When "Flipper" was a dolphin and a T.V.Show

Resellers aka flippers because they resell ( flip ) items for a profit (hopefully).

I still recall when flipper meant only one thing, the t.v. show and the beloved dolphin Flipper.

For those not old enough to remember, "Flipper" was a TV Series that ran from 1964–1967 and then continued in re-runs for some time.  The show was about bachelor Park Ranger Porter Ricks, his two sons. Rick was responsible for the animal and human life in Coral Key Park, Florida.   Stories center on his 15-year-old son Sandy and 10-year-old Bud and, especially, on their pet dolphin Flipper.

That was then, this is now. So what is good to flip? Answer is that it changes over time and this also depends on your goals and your overall plan. I think everyone can agree, the best flip is always the free item that will generate a lot of interest resulting in a fast and profitable sale.

For example, someone within the last year simply just gave me an old antique Commodore 64 computer console with the original packing and box. It sold within a day, sold for around $60 bucks plus shipping. People still collect the first and earliest home computing systems.

But you can't always hope for those free scores now can you... BUT YES you can. More and more people are always looking to get rid of things that they can't simply just throw in the trash because there are more and more rules about what can be placed for municipal waste pickup. So often people are hoping someone will take something away and not have to pay for a special cleanout service to do so. While there are different challenges finding worthwhile items among discards that are worth selling on such discards, its not as hard as you might think. Of course you don't want to be stuck with junk you also can't sell, throw away or even give away. So you need to put some thoughts into what you take or not.  Sometimes people hear you are selling old stuff and do you the favor and this is a good thing but it also leaves you with getting rid of the larger percentage of unsellable and not easily disposed of what is literally totally unsellable junk vs junk with some dollar value to someone. 

If you are looking towards faster turnover, among those items that come to mind are video games and equipment of all types from the last 10 years or so. These usually move well. If they work, or even better, are still new and unused and working, they will move very quick. Reselling these games can lead to a faster sale and usually yield between $8 to $50 dollars ( or more) depending on the platform, title and condition. The games themselves are easy to ship as they are "smalls" and usually fit right in a small mailer and go out first class mail.

Video Games usually sell well!

Problem here ( like many things trending ) is sourcing the most desired items from a yard, garage or estate sale at a low enough price to make a decent profit. We now live in a time when some Goodwill Stores, people holding garage sales, use eBay to price their, estate sales, flea markets, and yard sales and these can be misleading from the actual reality.  Most everyone is trying to get "top flipper retail" price.
Best way is to be patient and find those folks who just want to get rid of the stuff. Sometimes the last day of a yard or estate sale is better, or just ask folks you know if they have these things to unload. Other times the "free stuff" may not be total junk after all. 

Another way to go is to buy from a liquidator that may deal in shelf pulls.  Be careful here as you don't want return items, but shelf pulls that did not sell. Do best to avoid overpaying for the lot, but these items can also be bought in a pallet or lot with other items. You could spend about 200 - 400 for such pallets, may need a resale tax cert to do so.

Other way to go is with higher end, higher priced items but these may have a slower turnover. They are usually higher in cost for you to obtain and these items have more discerning buyers. Here, you will need to have a level of expertise in the items and be very clear and descriptive in your listings.

An example would be the higher end, collectible Postwar or Prewar Lionel trains. These are anywhere from 60 to 100 year old collectibles. They are often heavy to ship and need excellent packing.  There are plenty of people selling lower grade lower quality Postwar and Prewar Lionel and selling them on the cheap.  Many of them are not listing what may be missing or other issues.

1947 Lionel Steam Loco sold for 198 + shipping

People who look for and will buy the higher end old Lionel are more interested in appearance and condition over the function of them.  These do not have to run to get top dollar as the real collector buys on appearance, lack of rust and having all parts, and if possible, the original boxes.    Finding these items in very good looking original condition is hard and usually expensive unless you hit the auction right. Buying to flip these from an individual will also be harder as they know the value or they have deep sentimental attachments to the items.   Sometimes however, some folks just want to let it go at a fair price to another collector or their children are selling off the estate. Estate sales are also good sources for these items.

Your investment or cost of goods ( COG ) on items like this will be higher, turnover slower, but can be more profitable on each. After all the market is more narrow and we are trying to target an even more narrow market within an already narrow market.

An example; I "flipped"A complete 1947  Steam S2 turbine 671 O gauge with tender. 1947 was the year Lionel returned to production after the war as they temporarily stopped making toy trains to build items for the war department.

Only item missing was the front boiler plate keystone sticker.  Unsure if it ran or not, I knew that didn't matter, as it was very clean, and of a type that had slightly more value. This is where knowing the items well and the market helps. I was able to get the locomotive and tender at a live auction from a train auction house that specializes in excellent quality old toy trains. My 65 dollar bid won and in the end with the bidders premium and shipping it cost me $90. I used $ from the past profits of my eBay sales to make the purchase.

The Lionel Train was in very high grade condition and when it arrived and in better condition than I expected. This is where people using and misreading eBay comps can work in your favor. People bidding were clearly using eBay pricing, using the prices for the lower grade stuff. In the end I listed and sold it for $198. plus shipping.  It took just under 90 days to sell and several relisting, but it sold for the $198 plus shipping. We made about 100 bucks on it. However, in 90 days tho, if you sold just two 10 - 15 items a day for 8 - 10 profit - that would be over a thousand if my math is right.

So what is good to flip? This all really depends on your strategy, the availability and cost of the items and the market at the time for things.

- Hope some of these insights have been helpful, Mike aka - Mikes General Store and fine goods

Here are some of the items currently in our store:

Reality Check on eBay item values - Mike's eBay Reseller Insights

Click Here for Yoda's Picks

There is an old adage - Just because someone says something does not make it true.

While certain sources may contain some truth about items selling for outlandish prices, as re-sellers we need to be realistic on both, the lower and higher end when it comes to the realized prices vs  alleged values.

Beware of the hype as they say...

The reports last year about the "black diamond" VHS Disney movies come to mind. This is to say, its debatable if The Black Diamond VHS tapes are truly rare, high value items. Although some Disney collectors may seek them out, they typically do so for reasonable prices. But Kudos to any re-seller that is able to obtain sky high resale prices on these items!

Extra Extra hear all about it!

In May of 2016, few blogs reported the high listing prices by a few sellers on these VHS tapes. That prompted a widespread rumor about Disney Black Diamond VHS Videos being rare and highly valued. Certain blogs reported that  “Black Diamond Collection” Disney VHS tapes might be worth thousands of dollars. The blogs made the mistake of not noting the difference between what some sellers were listing for the items and what buyers actually pay, thereby skewing the reality by considering only the asking price.

Just because someone lists an item for $1000 dollars does not mean they will be paid a 1000 dollars for the item. Just because someone once bought a particular item for a 1000 dollars does not mean there are thousands of people willing to pay 1000's of dollars for said item.

On the flip side, sometimes a seemingly unlikely item can be both rare and collectible allowing a re-seller to  fetch a good buck on it. Sometimes it is a matter of  knowing market timing and trend other times it's just pure luck.

 The $300 iCarly Doll

 
Not long ago, I listed a particular iCarly Doll from about 2008 for $265 dollars and it sold for that amount. The Doll was new in the packaging and the packaging was mint. I arrived at that price because in my research at the time, there were only 3 others listed on any platform and they were listing between $225 and $325. So I listed it at $265 with free shipping, figuring I would give it a try.   I didn't use any special subscription software to research the item.  

Re-seller Tip - if you have this item new in the box and in mint condition, you may want to consider listing it between $200 - $300.


  I didn't promote the listing as I wasn't confident in the price, but in 6 weeks someone bought it. Afterwards, I searched for that particular item again, it was not listed anywhere. In this case the item turned out to actually be a  rare and sought after collectible. Another key take away, while you don't want to over-value your finds,  dont be quick to under value your finds...

The best part of the story being - we obtained the item for free, it was a give-away at an event many years ago. We almost tossed it  until I noticed the packaging and item were in mint condition. I knew the iCarly show was very popular when it was on the air and that the item was no longer made.

Re-sellers should be keenly aware there is always a market for certain toys that are mint in their original packaging. In  my case I took a try and it worked out. A zero cost item which I almost  tossed away, brought in nearly $300. dollars.  The point being - you just never know.    This  was made even  sweeter, because while I was dusting the item off and rescuing it from the toss/donate pile, I was subject to a fair amount of heckling and eye rolling about the reality of listing the doll at that price.

Always keep in mind too, just because an item is a popular selling item, does not mean it will command large prices. The item(s) trending popular usually means they will sell quickly. After all, as a re-seller you do not want to run an online museum, you want to move and resell items on a regular basis.

If the item really is rare and of high value, the item will have a smaller pool of potential buyers for the item. You may need to wait longer and have patience.

More importantly, there are at any given point in time, certain items that sell quickly and consistently at certain times. These are the sort of items that you can build a steady business.

Disney,  Nintendo, XBOX, PlayStation Items Remain Good Sellers

  In contrast to what  was reported here about the black diamond videos - Disney items still remain popular selling items.  This does not mean top dollars, it means steady dollars.  Quick(er) selling items tend to be Disney related items,  older postwar and prewar Lionel Trains and even newer Lionel models. H.O and N scale trains as well as other toy train makes.  Other good movers are Nintendo, Wii, XBOX and PlayStation equipment and games, even older equipment and games move well and draw a lot of interest.  There are some old video games and titles that will draw decent prices and sell within moments of listing them.


 Click Here To See Finds Like this Disney Bathing Cover up

However, once people hear rumors that certain items are good sellers, it becomes harder to source those items at all, or at realistic prices so as to be able to make profit in reselling them.   Sourcing is a whole other subject.

In the meantime, happy treasure hunting, listing and selling!

Below are live links to some of my items listed on eBay

You can browse our finds at:

Our eBay Store Mike's General Store and fine goods

Check out our Train Collecting blog at:
 mlntrains.blogspot.com

Everyone is a collector

click here to see finds

 People collect all manner of items for many reasons. Some say that people collect because collecting is connected to positive memories and emotions. Whatever the reason, people tend to collect things, and these are often the bread and butter for the reseller. 

shoe collection

Reseller Tip   

Most everything, be it old or new, can become a collectible to someone.   People like their things, whatever those things may be. The saying, that one persons junk is another persons treasure, is the absolute truth. 

Some people don't even realize they collect things. Some may have large collection of tools, most of which they may never use. However they keep adding to that collection of tools. Many people have a giant collection of shoes and clothes, some that will never be worn again, just  piling up in their closets and basements. They may not see it as collecting, but they are in fact  collectors.


 One persons "collection"  may seem to be a heap of old junk to another person.  All those who label your collection(s) as junk, probably have their own collection of  "treasures" which they will never part.  Meanwhile, you probably see their "stuff" as a heap of clutter and junk.  For instance, My wife makes fun of me for keeping my Nikko stereo receiver from 1979. 

Nikko Stereo Tuner

I may elect to part with the old stereo as the old 1970's  stereo equipment are  now somewhat popular resale items. I remain undecided. Over two decades ago I parted with my 1969 Nova Super Sport and I'm still not over it!  Then again, I'm also still not over all my 60's era comics getting the toss by my parents when we moved in the late 1970's! At least I kept my giant collection of baseball cards from the 1960's and 1970's. I'm not parting with them...yet. 

To illustrate my point, go on ahead and give away or toss a bin of whatever you think is a bin of useless junk that has been sitting in your house.  Maybe it is old baby clothes or your kids toys that "Santa" gave your kids and your kids are now in their 30s... Go on ahead and  see what everyone has to say about it after you donate or toss it away! 


 I recall growing up, a number of my aunts and uncles bonded over collecting clocks among other items. They went to estate sales to collect whatever they were collecting at the particular time. They started with antique clocks and next it was plates and then something else.  When I see some of those clocks or plates displayed at their homes, I have fond memories of those outings with them. 

Recently a clerk at one of the electronic stores told me he collected sneakers. He said that he bought one pair to wear and the other to collect. He said he had a display of sneakers that covered an entire wall. That is when I realized that anything is collectible to someone. 

The key that makes a collection look like a collection is displaying the collections in a way that compliments the collection. Some work their collections in to the decor throughout their home, using the pieces as accents. Others may create dedicated display shelves and dedicate sections of their homes to display their collections.

 Disney items from the mid 20th century or earlier are widely collected. Even the more modern Disney Pixar items are popular items.

The cake toppers to the left are from around 2004 and remain popular today with collectors.

 These FINDING  NEMO items sold quickly  - click here to search other items

Mario Brothers items remain very popular as collectible items. Mario Brothers Franchise predates the home gaming console. Mario Brothers was first created for Arcades by Nintendo in 1983. The game was created by developers by Shigeru Miyamoto and Gunpei Yokoi, two of the lead developers for the video game Donkey Kong.

video game collection

There is a happiness that comes from adding a new find to a collection, there is the excitement of the hunt, the social camaraderie when sharing their collection with other collectors.   Collecting isn't just limited to collecting old toys, signs stamps, trains. Collecting is about fun. So to those who collect, go on ahead and indulge yourself when you can and have fun!

Below are live links to some of my listed finds on eBay a.k.a Mike's General Store and fine goods:  

Check out our Train Collecting blog at:
 mlntrains.blogspot.com


Hope these insights have been helpful, good luck in your reselling! - Stay well, Mike