eBay Chat with Marc: Professor of Theatrical Design (AKA The Prop Guy)

knowledge of what to sell. This was a really fun chat I've known mark for over 10 years through Facebook and social media and he is very smart about his eBay business so let's get into the chat Okay, we have the illustrious Mark Cheryl of money making Mondays and some of the $100 sales threads and he is a longtime ebayer so he's here with us to share his knowledge so say hello Mark Hello Susanna and everyone it is it's a real pleasure to to be here today you know i when when

you reached out and asked if I'd be interested in doing this I thought wow 13 Why do you want to talk to me but you know I'm just but but I'm thrilled to be here and thrilled to to talk about you know what I do and how I go about eBay?

Well you're so consistent that's what I'm looking at because the consistent sellers and the ones who've been doing it for years and years that are experienced can really shed some light on things for everybody because everybody has their products that they like to sell and you do sell some very interesting things but before we get into that do you want to share how you even got started on eBay?

Well I actually started using eBay as most people did, I was a buyer back in the late 90s in those days I wouldn't say that I was a pretty serious bowler but I believed in a couple of weeks and one of and one of the ways in which I get my bowling equipment was was via eBay and and that was back in the day where you know you sent a check or money order and it had to get mailed there and he waited until it cleared before you shipped out the bowling ball and so I would buy some of my bowling

equipment and then as I would get ready to get rid of my bowling club and I would often sell it on eBay because there's a much larger community of bowlers out there and so that was kind of my my my awareness of eBay goes back to I think it was probably I started doing that around 9798 and so I would sell a couple of things here and there but it was really much more recently probably around 2009 or so where I started doing eBay for similarly in that I do it now and I actually got

started because my my older sister Lynn who just recently passed away was an eBay seller and she had actually gotten connected to us Susanna and then you had been sort of the inspiration for her eBay business because we were both in Atlanta and and you would do the I don't know if their monthly or quarterly but you would list which was a list of several retail arbitrage hard to find items that that individuals could buy and so she had been doing some of the hotlist stuff

I think she was also at that time doing some golf shirts and that kind of stuff. And one day we were Lynn and I were talking and and she mentioned that she was selling stuff on eBay and I thought okay, that's kind of

interesting. What do you sell and she said that she was buying stuff from big blocks and then flipping it and one of the items that she was having a lot of luck a lot of luck and success with was Pantene clarifying shampoo because I think Big Lots was, I don't know if they were like the company that clearing out some of this discontinued stuff for for Pantene, but they

had tons of Pantene stuff. And I told her that hey, I there's a lot of Big Lots around me I'm happy to go through and and pick up what I can find for you and send it to you or when we see each other at Thanksgiving or Christmas. I can bring it Throw it in the trunk, and then bring it to you. And she said, or you could sell yourself. And I didn't, hadn't really considered that I wasn't, you know, I wasn't necessarily thinking along those lines, but you know?

Sure, okay, then, you know, would you mind showing me you know what you do and, and so she did. And so I was kind of her, she tutored me on that. And so that's how I got started literally Big Lots was my sole supplier. And you know what, stuck with items from the hot list that you would put together. You know, I will go to Big Lots on my lunch hour. And I don't even think in those days I think that may have been pre eBay app. So I may have just been looking it up on the mobile

website. There certainly certainly couldn't stand the stock the way you pay now. Because I don't even know if they were asking for barcodes at that, you know, for UPC codes at that time. I started going to Big Lots and I found the shampoo and then there's a whole there's all these shampoos maybe I'll look at those and I found you know some of those like that always the silver expressions are rad expressions for red hair.

vessel t panty Yeah, is that they only have out for a limited time and then they cycle through it and invent something else. Yeah. And so as I was going through the store, I was just finding all of this stuff. I mean, I remember finding, you know, some horrible Retton backer caramel, microwave, caramel corn, and this sort of these random things and of makeup remover pads and that were selling for a couple of dollars that I was buying for a

couple of dollars. But according to the eBay, I could sell for a lot more. And so I just started picking those things up and, and listing them. And so that's how I got got started. Then, over time, I started looking in other places for inventory and sort of started branching out into the the vintage and estate sales and thrift stores sort of stuff, which is really kind of the bread and butter of what I do

now. Although I still do some I still do some retail arbitrage as well, like I can't pass by a clearance shelf. Without without pulling out my phone and taking Yeah, all old habits die hard. Yeah, oh, we didn't say where you're located, and that you also have a full time job. So let's just talk a little bit about your your life, how it's set up and where you fit eBay in? Sure. Yeah, I live in Northwest Ohio, just in the Toledo, Ohio air gap in the northwest corner

of the state. And I am a faculty member at a local university. And one of the things you know, my my area of training and expertise is in theatrical design and production. And so I do design scenery, lighting, props, for live theater, TV, I've done some commercials, I've done some homework. So wherever you see people doing, you know, when you see people on TV, there's lots of people behind them even in that 32nd commercial spot that are doing the sorts of work that that I do.

I kind of understand that a little bit as a YouTube creator. And making videos for my online school. It's, you know, to make that five minute video is about two hours of work. Oh, absolutely. Figuring out what you're going to wear, what you're going to look like what your background is going to be what you're going to say, getting doing any research on anything you're going to say to make sure it's correct. Now, not

all creators do that. And then recording it and messing up and do overs and then editing it and putting in the music. And so most people don't realize a what 32nd commercial takes days of work. Yeah, absolutely. I know, the last night and it's been a while since I've done, you know, that sort of commercial work. But at that time, and that was about gosh, that was probably about 1213 years ago. And the for a national spot for a national 32nd spot. The typical cost was about a million and a half

dollars. Because there's just there's just so much work that goes into into that. You know, you certainly the talent, but then as you mentioned writing a post production. Yeah, it's rough. And, you know, when I look at YouTube content creators, you can absolutely you know, see the ones who invest that time into creating those products. truth values. And then you can also see the ones where maybe they're, they're not so interested in that part of it

too. And, you know, that's one of the things I've always appreciated about your podcasts and about your YouTube videos is that they are, I don't know how tightly you script them, but they are always well laid out well organized, you know, I feel like the production value is always really, really strong and really high. Thank you so much. I appreciate that. And I also like podcasts because you don't have the video

aspect to worry about. On YouTube people will say, why don't you do three videos a week and and a lot of my videos I'm not on camera, I'm doing a presentation so I don't I feel like it's not about me, it's about what I'm talking about. That's what's going to help you make money not looking at my

face. So when someone says something like that, I know that they have no clue what goes into making a video and I would rather do fewer productions whether it's podcasts or videos that are high quality, because it's just like anything else. It's something you're putting

your name on. Exactly and as an educator you understand that it's like a term paper you're putting your name on this so you want it to be right and good and it's permanent for the most part it's out there on the internet I have people commenting on content that I made five years ago so you know sometimes I'll take videos down if it's really out of date and really wrong information because eBay changes so much it's hard to keep up but it is a process and back to the scenery and the props all of

that is so well thought out when you're in that production world you know exactly what you want. And I would imagine that other people working on the project with you Everyone has ideas of what they think the props need to be absolutely absolutely and you're trying to serve the director's vision and you know sometimes the you know the director comes in and says yeah, you know, I want this one thing for this one

moment. And you know, when I was coming up pre Bay that meant you know getting in the car and driving around town or the next town over or wherever to see if you could find it and you know I'll see people on the group posting about hey, this is going to the Modern Family sad or this is going to somebody just had one from The Goldbergs is a big

gap now. Yeah, and and if you're if you're a prop person, being able to get on your phone or sit on the computer and type in whatever it is you want to look for, and then 14 have to come up on eBay. That's a whole different that's a whole different world than the for those of us who were doing in that game prior to to eBay well and I always thought well, they could just make a replica.

If they want that old tide detergent box from the 60s, they could just make a replica but that involves hiring a designer and artists paying them to do it and you can purchase it on eBay even if it seems like the price is sky high. That's still it's faster and probably less expensive for the design department to just buy it and have obsolescence in two days and then they can jump back into the project and keep going.

Absolutely Yeah, I mean it's you know when when you start thinking about the cost that you're going to pay the the designers and the artisans to to make that box of tide. All of a sudden paying 75 bucks for it and get it delivered to your door in three days. Makes a whole lot more financial sense.

Exactly. Exactly. So you have that background that helps you with your picking for eBay which we're going to get into a minute but I did want to circle back to your sister Lynn because some of the folks that have been on the group for a long time we'll remember her she spelled her first name l y n and same last name and she lived in Atlanta

for a while. And she in the early days she would email me and we just had the funniest chats back and forth because she would tell me a story of sale she had with a an uncooperative buyer or just a crazy buyer and you could just hear the disgust and frustration like that side I you can hear it through the through the email and she was really we just laughed about so many things and we never ran into each other out thrifting or anything but we I think she was in Marietta Just that

Sandy Springs in the spring, okay, those are real close together so knew exactly where she was. And we thought we might run into each other one day, but we never did. But she was she was just the funniest person and she would post things on the group that just cracked everybody up. And I just really enjoyed her. And that was just so, so sad to hear of her. Her sudden death.

And that's just, you know, was devastating for you, because you reached out to me at the time and I had experienced something similar in 2020. So, you know, it's nobody's immune to that. It's just it can hit you at any time. But I did want to do a little shout out to Lynn. And for those of you out there listening that might remember her that she was just such a character, and I really enjoyed knowing her. Yeah, absolutely. thank thank

you so much. She introduced me to eBay, she also introduced me to this particular group, and then so that's how I, how I got connected with with this group. But yeah, when you mentioned the side I and and also she was the queen, she could roll her eyes, like no one else. And so just hear it in her comments. It was just and, you know, the other thing is she, she, she passed away, and back in March, and you know, it wasn't, you know, a total

shock to all of us. And, but, you know, I'd also just like, you know, to your group and the community there, that group and the interactions that she had in that group were really meaningful for her. And it was and she really enjoyed being a part of that community. And so I know that that she would want me to, you know, to give a shout out and a thank you to, not just you, but to the you know, the, I guess now probably 35,000 folks there, right, and the podcast listeners

and go over to YouTube. So she's getting her one hour of fame. But she was only what 5350 she would have turned 52 in July. A little, a little younger than me not not quite there for that senior discount. Yeah. But she's, yeah, she, but she was just, you know, one of the funniest people I've ever known. She was, you know, just the life of the party in her way. You know, and so, you know, being around her. You were going to you were going to

laugh You were you. You were going to you were going to get it straight. You know, she didn't. She didn't. She was diplomatic. But she didn't sugarcoat things. And so if you wanted if you wanted the truth, you know, you went to land. And I remember she was worked for Humana. Yes, she did. Yeah, like administrator. She wasn't a healthcare worker. But she was administrative? That's correct. Yeah, she was, at the time she passed away. She was a project manager.

And she worked for she worked on doing sort of internal promotions and internal things for I can't remember how many employees Humana has, but it's a time. And so you know, they have these, you know, programs and initiatives for employees, usually around employee health and wellness. And so she designed and execute led a team that designed and executed those sorts of those sorts of programs for for their employees as

part of her job. I remember she changed jobs because she was sick of being in the office and she wanted to be out and about and that also enabled her to drop by more thrift stores to take a goodwill shopping break between clients or customers. So she worked that system. She did Yeah, she was a she was a work from home worker well

before the pandemic. And so when she made that transition, it not only allowed her to work from home, but allowed her to work from wherever she wanted work from and so she ended up you know, she was that she left Atlanta to go to Louisville where they're headquartered. And then, you know, most recently, you know, when she was able to work from anywhere, she moved back to Nashville, Tennessee, which is not far from where we grew up.

Oh, great. Okay. Okay, well, I'm glad we could spend a few minutes honoring her because she was like, thank you, and we'll miss her a lot. So back to you. You transitioned from retail arbitrage to estate sales. And I remember why I always pay attention to what you post because they're always neat things but one thing that stands out is the think it was scotch tape that was for women's hair, like they take their bangs down.

Hey first of all I haven't seen that in ever maybe in the movie grease when they're at the Slumber Party of taping their hair but just it's just things like that that you have a great eye for these really old products that seemed completely useless now but they're collectibles yeah and I found that tape I remember finding three or four rolls off and it was at a drugstore liquidation and the store had been closed for a few years before they liquidated it but it was a mom and pop drug

drug store and so literally you were just kind of going through and shopping shelves and I came across that that tape and on a whim I scanned it and sure enough I can't remember what it was or 30 $40 a row incredibly unbelievable just you know $40 for a roll of tape and so I scooped it up and but I think one of the things over over the years you know as you do more and more of this I'm not sure what it is but you see something and you need to take a

look at this further. And sometimes it's a total died and sometimes it's you know, it's the tape that you might sell for $30 or All right, so that's one of the most memorable memorable that came to mind. So let's talk about your store a little bit and how many items you have what kinds of things you sell now Well, I have about just well just over 1100 items right now and I have a fair amount more to list because I don't know if you saw in the group but I bought a bunch of 56 Halloween pieces.

I'm so jealous. Yeah at an online auction and so I have I think it was about 112 113 pieces in total. And so this weekend I've been working on trying to get some of that and I haven't made that much of a debt I suppose on our Halloween themed Yeah, they're

all Halloween there. Yeah. And I'm I sell seasonal stuff year round so I'm not going to you know, I'm not going to get them all listed before Halloween, but I'm not going to just put them in the basement either I'm going to go ahead and get them listed because people are gonna buy them at some point and so I'm not oval I only sell Christmas stuff around Christmas or I won't sell Valentine's Day I listed I'm gonna list it and forget it you know I I listed when I get it and then it's

there until it sells I'm not gonna pull it off because well it's it's it's April and no one's going to be buying stuff yet. I do recall you posting all kinds of decorative collectibles department 56 maybe even some Kohl's items, just things that were limited edition. They only made it that year. I found the weirdest thing yesterday on that note, Pioneer Woman. Do you know that? Yeah, I found a little I thought it was a Christmas ornament. But it's her and her

husband, lad. I think his name is it's for the Pioneer Woman Christmas Village. Okay, there's so many things going on. It was $1. So I got it and it sells for about 20. But it was made in 2019. It was a limited edition. And I had like you would send pictures to Lynn Melanie, my daughter is the one that I I send pictures to like can you believe this? And we just had the biggest laugh because we've

we know who she is. And we kind of watched her show a little bit but it's just kind of a joke with us that this Pioneer Woman stuff is so popular now and even the Walmart, the Walmart additions of things because production is down and you may have that canister set with four and you break one and you need another one and Walmart doesn't have it so back. I just had to throw that in your sales of your different Christmas Village things I recall one where it was

a pretty high price sale. I think it was a Kohl's item. Yeah, yeah, the St. Nicholas square which is the cool Christmas Villa or Christmas holiday stuff. Yeah, there was I bought probably about eight or 10 off of Facebook sellers a few years ago. And I think I paid

about $50 for all of them. And, and yeah, you can you know there are you know $100 plus pieces of that and so what I'm added as a state state in a state sale or the thrift store you know i i look at the the Christmas Village things and all of them are terribly valuable but but I'll certainly if it's department 56 or if it's Lomax or if it's St Nicholas where I'm you know I'm going to look it up and see and sometimes it's really surprising what those what those things can go for

stocking actually yeah you think back to when eBay started when you thought of collectibles Christmas holiday it was Fitz and Floyd or rad co or Linux or Waterford and now because people can find what they need on eBay it's anything goes it's Walmart it's cold its target things that just because there is a platform to find what you need anything goes with collectibles these days it's it's really shifted as eBay has evolved because it doesn't it's not all those what we would consider collectibles

back then the super expensive things when they were new it's it's just all about supply and demand so if you're the only one that has that St Nicholas square church for the Christmas Village sky's the limit on the price yeah yeah and so you know Walmart pieces I've sold Kmart pieces and and I think part of it is that if you're someone who has if you're a collector or you just have several pieces of it, but you never got around to getting the gazebo before they stopped making it you know eBay

allows you to you know to complete that set or continue to collect that set and so you know, I found you know, I over the I haven't sold a ton of Walmart or Kmart pieces, but you know, again, I'll look them up because I've had pretty good luck selling you know, three or $4 estate sale purchase for 3040 $50 Mm hmm so it is fascinating how it's, it's all evolved and the definition of collectible is it's not what it used to be Yeah, do you ever found any gems sure I I have not I have seen it I've

never purchased any because usually it's really pretty pricey at the estate sales and I've never found it cheaply and not cheap enough to be able to make a profit and so I always want to make I want I want to be able to clear at least three times what I paid for it when I sell it and for for whatever reason you know those pieces tend to to not fit it did not work for me and that formula and by the time we get to half price day they're gone it's not I've seen a lot of it but I've never bought

well and as an educator yourself you just keep becoming more educated on what to sell and you learn how to work around what are the higher priced items at a state sale you know the sterling silver and some of the crystal and the expensive art class they're gonna have that marked up but then you you figure out how to zag when they dig it's the challenge of finding things that they don't know have value or they don't care yeah yeah and that's one of the things you know you talk about a

lot in the group and and some of your media about you know when when people will say Oh, I can't find anything or everything's so expensive I can't make any money on the stuff that I'm selling and your advisors often will sell news look for different stuff because they can't know every the people doing the pricing whether it's at a state sale or whether it's at Goodwill they can't know everything well and even even if they do and it's the St Nicholas square set Christmas Village pieces they

know they're not going to get $30 for that state sale they just better put $1.02 on it and get it out of there because their goal is to get the stuff sold exactly yeah if you're going to empty out this house by by Saturday night you can't you know you can't use eBay prices or you can't use replacement calm prices you got to price but yeah some of the things that I you know in that regard you know as as people are looking at you know the sterling silver you know they're going through all

the forks to make sure they're not stamped with sterling silver and I personally don't find that fun. very tedious. Yeah, you know, there's always some guy with a loop going through every fork in the drawer, and and that's just miserable to me. I you know, Much I would much rather use my time than the time in that same kitchen. I will look through the tub of you know Tupperware and plastic stuff.

I know you were gonna say that I knew you were gonna stop plastic and the Tupperware just like you go the opposite direction of the Antiques Roadshow guy over there looking for the paintings and all that expensive stuff and it's like let's look at the junk. Yeah, yeah, I mean it's usually in a box or in a tub and it's you know, it's like there's a sign on it that says everything in the tub is $1 or 50 cents or

whatever it is. And you know, I've had really good luck over the years with with one of my favorite Tupperware things is the Tupperware ultra 21 line which was I think, probably the 90s early 2000s and so it's microwave safe it's oven safe it's really heavy and thick plastic they made canisters like they have the the tops that have like a starburst texture Am I thinking maybe that's the wrong yeah well yeah that's that's earlier Tupperware and that's that's the stuff that everyone

looks for and the Starburst stuff it is certainly sellable.

But yeah, the ultra 21 line was I think Tupperware is attempt in the early 2000s to be hip and cool and reinvent themselves and it's time again you find it for 50 cents and some of those pieces you know, an ultra 21 little divided plate you know might sell for 25 $30 and and so that line there are some casserole dishes and nine by 13 pounds and they're all I found them to all be good sellers or even things like Rubbermaid made a line of microwavable stuff I think called edibles I believe

and so I looked for the I turn it over and look at the bottom if it says heatable I'm probably going to get it and that's 50 cents and so you know that the guy with the loop looking in at every piece of silverware may very well walk away from that kitchen with nothing after spinning spinning an hour in there. I could spend 10 or 15 minutes in the tub of Tupperware I walk away with $100 and so but

but I'm sure for that guy. His version of torture is probably looking through that box where for me it's it's taking the word yeah he calls you the junk guy yeah that john is here today he just wants that junk. So do you ever just sell the lids alone I don't you know I usually look

for that. The complete piece of it as the bowl and although maybe I should maybe I should be looking at because they're always stray lids and so maybe I should be looking those up too because people lose those well and they they hook up with the dryer and the missing socks and so where are these lids and they've got to be with those missing socks and you know mentioned where do they go Yeah, but but yes I love the kitchen I love the bathrooms at a state sales because you're my

early eBay days you know we're about health and beauty really because that's what you're I was buying a big lots and and I still enjoy that stuff. Although now if I'm looking at an estate sale, it's not finding it in the quantities but it's really you know, it's crazy what people pay for that lotion or for that so that they really love that they can't get some of that bell soap didn't you?

I did yeah it was on a list years ago and either you posted it or you emailed me and I'm like, Hey people are really finding this. It's really it comes in a light blue wrapper with pink and it's v e l and it was some kind what was special about it or was it just vintage?

It was just vintage. Yeah. And so things like bars of soap you know when you go and you look in the linen closet or underneath the counter at the state sale and the you know, they've got some bars of soap they bought in 1978 but never used you know, I love that stuff. Oh I know it's just if you if you think about it, if you went up with a drone over your city or the entire United States and look down at how many homes there are not just houses but condos, apartments, everything.

And what's inside all those homes that are is going to come out at some point it's that's what I focus on. It's just

unlimited. abundance of more and more vintage stuff that's been sitting in the same place for 30 years and it's not going to disintegrate because it's soap or some of the fragrances may turn a little bit but so it's just the possibilities are unlimited yeah yeah no stuff we are surrounded by by stuff and and so you know I've always kind of shared you know your your your opinion as you're going to coaching people on in your Facebook group because I keep looking there is there is stuff

out there and you know be open to not focusing on silver drawer or or not looking for the $10,000 VHS cassettes I was just at a sale a couple of weeks ago where you know VHS for whatever reason is kind of having this moment and reseller community and I can't figure out what happened but oh no, it's because they're

encapsulating them. Yeah, and making them a decorative item and now there's grading services so if you find one of the desired ones that still in the shrink wrap, that can be worth incredible money because it's it's considered art, it's considered vintage, it's a relic of a time gone by and and they're encapsulating them in glass. So that's what's going on there.

Okay, I was having a sale a couple of weeks ago and in the basement kind of damp smelling basement and there's this crowd of people around these two plastic tubs of VHS you know Disney you know run of the mill stop and so people are people here are generally pretty polite so we don't have like pushing a Boeing at a state sales but they were really intensely looking at this stuff. And I came up and I was like Oh would you mind if I slid in here because I was trying to get to the bookshelf

behind them. Which was just a shelf full of new unused vintage bath and Bodyworks so body mists that that everyone was being was was just totally ignoring and I think I walked out of that sale with about $2,000 worth of bath and Bodyworks stuff. And no one walked out with a beat with a VHS tape. And so but but you know those people have no interview probably don't have any interest in and look looking through which body mist is right?

Yeah. You can always sell that stuff even if it's not in use it sells and at some point, the store is not going to have it and you're going to have it so you can raise price. Yeah, there were a couple of them. You know where I looked at them and I looked him up and you know the little pup spray of body mist was 200 bucks you know with solds and and and every now and then I have this moment where I do have to remember that

I'm not my buyer. But even when I when I see those I think someone really gonna pay $200 Yeah, I know I have a favorite called moonlight path. And it was sort of a lavender tree. It was just

a delightful smell. I loved it and I use that for a couple of years and they stopped making it so now it's one of the ones that is so expensive that people want as somebody works his business model is to create something, only sell it for a short time and then create something else and they just constantly cycling

through that. Very few cents are still stay around for any length of time it's constantly changing it so when you find one you like then you better buy a bunch of it because they're not going to make that after a while. And I'm not paying $200 for it. Find something else I like yeah the you know the I've also had good luck with some of their men's stuff because you know they don't sell or make as much of that as the women's

obviously. And so some of the men's stuff is just you know, crazy in terms of you know, $100 bottle shower gel. I remember some of those on spotless some the men's fragrance stuff, because it's just a smaller quantity that's out there. Yeah. And so, you know, that's, you know, one of the first things again when I go to the bathroom, you're at the estate sale, that's one of the first things I'm looking for is some of the out of out of Production bath and Bodyworks stock.

Your best all time sale for an estate sale bathroom item. Oh, bathroom items, probably. I sold you know, I've sold a couple of vintage perfumes for you know, one I bought at an estate sale in in Arbor, Michigan that was $1 for the bottle of perfume and I think it's sold for 220 to 30, something like that. That's probably my best bathroom find.

But I think I've learned from you that when you get to the estate sale, that's where you go first is into the bathroom looking at all of the vintage, not just the health and beauty in fragrances but anything that could be in there. But yeah, the bathroom, you know, it just I think it tends to be one of those places where you know, something gets put underneath the sink, and then something else gets put in front of it, and then it just

languishes there for years. And so when a state sale time comes, there's you know, it's like a time capsule. But I also think it's a treasure trove of stuff and so I've gotten, you know, boxes of Kleenex unopened boxes of Kleenex for instance, you know, from the 70s and 80s that you know, might sell for 50 cents or $1 and you know, might sell for 2025 $30 on eBay because they're unopened and so I love going it's morphed over time I used to go to the kitchen

first. But now I'm I'm sort of bathroom closet first. Right? Yeah, and I think I learned that from you because you would post all these things from the bathroom. It could be anything it could be old Avon hairbrushes it could be cleaning products that you know if it's a toxic thing that is hazmat you can just empty out the product inside and ship you know sell the container and one thing that pops up occasionally is the Herbal Essences green shampoo.

That's been a bolo forever and the commercial with the Mother Nature lady and that just has a huge hippie sort of 70s following and that still sells for about $200 It doesn't matter how much is in it you can probably as we go on the empty bottle will will be worth as much yeah yeah yeah and I think part of it you know in terms of the things that catch my eye you know we're same generation we're both Gen X and so for me that when I looked at him and I see something that

reminds me of what was in our seat underneath our sink growing up or a bathroom closet growing up you know in the you know when you grew up in the 70s came of age in the 70s in the 80s you know that look is unmistakable when you see it out there and and I just immediately then want to want to look further at when I you know when I see something like this you sell some flicker razors I don't think you know what those are.

I do yeah and I can't remember I don't think I have I'm always on the lookout for those for those vintage night you know 1970s 1980s disposables but yeah I don't think I've been lucky enough to find one of the and that and the tickle deodorant with the brown ball the big round ball Yeah, and you know another deodorant that will I would find oh it was it tasy it was in the top with the screws.

Yes and they had the little pads like stripe x pads but yeah, yeah and so that stuff you know I was initially finding that when I first started selling I found a bunch of big lots for like $2 on top and they were selling for 2530 and just recently I was at an estate sale and I found one or a couple of those and so I snag those and and but I haven't gotten the chance to get those listed yet. Even if you like don't want to like be you know, 100% headfirst

into health and beauty. If you're passing by that stock without even looking at it, you know, you may be leaving some money on the table. And the other thing about those things, they're so easy to list and ship and sell you know the most

health and beauty stuff. It's Going to go first class you you put it in a box maybe put a little paper or a bubble wrap and send it out the door you know you don't have to worry about it breaking or anything and so as I because I do this part time I'm always looking for things that a make make eBay easier and more efficient and one of the things I've learned over the years is that you you do yourself a favor in terms of efficiency when you're thinking about that when you're when

you're buying stuff. And so I've kind of moved away from oh I'm going to buy this 70 piece Sunbeam mixmaster stand mixer and accessories and part it all out. Because sure there's money in that but there's time in that

as well. So I would rather you know i'd rather than get the tub of do tasy deodorant I can take a couple of pictures on put in a box slap a label on it and then be done well and there's so many TV shows now even on streaming channels and the networks that are taking place in the past like they're doing a redo of The

Wonder Years. So they have to get their props somewhere if they want to make this blast from the past look authentic, they need these props so every time I see something like that show up on you know advertised on streaming or whatever, I think okay, there's another customer they're gonna need. Yeah, so what else do you have in your store besides kitchen and health and beauty and holiday?

You know, I will I will sell anything I don't really have a specialty and so I've got I still have some I still enjoy doing retail arbitrage. You know, if, if I see if I'm grocery shopping, and I pass by the the the clearance section, and when I say yeah, as if I'm not going to make a special trip over there. But I still do some retail arbitrage. And so I'll sell you know, grocery items, I'll sell health and beauty items. I have some electronics and they're mostly kind of

vintage stuff. I'm not again, I'm not into selling like the big heavy bulky stuff, even though there's there's money in it as as as as the threads in your group show there's real money on that stuff. But I don't want to lug it around. I don't want to test it. I don't want to do out of that stuff. So I'll buy a Walkman and set it and test it. But I'm probably I'm past for me it's it's more work to do like the, you know to buy the VCR or TV and test it and ship it. I think that's more

than I want to do. I also sell I sell a little bit of clothing, not very much. I mean, I have my 1100 items in my inventory. I think, you know, there's probably maybe two dozen clothing things and so for for clothing. It's got to be something that really catches my eye like I'll teach her I love doing t shirts if I can find those. I love doing neckties although I you know, but again, it takes a special necktie. I don't want just a tub of neckties and I find the animal ones do well.

For example, I have one that's dolphins, and it's not a high end brand. It's just unusual. And I remember selling a tie with sharks on it way back in the early days. And I was interested in why the guy bought it. But when I went to ship it, it was going to some type of aquarium or he worked at the aquarium. That was perfect, you know, and so you you do think about who's going to buy this, what are they going to do with it? Why would they want it

before you buy it? So when you're looking through the ties, which I've started I've started getting into that and so many of them just look the same. It's got to really stand out. And yeah, print and you might even think Oh I know a person who would buy this. I know somebody who's into that and so you have to do a little bit of thinking through it. Back to retail arbitrage. Did you hear about the Clorox bleach pins? I did? Yeah. find any? I have not found any well I sold. I sold a set

yesterday. I did. Oh okay. I found I only found three and I gave one to my friend who even

gave me the idea. about this and she loved it so I I felt that was that was appropriate so I sold a set yesterday I had them priced at 3997 they cost dollars apiece person paid full price and yeah I wish I had found more I was just gonna say I was wondering do they really need them is this gonna be a stocking stuffer for somebody who can't find them what's what's going to happen to these but people are finding them so they're out there yeah and isn't it the best feeling when you're you know

when you're at the store or wherever and and you and and there's a half dozen of that item that you know that hot item that's on the shelf I mean for me like I get this like like truly physical reaction of like excitement and for me it's been hard for adults and I found some drywall recently on clearance for $2.50 and I ended up selling that for $20 a box just some people can't find it with all these production issues and you can tell when you go to the grocery stores here there's gaps there's

things missing and they haven't been discontinued they just don't have any right now so it's very strange that you might have something that seems so available to you but somebody else somewhere else can't find it yeah and you know i and and sometimes it's not even discontinued stuff it's just stuff that maybe is a regional thing that doesn't get distributed everywhere and you know and those are are great to wear you know you know that you can you can always get them for

a couple a couple of years ago they finally stopped distributing it here but people were regularly buying from me fat free miracle because apparently they stopped selling it in other parts of the country and it was just on the grocery store shelves here and and I would go to the you know I go and usually sell them in lots of too and so I would always go and pick up for you know maybe four or six of them and because I never wanted to have too much of it in the event the bottom fell

out of the market all right you mean tuna salad forever but but those were you know I'd sell those fat free miracle whips $30 plus shipping and I was paying you know depending on whether or not they were on sale I was paying six or $7 for the two baht for the two jars and it was just a regular standard item nothing limited edition nothing special or anything and that's genius and you know to this day I listen to people around me wherever I am grocery store drugstore whatever and and when

I hear somebody say they never have this I can't find this anywhere I go talk to him I said what are you looking for? What

What do you use that for? Why do you you know find out you know in a nice polite way why it's important to them right and then put that on my list because I could come across that at a different store someplace they haven't thought to look someplace they don't know and there it is and you can check out online if other people are having a problem finding it because if one person's in the store complaining that they can't find something you can bet there are hundreds or 1000s of

more that have the same problem absolutely yeah. And you know every year after Christmas you know there's always sort of the limited edition holiday things I will I will stock up for on clearance and so I'm not above you know selling Christmas cookies or you know, whatever the limited edition item. Christie's mixes like the gingerbread or the coffee made powdered holiday flavors because those have a shelf life of yours I think Yeah, there are some people I love that peppermint

mocha coffee made stuff. I like the powder because it lasts longer, but I'll drink that I'll put that in my coffee in the summer just I like it yeah yeah there's there's all kinds of ways to do this business. So one question I ask all of my eBay friends on the podcast is what was your best all time sale ever? Better best all time sale ever was a sealed night. I can't remember what year it was. But it was the for the Nintendo the original Nintendo It was a sealed Tetris revision, a first

edition game cartridge. You know still in its packs still seal. I bought it as part of an online estate auction. So it was A lot of DVDs and VHS is and and just other stuff. And I happen to see it in the photo because you're not seeing it live and, and took a chance and bid on it. And so I got the whole lot for $70. And there were probably 100 items in the lot. And it sold for $800 and less than $1 in that item. Right? And it sold for full

price was asking 799. And it was listed for probably about three months and pretty regularly I'd get people emailing and saying would you take 500? Would you take 400 you'll never get that four, you'll never get 804. And I'll give you six, and then I just politely decline them. And and soon enough, it sold. I shipped it off. And the buyer was very happy with it. And the buyer is a reseller, too, so I didn't get it graded or

anything. But it's quite likely he probably bought it got it graded and for all I know, you know, sold it for even more. And what how did you feel when that sale happened? What What did you do? I was thrilled, you know, I was a little concerned as to whether or not there might be a problem, you know, after having sent it. But I the buyer had been had been in contact before with me. And and so I felt really good about about him that he was legit. And yeah, so it was it

was really just shock. I mean, I had never sold anything that valuable before. And so, you know, when I, when I went to pick up the item at the auction, you know, I first you know, looked to make sure you know, I paid $70 for it, which was a lot for me for an item and and I got to it and I took it out of the box and I was like oh my gosh, it is what I thought it was you know it is a sealed revision a

Nintendo game. And so driving home with it, I was driving as if I had a newborn in the backseat, because anything to happen to it. And and then once it's sold, I was I you know, it's not that I needed to be hooked, because I buy it just reinforced, you know, the notion that, you know, anybody can do this. And it's, it's for me, it's a fun hobby. But it's also a hobby that, you know, pays well.

I was just gonna ask if you would mind sharing what you think you net each month just doing this as a hobby I get about my net is typically in the 15 to 16 $100 a month. Oh, back to your video game where you got messages from people who said you'll never sell it for that. When I get those kind of messages. That's indication that Oh, yes, I will. And you know that and you want it cheaper, and that's not

happening. So instead of getting your feelings hurt that someone's telling you, you're not going to get your asking price. Take that as an indication that they know darn well what it's worth, and they're trying to get you to come down on price so they can either have it or flip it for even more. I never do it. But I always feel whenever something like that happens, and then I sell it for the full price. I always want to email the messenger people. Oh, by the way, what happened? Yeah, exactly.

Don't do that. Yeah, I know. We're nice. It just pays to be nice that they'll life will teach them we don't have to Yeah. So okay, well, we have been talking for quite a while and I bet you have a pile of stuff you got at a state sales yesterday that you are ready to list. That's what I'm doing today. I met my son for lunch yesterday, which we tried to do that every couple of weeks. And afterwards. I thought it was just a beautiful day here. We had a nice cool breeze blue sky.

I just didn't want to come back home to my cave. So Oh, there's a goodwill five miles from here. And so of course my car just automatically drove there. Yeah. And I was in there for three hours I found just so much great stuff, which is you can't see it. It's all laid around me. My project today is get that stuff out there. So I'm on board with you.

I'm going to do some listing by myself my very patient and supportive wife I'm sure really wants me to get all this Halloween stuff out of out of the kitchen and out of the dining room so you get a little creeped out she's actually she's fantastic about she she loves this or she loves that I do and and she will sometimes go to estate sales with me as well and and she enjoys doing this she enjoys the estate sale part of it and she enjoys the touching part of it.

She has really not a whole lot of passion for anything in between so the photographing the listing the shipping that's not really her thing, but she does she loves looking and finding stuff. And then we we tease each other she calls herself my bad luck charm. Because when usually when she goes with me on Saturday mornings I come out empty handed like I really that's interesting. Yeah. Although the the basket bodywork stuff, but we feel like we we broke the spell there because

she was with me on that one. And then we ended up talking about this stuff. Well, it's good that you have a supportive spouse. That's really important. Yeah, and she's, yeah, she's great. And I think you know, we have I have all my eBay stuff in the basement. So other than, you know, when I brought in this big load of stuff, and I didn't want to haul it all into the basement, then haul it back upstairs to do my, you know, to do the listing part of it. And

then haul it back. So I've just been working on it and getting it down there. But she's she's really patient. really enthusiastic. And so she's she's been a you know, a great partner in this as well. So you can just tell her Oh, honey, this is how we're decorating this year, our kitchen full of Halloween stuff. And we don't have to put up any decorations This is it. Exactly. Yeah. That's fun. Well, it was nice to finally meet you face to face

after all these years online. I really enjoy doing these podcasts and having people on so thanks for agreeing to do it. Oh, thanks. Thanks for the invitation. Again, it's been a pleasure to be a part of the group and the community that you've built with you know, with the Facebook group and so you know, I it is the highlight of my Monday is usually making money making Monday threat and seeing what other people were doing and learning from them.

And, and just the, the atmosphere and the vibe in your group is so much more positive than in a lot of groups. And so I really appreciate that as well. So thank you again for the opportunity to talk today. Oh, my pleasure. And thank you for participating because you're one of the people that I look on Mondays to see what you sold. Thanks again for coming on, and we will look for you on Facebook. Okay, well, thanks for having me and happy listing.

Yeah, you too. Bye. Bye. It was such a pleasure finally getting to talk with Mark after all these years. I hope you enjoyed this episode. Thanks again for tuning in. I really appreciate all of you out there listening. And don't forget to have a profitable and productive and fun day on eBay. Talk to you next time. Bye