How This 23-Yr-Outdated Began A Facet Hustle That Now Earns Her 124K/Yr
Who would have thought you can earn over 6-figures reselling gadgets on-line?
Nicely, we talked with Sophie Riegel and she or he tells us precisely how she earned 124K final 12 months reselling gadgets.
Sophie shares what platforms she makes use of to promote, what gadgets she makes essentially the most revenue from, and a lot extra!
OK, right here you go…the whole lot you have to learn about beginning your on-line resale enterprise.
1. Are you able to inform us a bit bit about your self and what impressed you to begin your online business?
I grew up in NY and went to school in NC at Duke. I graduated in Might 2023 with a level in Psychology. Along with being a reseller, I’m additionally an expert speaker, licensed coach, and writer.
I converse everywhere in the nation about my expertise with psychological sickness and have written three books associated to that subject. In 2022, I went to teaching faculty (each of my dad and mom are coaches) as a result of I wished to assist dad and mom navigate their relationship with their children. Now I work full time as each a coach, speaker, and a reseller.
How did I grow to be a reseller?
Throughout my freshman 12 months of faculty, we had been all despatched residence due to COVID and informed to proceed all of our lessons asynchronously. Once I was at residence, it felt like there was nothing to do and my dad and mom informed me and my twin brother that we would have liked to discover a interest.
That’s once I began going by way of my closet and promoting these gadgets on platforms like Mercari and Poshmark. I had nothing however time to determine the ins and outs of reselling clothes and I shortly realized how worthwhile this could possibly be.
In November of 2020, I started going to thrift shops to seek out gadgets to promote on the platforms I realized a lot about. From that time on, I knew I wished to know the whole lot there was to learn about reselling and my enterprise took off from there.
2. May you element the steps concerned within the launch of your online business?
These had been a number of the steps concerned in launching my enterprise:
- Discover locations to supply gadgets
- Get all mandatory delivery provides
- Get a storage unit for my stock
- Change into accustomed to the reselling platforms
- File for an LLC
- Analysis, analysis, analysis!
- And extra
3. What forms of gadgets do you specialise in reselling? Is there a kind of merchandise that’s at all times in demand?
I specialise in promoting grownup sneakers, garments, and equipment. Athletic sneakers are at all times in demand since they’ve a excessive retail worth and are utilized in each season.
Excessive-end/designer luggage and backpacks are additionally in demand all year long, particularly as a result of they don’t exit of fashion as shortly as garments do.
Different gadgets like winter jackets, boots, sandals, swimwear, and so on. are rather more seasonal gadgets and due to this fact promote effectively for only some months out of the 12 months.
4. Are you able to stroll us by way of your online business mannequin and your course of for on-line promoting?
I am going to thrift shops, yard gross sales, and so on. and purchase undervalued gadgets and promote them on-line.
For instance, I would stroll right into a thrift retailer and discover a pair of nike sneakers for $5 after which I’ll deliver them residence, clear them if wanted, and get them itemizing on the totally different reselling platforms.
Then I look ahead to the merchandise to promote and ship it to the client. I’ve over 1,300 gadgets in my stock proper now.
Basically, these are the primary steps:
- Do tons of analysis to know what to search for
- Supply stock
- Clear stock (if mandatory)
- {Photograph} stock
- Edit images
- Retailer stock
- Record stock (and do analysis on every merchandise to determine the worth to checklist it at)
- Promote stock
- Pack stock
- Ship stock
- Repeat
5. The place are the very best locations to seek out your stock, and what methods do you utilize to make sure the standard of the gadgets you promote?
I discover good high quality stock at most thrift shops. Anytime I journey, I am going to the native thrift shops and I discover nice gadgets. Whereas some areas I’ve been to have higher stock and costs than others, I feel wherever you’re, you could find high-quality gadgets.
Within the hotter months, I additionally go to flea markets and yard gross sales.
If you understand what to search for and have a depth of data, you could find good stock nearly anyplace.
I keep away from consignment shops as a result of the costs are too excessive for me to hit my desired revenue margin.
Earlier than buying any gadgets, I do an intensive high quality management examine. For sneakers, I examine for put on on the soles, uppers, and the within (there’s usually put on behind the shoe by the heel). I additionally do the “bend check” to ensure that if I bend the sneakers, they don’t collapse or crack.
On clothes, I search for stains, holes, and extreme put on. On luggage, I make sure that each the within and out of doors are clear and I examine all zippers to ensure they’re working correctly.
I do make errors generally, although. I’ve missed flaws in gadgets and located them as soon as I began my photographing course of. In that case, I’ll both re-donate them or promote them and notice the flaw within the description.
6. Are you able to describe your course of for pricing your gadgets? What elements have an effect on the worth?
Elements that have an effect on the worth are merchandise situation, seasonal demand, competitors, sell-through fee, and so on.
Once I discover an merchandise, I normally use Google Lens to look my merchandise and discover different related listings on eBay, Poshmark, and Mercari. I can seek for my merchandise on these platforms and see what my actual merchandise has offered for previously.
Resellers name this course of “checking comps.” I’ll normally worth my merchandise a bit larger than what it has beforehand offered for to go away room for presents. If I’ve the one one among that particular merchandise listed, I’ll improve the worth since there isn’t any competitors. If I need to make a faster sale, I’ll lower the worth.
For instance, if I discover a coach purse, I’ll search for the fashion quantity that’s written on the within of the bag. As soon as I try this, I’ll discover the title of the fashion and kind it into eBay.
Then I’ll filter the listings on eBay to offered listings and see what it has offered for previously. If I see that it’s constantly promoting for round $40, I would worth is at $45 or $50 and take a suggestion from a purchaser. If I need to do away with it shortly, I would worth it at $30.
Once I worth my gadgets, there’s a number of analysis concerned. I’m contemplating the situation of the merchandise, the availability and demand, the novelty, the scale, and rather more.
7. How do you market and promote your on-line resale enterprise to draw clients and generate gross sales?
I don’t do any advertising. I simply make sure that I’ve top quality and fascinating gadgets at worth and the shoppers come to me. I’ll sometimes run gross sales on the reselling platforms which does assist drive enterprise my method.
8. What platforms or channels do you utilize for promoting clothes and different gadgets you promote?
I promote on Poshmark, eBay, and Mercari. I discover Poshmark to be essentially the most user-friendly of the three platforms. Round 45% of my gross sales are on Poshmark, 30% on eBay, and 25% on Mercari.
9. How a lot do you earn with your online business?
Since I began reselling 3.5 years in the past, I’ve had about $350,000 in gross sales and round $205,000 in revenue after charges, value of products, and different bills. In 2023, I had a income of $124,000.
10. How do you deal with logistics and delivery for gross sales?
On Poshmark, there’s a flat delivery price of $7.99 that my consumers pay. As soon as an merchandise sells, I obtain and print the delivery label, pack up the merchandise, put the delivery label on the package deal, and drop it on the publish workplace. I’m sometimes delivery out between 60 and 90 packages per week and right here is my course of:
Two to 3 instances per week I’ll do that:
- Print delivery labels from all platforms utilizing a thermal label printer
- Write the title of the merchandise on the again of the delivery label
- Pull the gadgets from my stock
- Undergo the pile of delivery labels and pack the merchandise that’s written on the again
- Put all of my packages in giant duffel luggage
- Convey them to the publish workplace and drop them off
Delivery on eBay is extra sophisticated which is why I like to recommend utilizing Poshmark to begin.
11. What challenges have you ever encountered in working your resale enterprise?
It’s laborious to run any enterprise alone, particularly as a 20 one thing 12 months outdated.
Listed below are a couple of particular challenges I’ve encountered whereas working my enterprise:
I like to do the buying, however the different components of the method are much less gratifying. It has been a problem for me to get motivated to get the boring components of the method completed (delivery, photographing, cleansing, itemizing, and so on.).
However I’ve to do all of these items to maintain my enterprise working and my clients glad. I additionally don’t have anybody to carry me accountable so it is vitally simple to slide right into a sample of simply doing what’s gratifying and procrastinating the remainder. It’s a number of work to do each step of the method, particularly when this isn’t my full-time job.
It’s also tough to say no to stock when it is vitally low cost. For instance, if I see one thing for a greenback and I do know I can promote it for $10, it may be laborious to show it away. But when I am going primarily based on that mannequin, I’ll have extra stuff than I can presumably take care of and I’d fairly deal with larger revenue gadgets.
It is extremely simple to consider different resellers as competitors. Once I first began reselling, I positively had that mindset and would get aggressive and aggressive with the opposite resellers within the shops.
However there’s sufficient stuff for everybody and being mates with different resellers means you possibly can collaborate, bounce concepts off of one another, commiserate, and extra. Now once I see different resellers, I remind myself that them doing their job doesn’t take something away from me.
The final problem that I’ve encountered most not too long ago is that there are a number of haters.
When the CNBC article about my reselling enterprise was printed, I used to be flooded with messages of individuals telling me that I used to be stealing from the poor or that I’m what’s mistaken with American or that I made up my numbers to get publicity.
I even had individuals criticizing my seems to be or telling me that I most likely made cash on OnlyFans and didn’t need to admit it. All over the place I look, there’s somebody telling me that I’m a nasty particular person for working this enterprise, that I clearly don’t care about underprivileged individuals, or that I’m dumb for pondering that this can be a reliable enterprise.
And at first, these messages had been hurtful. However I can’t make everybody glad, and that’s simply life.
Now I simply remind myself that I created a 6 determine enterprise on my own as a 20 12 months outdated and I’m pleased with what I’ve constructed. This job has given me a lot pleasure, independence, and monetary freedom and I wouldn’t change it for something, regardless of what the haters say.
12. Is clothes resale a aggressive market? How do you differentiate your self from different sellers?
The clothes resale market may be very aggressive. Virtually any time I stroll right into a thrift retailer, there’s one other reseller there.
One factor I do to distinguish myself from different sellers is that I’m continuously studying new manufacturers and traits. Lots of resellers know the massive manufacturers to look out for, however I’ve taken the time to find out about hundreds of manufacturers that promote effectively, and that implies that I can discover stock that another resellers might not have identified about. As well as, I’m very detailed in my itemizing titles and descriptions, which helps with the web optimization. Aside from that, I depend on the truth that I’ve high-quality gadgets at good costs and I’ve a superb popularity on the reselling platforms.
13. What recommendation would you give to somebody who desires to begin a web based resale enterprise?
- Begin small and don’t spend some huge cash.
- The most effective factor to begin promoting is your individual stuff.
- Have enjoyable with it and be open to studying.
- There’s a enormous studying curve so don’t get discouraged when it isn’t extraordinarily worthwhile originally.
- It takes a number of time, work, and consistency. Be sure to are prepared to place within the work to get outcomes.
- Be good to the employees on the thrift shops!
14. How can others discover you- as we’re all followers of you now?
You could find me on my Substack, Instagram, and YouTube. You may as well see my retailer on Poshmark.
Listed below are the hyperlinks:
Substack: https://riegelreselling.substack.com/
Web site: https://sophieriegel.com/
Instagram: @riegel.reselling
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAR0bfnb695MPJivlLnPBuA
Poshmark: https://poshmark.com/closet/sophie_riegel
Superb! Thanks a lot Sophie! That is such an superior interview with so many ideas and methods for on-line resale. We admire you sharing this with us.
Be sure to comply with Sophie and take a look at her different hyperlinks to seek out out much more about making over 6 figures by reselling gadgets on-line!
