Finding Inventory – Hardest Aspect on Ebay

Being an Ebay seller has a definite advantage over traditional retailers. You have no brick and mortar store, which means no high rent and employees. Like the store owner, you do have a need to find inventory, and buy it at the right price to make a profit.

Many sellers purchase their inventory from wholesalers. Wholesalers act like a middleman and obtain merchandise from a manufacturer then resells it to retailers, who mark up the price and seller it to the consumer.

So where do you find a wholesaler? There is no single answer. You can search for one by looking on Google, attending a trade show, or even by word of mouth. Ebay itself has a wholesale lot category, where you can buy in bulk and then resell.

Many of the largest Ebay sellers were wholesalers at one time that realized the potential for starting an online business.

Here are some tips that may help you locate a wholesaler:

1.Find a product that you like yourself or would like to sell
2.Do some research on Ebay to see if the market is saturated and the various price points the merchandise is being sold at.
3.Approach a wholesale supplier. (You may need to call the manufacturer to get the supplier name.)
4.Explain who you are and what you do – resell the merchandise on Ebay
5.Sign an agreement if needed to resell a quantity of the product that is at a price less than retail
6.Sell the merchandise at a fixed price listing in your Ebay Store

Share any tips or insights you have on finding inventory by leaving us a comment below.