Taking another stab at Ebay with Betsey Johnson Jewelry
Betsey Johnson Gold Pave Charm Bracelet
If at first you don't succeed
I have had more downs than ups with Ebay; however, when I had ups, it was worth the time and effort. Several times I vowed that I would never sale on Ebay again. My need for a home office deduction keeps taking me back.
Currently I am selling Betsey Johnson fashion jewelry. It seems that the pieces that attract the most interest are the vintage look and the “over the top” pop culture items. It is fun shopping for the jewelry but I have to be sure that I want to take the risk. The discount stores where I purchase the items have been more than willing to accept returns in the past; however, I must have exceeded my limit. They turned down my last return and gave me an 800 number to call for future returns. Needless to say, I am more meticulous with my purchases now.
Find out as much as you can about your product
As I shopped for items to sell, I discovered that Betsey Johnson went bankrupt several years ago and Steve Madden purchased her company. Betsey Johnson still works for the Company and designs under the Betseysville label.
When I performed advanced searches on Ebay to see what like items were recently sold for, I learned several important things.
- Ebayers in China are selling Betsey Johnson jewelry
- China has thousands of Betsey Johnson items that are selling from 99 cents to about $6.
- The items sold from China do not have the signature Betsey Johnson price tags attached so the items may or may not be authentic.
- The more expensive vintage and “over the top” pieces were not included among the items sold from China.
- Betsey Johnson sunglasses no longer have the style numbers printed inside the arm. This greatly decreases the value of the sunglasses. Many people think they are knock-offs.
Not available from China!
Ebay has been risky and expensive in the past
It looks like Ebay has made quite a few enhancements to keep individual and “mom and pop” sellers involved. My past concerns were:
- International sales – Corruption and fraud – In some countries, the items never reached their destination.
- I don’t know if the items were stolen going through Customs or buyers lied about receipt.
- PayPal immediately refunded the buyer without investigation.
- International shipping charges ranged from $30 to $70.
- Spiteful Feedback - Buyers frequently wrote negative comments that were not valid.
- Exorbitant fees – Ebay was really making out on fees.
- Storefronts started at $19 per month
- There was a basic listing fee for an item; however, Ebay charged for decorative background, subtitle, underline, bold, and other things that could at $5 to $10 to one listing
Great pictures are important - I'm still perfecting
Onward and upward! (I hate that cliché.)
Earlier this year, I discovered that Ebay has a system in place that minimizes risk on International sales and minimizes chances of getting unreasonable feedback. In addition, they frequently allow sellers to list items for free.
I hope I will be able to keep my momentum after I return to work next week. This is fun!
Great for a luau
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