Do you spend hours window shopping at flea markets and yard sales? You can turn your passion into a profitable side hustle by reselling items via online marketplaces.
If you’re new to reselling, we’ll help you understand what flipping items means, what are the best items to resell, and where to source them.
What Is Flipping?
Flipping products means buying in-demand items at lesser than usual prices (ideally half the retail price) and selling online at amped-up rates. But even if you don’t buy them at half price, they should cost low enough to resell for profit.
Upcycling or restoring items can add further value, but you can also find ready-to-sell deals on sought-after gadgets, power tools, designer items, or baby gear.
The goal is to sell high for positive revenue, and the key to a reselling business is leveraging product placement features and alluring buyers.
Why Should You Consider Reselling Items?
Here are some practical advantages of reselling products online:
- Grow Your Emergency Funds: With the extra income by selling online, you can save money for emergencies and prepare in the face of unforeseen circumstances like job loss, medical setbacks, or untimely expenses. This could be your support pillar, especially during rising inflation and an unstable job market.
- Clear Pending Debts: You can use the extra cash you earn with reselling to pay down debt and increase your disposable income. This way, you can stop worrying about your future financial stability while improving your credit score.
- Earn Cash on Hand: Venturing onto a side hustle and making extra money is a smart tactic to grow your savings for vacations, home renovations, and other planned expenses.
How Much Does It Cost to Flip Items?
The 2022 Slickdeals report reveals consumers willingly spend large sums for top-quality items such as cars, kitchen appliances, cookware, etc.
Flipping high-ticket items like electronics or luxury goods may require a heavy upfront investment – from $4,000 to $8,000 – but the potential profit per unit can be substantial.
Conversely, reselling low-ticket items with high demand can lead to healthy profits as well. For example, products like clothing or small household goods are easy to source with low upfront costs- around $1,000-$2,000.
Carefully assess your budget and risk tolerance when choosing which items to flip, as both high and low-ticket products offer profitable opportunities in the reselling business.
17 Best Products to Resell Online
Here are the 17 best items to resell and take home massive profits:
1. Books
As per the National Survey 2022, print books are still a popular format when it comes to reading. They’re easy to source at wholesale prices during events like library sales or community thrift stores.
Many events allow bulk purchase proposals as buyers get a steal deal wherein they take books home at highly cheap prices by the dozen, leaving enough room for profit if they resell online.
Retail stores don’t often sell niche collections of vintage and first-edition books, so a mix-and-match of book sets is a good resell-for-profit choice. But farm or estate sales are reputed sources to find collectibles.
2. Sporting Goods
Sports enthusiasts continually hunt for discounts on expensive golf clubs and sports memorabilia. Items like basketball jerseys or signed game balls, and even baseball trading cards hold a high demand among global fanbases ready to pay a fortune.
Various secondhand sporting goods stores and the Facebook Marketplace are sites to access remarkable deals on such niche-relevant products.
Base your profit margins and retail price on the market price and negotiate when purchasing equipment.
Related: How to sell used sports equipment
3. Power Tools
Multipurpose power tools are favored by carpentry contractors, DIY enthusiasts, and small-scale technicians.
Consider reselling specialized tools like automotive diagnostic equipment, welding gear, and uncommon safety equipment. They’re perfect items to resell since buyers are rewarded with multi-utility gear, and sellers enjoy more repeat clients.
Garage sales and auction sites offer interesting opportunities to resale power equipment locally.
4. Clothing
Clothing with vintage sewing patterns purchased in the secondhand apparel market sell well for money online. Local thrift shops and flea markets offer valuable sources and extensive clothing catalogs for such low-ticket products.
Another profitable niche is wedding dresses, as many brides seek deep discounts when planning their marriage attire.
5. Exercise Equipment
Gym equipment and body weights are lucrative fitness products to flip if acquired at reasonable pricing.
Home gyms and exercise gear like treadmills, ellipticals, and yoga mats are sought-after items on the wishlist of fitness enthusiasts. The periodic spikes in demand for exercise equipment ensure a steady market if you’re in the reselling business for the long haul.
Facebook Marketplace is a go-to platform for partnering with local buyers without listing fees or exorbitant commissions. Alternatively, scour local thrift stores or eBay for cheap finds.
Then, refurbish their functionality, and resell them at acceptable yet steep prices.
6. Household Appliances
Since people are busier than usual and prefer appliances to automate cooking and cleaning chores, they’re willing to pay premium prices for items like air fryers, espresso machines, and blenders. That’s why you should look into selling this kind of appliance for better profits.
Source these high-utility items from multiple outlets such as house clearance or garage sales, or even surplus products from your house.
7. Outdoor Furniture
Consider reselling good-quality wood furniture, as solid furnishings are a common sighting in outdoor environments. Also, mid-century modern furniture is popular among home and cafe owners and can be niche fittings to sell online.
Look for unique, well-maintained pieces with upcycling potential when visiting garage and estate sales.
With some effort in sanding and polishing, you can transform thrift store offerings and quote higher prices. Furniture makes for profitable flipping items and is a brilliant entry point for new resellers looking to bag the big bucks.
8. Baby Gear
As babies grow, their product needs grow from diapers and nipples to small-sized footwear and toys keeping them busy. This constant cycle makes baby gear a resealable time with quick inventory turnarounds.
Parents constantly seek affordable options as their children progress to kindergarten and primary school.
If not tiny, colorful bags for Lego pieces and tiffin boxes, expect an unending demand for more generic items like baby carriers, walkers, jumpers, and rockers, all of which collectively make this an effective niche for flipping items.
9. Wedding Dresses
Brides often have a dream wedding dress, but not everyone can afford it. That’s where your chance to earn some extra cash matches their need to spare some money.
All in all, wedding dresses are only worn for a few hours, so they’re usually in almost perfect condition, allowing you to set a fair price, which can go up to 50% of retail if less than two years old.
Related: How to profit from reselling wedding dresses
10. Board Games
Many love board games because of their key role in creating playful memories with friends and family. The holiday season boosts demand for used and unused board games as families bond together indoors and on vacation.
You can purchase inventory in summer by taking advantage of people clearing their homes. Thrift shops offer a wide selection of old-school board games to consider for flipping, too.
If there are missing pieces, assess the game’s popularity, as individual pieces are also lucrative items to flip.
11. Electronic Gadgets
Shortlist older devices like record players, stereos, CD players, and DVD/VHS players when flipping items like electronics.
You can find them in abundance on the dusty shelves of thrift stores and garage sales. Vintage 80s-era Sony Walkmans, in particular, can fetch impressive prices on eBay.
Not to forget, high-end smartphones, laptops, tablets, cameras, and smartwatches are strong competitors when looking at electronic items to flip. Double-check whether they’re in usable condition and verify if the specifications offer value exchange for buyers.
Platforms like eBay and Decluttr offer convenient ways to buy thrift finds and quickly resell for profit. Focus on popular brands like Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy phones to yield better monetary margins.
12. Musical Instruments
Although not evident, there’s an omnipresent demand for musical instruments among artists.
Look for popular brands like Gibson, Yamaha, and Steinway and develop your catalog for selling high-quality guitars, drumsets, clarinets, or saxophones.
A garage sale could be an effective scouring ground, as people tend to sell their musical instruments when their hobbies die out or evolve.
Similarly, vinyl records offer a chance to sell items and make extra cash, particularly those in classical or jazz genres, as such markets are high-value and niche.
13. Video Games
Video gaming enthusiasts are ready to pay a higher price to the reseller’s benefit for old-school products like Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 1, and older Xbox Series, making them some of the best items to resell.
Thrift stores are treasure troves for these emotionally-valued items that can be easily fixed and sold for money online. Think of bundling consoles and games as combined deals to stand out from competitors.
New video games, especially for current consoles, are also in high demand, making them a quick money-making stream.
14. Shoes
Reselling shoes has become one of the fastest-growing side hustles on the internet, thanks to the rise of platforms like GOAT, Flight Club, and StockX.
Designer shoes never go out of fashion. Whether you resell luxury brands like Christian Louboutin or designer limited-edition sneakers by Adidas and Nike, you’ll surely earn a decent profit.
Make sure to stay up-to-date with the latest fashion trends by reading blogs, attending events, and subscribing to mailing lists, so you can easily spot the right deals when you’re facing one.
eBay is your best bet for finding shoes to resell, but don’t disdain Etsy and multi-vendor platforms.
15. Jewelry
Authenticated diamond earrings or designer costume jewelry can fetch a pretty penny. Thrift stores often offer deals by selling jewelry below raw material prices, enabling resellers to make a fair profit.
Then, you can resell your jewelry on Etsy, the go-to marketplace for this kind of item.
16. Pet Supplies
As per MarketWatch, Americans spent $136.8 billion in 2022 on their pets. Hence, pet supplies hold a deserving spot on our list of the best items to resell due to their exponential demand.
Local consignment stores offer ways to source vintage pet memorabilia and rare pet toys coveted by collectors. You can also expand your catalog through high-end pet grooming tools.
17. Toys
Thrift stores, garage sales, and online platforms like eBay or Amazon provide a rich source of children’s toys among mindful, entertainment, and education categories.
Clearance sections in big box stores or wholesale purchases can also be profitable. Vintage toys, especially Lego sets and retro toys from the ’80s and ’90s, have higher demand among collectors.
Vintage items like action figures, Barbies, Beanie Babies, and American Girl Dolls are steady sellers, translating to high-profit flipping opportunities. And don’t forget to cater to the boys with Pokemon trading cards.
Best Buying Mediums to Find Items to Resell
The following are multiple categorized sourcing ways to search for the best items to resell:
In-Person Reselling Sites
Here are in-person reselling sites that resellers can visit to source flippable items. These avenues allow room for a bargain, provided you’re ready to converse and explore worthy deals:
1. Secondhand Stores
Thrift stores are a tried-and-tested checkpoint when searching for products to resell. Their product diversity is incredible, stretching from unused, used, and semi-used clothing to furniture to electronics.
Being a repeat customer at your local thrift store is well worth it, as new treasures regularly pour in. Build connections with store employees and explore the premises weekly to uncover exciting items to resell.
2. Flea Markets
Flea markets are smart sourcing destinations for resellers looking to jump on the bandwagon of unique products.
These treasure troves offer a fascinating array of high-demand items, from antique valuables to clothing masterpieces, providing several categories to discover valuable products for your business.
The best part is the room for negotiation, helping item acquisition at favorable prices to improve profit margins.
As a reseller, exploring these abundant sourcing venues can be the key to unearthing extraordinary gems and securing high-value resell items.
3. Yard Sales
Yard sales are great for resellers to source items quickly. With a broad repository of products available, negotiating lower prices is common as sellers aim to declutter.
Whether exploring a yard or garage sale, easily discover furniture, sports equipment, clothes, toys, and books, offering countless product categories for reselling ventures.
Embracing these events as a reseller can help find valuable treasures and secure high-demand items.
4. Estate Sales
Estate sales are a prime source for getting your hands on unconventional items and dusty yet beautiful products from vacant homes.
Find collectibles such as telephone sets, large-sized curtains, and royal bed frames, or settle for kitchenware and plant pots featuring a rustic charm.
However, be cautious and avoid damaged items that fail to justify your resale value. Instead, focus on quality pieces that appeal to a niche buyer audience.
Bulk-Buying Avenues
Here are three ways you can source items to flip in bulk:
1. Wholesalers
When sourcing items for flipping, wholesalers are a key resource for local resellers looking to sell items locally and online. However, it’s essential to consider the minimum order quantity to make the most of wholesale deals.
Building relationships with wholesalers ensures you a steady supply of the best items to resell and creates a sustainable reselling business.
2. Going-Out-of-Business Sales
Sourcing from going-out-of-business sales can be a goldmine for resellers seeking their go-to item acquisition style.
Kitchen appliances, restaurant furniture, lamps, cutlery, and more can be repurposed as trendy home decor and functional kitchen items. Additionally, you might find valuable commercial equipment that can resell for profit.
Exploring these sales events presents a discovery route to uncover exciting inventory that ropes local buyers looking for unique items.
Don’t overlook this avenue to source stock and sell items locally; it can significantly boost your reselling business’s long-term profitability.
3. Retail Clearance Sales
Retail clearance racks are a secluded gem for sourcing the best items to resell online. Companies often offer significant discounts to clear space for new inventory, presenting a profitable gateway for resellers.
Seasonal items are particularly profit-worthy, with prices slashed to 90% after major holidays. Proper storage arrangements allow you to capitalize on these discounted products and make easy money.
E-commerce Platforms
Here are online markets to tap into and source products to resell for profits:
1. Auction Sites
Online sites are a holy grail of resealable items for aspiring resellers. Benefit from buyer protection and familiarize yourself with bidding processes before participating.
With a series of generic and niche sites, online auctions open doors to a scalable reselling venture.
2. Online Sites
Online arbitrage offers high-revenue resale gigs, but it also comes with risks regarding margins. Remember to research optimal selling prices and stay aware of fees on selling sites.
Ensure prompt shipping to meet buyers’ expectations and enjoy a healthy customer retention score.
While some transactions may not yield expected profits, thorough research and strategic selling can lead to a successful online arbitrage business.
Tips to Boost Profits from Resalable Items
Learn how to maximize profits from reselling items by implementing these straightforward techniques:
1. Product Listing Optimization
When selling on online sites like eBay and Amazon, optimize the product listings with appropriate key phrases and words for better sale conversions. The goal should be to ensure your product is the top result of the customer’s query.
Review similar products that sell online at a higher price, and use their title and description for inspiration and reference. This locks down on higher probabilities for customers to locate your product among top competitor listings.
2. High-Quality Photographs
High-quality photographs are integral for all types of e-commerce products. Though white backgrounds work for most physical items, consider screenshots for e-products.
When selling clothing, costume jewelry, games, and used golf clubs, use crystal-clear pictures to showcase the material and product quality.
Pro Tip: Use a camera designed for product photography to capture the best pictures.
3. Purchase on Advertised Deal Days
Some of the best items to resell can be sourced strategically by tracking popular shopping days like tax-free weekends in August, Memorial Day, and New Year’s sales by major retailers.
You should sign up for newsletters and regularly visit local thrift store events to stay informed about upcoming sales.
4. Account for Shipping Expenses
When reselling items like old furniture, golf clubs, and vinyl records, invest in safeguarding packaging to protect them during shipping.
Heavy-weight products can lead to higher shipping costs, which will impact profits. Consider selling cheap items on Facebook Marketplace, where local delivery can eliminate shipping expenses.
If you include shipping in your sale price, ensure the charges don’t reduce overall profits.
5. Prioritize Quality in Used Products
Assess each item’s condition when purchasing used goods like vintage clothing and gaming consoles from yard sales. As they likely won’t be brand new, scan for markings or defects that could impact their profit online.
Make sure that any flaws are fixable before making an investment decision.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are the Best Items to Flip on Facebook Marketplace?
Facebook Marketplace is ideal for catering to local buyers and meeting local needs. Some of the best items to flip include indoor and outdoor furniture, vehicles, and sports and fitness apparatus.
It’s easy to start your side-flipping business here, as there are no membership fees or commissions on sales.
What Is the Most Profitable Item to Flip?
The most profitable items to flip are those sourced at low costs yet showcasing high consumer demand and utility.
Categories like sports equipment, musical instruments, photography gear, appliances, furniture, rugs, and power tools offer excellent profit opportunities.
What Product Category Should I Flip as a Beginner?
As a beginner, power tools can be an easy flip due to their high demand. Many don’t own new power tools, making used tools a prime item to sell online.
It’s wise to start flipping products you understand as a beginner. Such reselling mindsets give you an edge in spotting valuable deals with high margins.
Wrapping Up
Reselling offers a promising pathway to a full-time income with consistent sourcing efforts and listing optimizations. The versatility of this venture allows individuals to choose from an extensive range of product categories, meeting their passions and market demands.
Thorough research on suppliers, sourcing outlets, and market prices for the best items to resell is a must-do for online reselling success. While building a thriving reselling business takes time, the potential for substantial returns is boundless.
Resellers can turn their passion for flipping into a rewarding and sustainable career path by adapting strategies and staying attuned to market fluctuations.
