Where to Find Toys to Sell on eBay
Don't worry if you didn't save every toy you ever owned as a child. It's no big deal if your own kids have trashed their collectible action figures. And it doesn't matter that you haven't happened upon a crate full of antique dolls and marbles in your grandparents' attic.
You can still find toys to sell on eBay.
1. Garage Sales
Everyone knows that eBay sellers love garage sales, and for good reason. The discounts are steep and you never know what you might come across. One man's trash is another man's treasure, after all! More often than not, you will find toys when you stop at a yard sale.
From modern to vintage and even antique toys, be ready to stumble upon them on someone's front lawn. While no one can be an expert in every category, do your best to be prepared. This means a basic, general knowledge of what you're looking for - what are the best toys to buy to resell? You will learn as you go and become more experienced; but you should still have a smartphone with a good data plan in your hand, the eBay app already loaded on the screen.
Tip: make sure you’re up and out early. Sales typically start at 9:00 AM. Remember that there are hundreds of other "eBayers" like yourself out there looking for deals.
Have you ever bought at a garage sale and resold on eBay?
2. Auctions
Ask and search around for auctions taking place in your neighborhood! Then scope them out for toys to resell on eBay. The auction house may even post pictures online ahead of time, so you can tell if there will be toys to buy. Don't assume the photos are showing everything though!
The good thing about auctions? They’re not just work, but entertainment. They’re a social event in which you chat with your neighbor and ogle the merchandise while eating microwave popcorn and cheap hot dogs.
The bad thing? You will likely need to invest more money at an auction house than you would at your average garage sale. Many of the toys being sold individually (as opposed to in "box lots") will be bid up to a price that is too high for practical resale.
So pay attention to boxes stuffed full and items sold in groupings! Get there early to walk around and peek inside boxes before bidding starts. Toys (and other product) grouped together become more common as the hours go on and the auction begins to come to a close.
3. eBay Itself!
Sometimes new or casual sellers on eBay haven't done thorough research on the value of the toys they have listed for sale. They may even list them improperly, such as selecting the wrong category or leaving out vital keywords from the title, thus resulting in less potential buyers finding the listings. It’s your job to find them anyway.
Tip: Consider potential misspellings. A title typo is an enemy to the seller and a best friend to you as the buyer. Think about someone accidentally writing "angle" in place of "angel", for example, or "scramble" instead of "scrabble."
There is also the concept of purchasing toy "lots" on eBay, which you will then break up into individual, profitable sales. In this scenario, a seller bunches together many toys in one eBay listing. They don't have room for all the keywords in the title or they don't describe the items in detail. No one can find that rare Care Bear in among the stuffed elephants and teddy bears. No one except you, as you will carefully examine photos in toy lot listings on eBay from now on.
4. Flea Markets
Flea markets are trickier when it comes to finding toys to sell on eBay. It will be tougher to score a deal. The people running the flea market booths are dealers. They know the value of what they're selling and will generally have the going rate or even the collector's value as the price. Toys new in the box or vintage Barbies won't come cheap. But there are a few tricks to help you uncover hidden treasure at a flea market.
First of all, know your rare modern toys. Most sellers at a flea market will be educated in antique marbles or old-fashioned dolls. But they might pass over a shiny, bulky toy from the 90s or a video game from the 2000s.
Second, look for box lots just like on eBay or at auctions. Maybe someone would like to make you a deal on a bunch of old Happy Meal toys, which you can then resell by the piece on eBay. Magazines, comic books, and un-boxed action figures also frequently have low prices or can be spied in mixed-up boxes shoved quietly under a table.
5. Toy Stores
Buying directly from toy stores? And still making a profit? Yes. But you will need research, some luck, and preferably a smartphone to master purchasing new toys to resell on eBay.
Keep track of trends. When the holidays come around, what is the year's "hot toy"? Hunt for it! Contrary to popular belief, dealers don't actually walk into Target and buy up all the in-demand merchandise for themselves. You will work hard to score even one or two of the hit toy at Christmastime, since stores typically (and appropriately) limit these purchases to one per person at a time. And of course these highly desired toys fly off shelves fast! Prepare to wake early and stand in line, possibly in freezing cold temperatures.
Of course even year round you can still find clearance toys in stores. Just bring along your smartphone and keep your eyes open. Brightly colored stickers otherwise known as clearance tags are our friends! Just because the big box store was ready to move that last piece of merchandise along quickly doesn't mean that the market is gone - not on eBay.
If you are looking to earn a little extra cash, then eBay is where to go. The site has long been one of the top sources for buying and selling online. You just needed to know where to get started.
Selling toys on eBay is a tried-and-true way to make money.
- Your startup cost is small
- But your profit can be big
- The toy category is broad, full of potential
- Yet you can always narrow your focus and become an expert on a specific brand, time period, or style
- Toys consistently sell year-round, with a major boost at Christmastime
- Places to find toys to resell are numerous, as you have seen
Wherever and however you prefer to find toys to sell on eBay, just remember to stay pleasant and affable. After all, the best part of selling toys is the fun! You're reliving the very best part of childhood: play. Take joy in the toys and hopefully they'll bring you profit.