How you know you’re a serious reseller
You might be a serious reseller when your birthday wish list looks well…something like the list of items below i this blog post. Because I am a reseller and therefore, a seasoned thrifter, it’s hard for me to give my husband ideas about what to buy for me. For Mother’s day, I sent him links to all of my “likes” on Poshmark. That worked well! But when my birthday rolled around I really felt like I had everything I wanted…but there were some things I needed for my reseller business that I just didn’t want to spend money on. Below are my favorite reseller buys from Amazon, including the item I got for my birthday a couple of weeks ago.Â
Efficiency is Key
I’d been using my tiny little travel steamer for the last year since I gave reselling a serious try. I could maybe steam two or three garments before it ran out of steam. Then I would have to wait for it to cool down before I could fill it back up and start steaming again. So inefficient! I didn’t want to plunk down $200 for a professional steamer. But a quick search on Amazon revealed some in-between options. I sent my husband the link and the steamer arrived on my doorstep a couple of days later. Not exactly a romantic gift! For my birthday I asked him to help me re-organize my space in the garage and get the new steamer set up. OMG! I can’t believe I didn’t get one of these sooner! I immediately steamed about 5 garments in like 30 seconds. Okay, that’s an exaggeration but it was definitely light years faster than the old method. The exact steamer that I purchased is current out of stock so the image to the right is the closest that I could find. This is definitely one of my favorite reseller buys from Amazon!
Getting Organized
I don’t have a fancy “posh” room or reseller room like we often see on social media. I keep my items in my own personal closet, as well as in bins in my garage. I wasn’t looking for a garment rack specifically for my reseller business. My plan was to make some “outfit of the day” videos for YouTube (that have yet to materialize). This garment rack was inexpensive and once I received it and put it together, I wheeled it into the garage and it was an immediate lifesaver! It’s so easy to see all my items and….when I go to steam and prep new items, it’s all together in one place in my little corner of the garage.Â
In case you’re curious, I’ve included a few pictures of our garage, aka The Multipurpose Room, below. My husband also uses it as a music studio, office, video studio, etc.!
The Basics
Some items are not very exciting or sexy but definitely necessary for your reseller business. You don’t want to suddenly be thrown into a panic because you are out of tape or tissue paper! I know some resellers have been able to score great deals on tissue paper at their local dollar store. Alas, mine does not have this coveted item in any sort of value pack. When in a pinch, I love to turn to Amazon for convenience’s sake. Just be careful to check the size of the paper. Some of them are a little smaller than standard.Â
Have you ever run out of tape? I have. It’s a terrible feeling. Almost as bad as running out of printer ink! I decided to stock up on a 12 pack of tape rolls so I can minimize the panic as much as possible. Oh, and although I already have one of those handheld box tape dispensers, I found it cumbersome when trying to dispense tape for anything other than taping up a box. So, I got this great dispenser that fits the large rolls of packing tape. I love it soooo much!
Another must-have is poly mailers. I mainly use these for shipping Mercari items. Since Poshmark allows us to use any priority mail packaging, I order that for FREE from USPS.com. Thank you, USPS!
I love these hot pink 10×13 mailers. They are pretty and the work really well for shipping clothing. I will typically wrap the garment in the plain white tissue paper and then insert into the mailer. I like that I can sort of adjust where I seal it to best fit the item.Â
I used to send a personalized “Thank You” card with every order I would send out. After I started doing some pretty regular sales, this became pretty time-consuming. I do still sometimes write a personalized card for a larger order. But, I think these little stickers are a nice touch and they make the packaging look super cute. Sometimes I put them on the outside of the box. Sometimes, I’ll use them to seal the tissue paper. Sometimes I do both! They are pretty inexpensive and just add that extra little touch of professionalism.Â
What’s Next?
These are my favorite reseller buys from Amazon….SO FAR!!! What do I have my eye on next? Welp, who wouldn’t love a thermal label printer…amirite?
This is an even larger expense than the steamer so I have a certain revenue goal that I would like to hit before I feel I can justify the investment. I do sometimes ship items for my husband’s business, so that might be another reason to justify this expense! Oh…the things small business owners dream of!
Do you have one of these label printers? If so, how has it changed your business? Was it worth it? Drop me a comment and let me know what else is on your “must have” list as a reseller. Share your favorite reseller buys from Amazon.
If you are new to reselling, check out my free guide on how to Flip Your Thrift Finds for Profit. In this guide, I share some of the best tips that I learned through trial and error over the last year of reselling. Simply fill in your name and email below and I’ll send you the guide along with other helpful tips!