strategy
Finding the right supplier can make all the difference in you making money on the side as a pallet flipper.
Treat it as a business
Pallet flipping is a great way to make side income. You don't need to invent the next iphone or come up with some new business. All of the items were once sold online so you know they can sell online. All you have to do is find those customers again. But as you do and you start to make money, make sure you are keeping accurate accounting of your costs. Keep an eye on shipping costs, marketplace fees, and even the time it takes you to operate the side business. You'll want to make sure you are actually making money and not just caught up in busy work.
Pricing
As a general rule, we recommend that you initially attempt to sell your working and complete liquidation items at roughly 60% of retail price. This will often ensure that you are priced to sell and hopefully wont be sitting on your items too long. Remember that time is money and the longer an item is sitting in your garage, the longer your money that could be working for you is sitting there as well. It sounds cliche, but time is money. Don't get emotionally attached to your items. Yes, it may be worth more that what someone is trying to pay you for it, but the sooner you can make a profit and get it sold, the sooner you can get more product in. In the long run, you should be able to average at least double your investment on each pallet.
Learn more
To learn more about pallet flipping best practices, sign up here for our free email series on pallet flipping for profit.