How Pop Culture collectibles can increase your Online Auction profits With the increasingly competitive environment for products to sell in the online auction arena, sellers are getting more creative as to the items they purchase for re-sale. While some of the Dutch Auction items that are frequently sold on eBay will always maintain their commodity status and always sell well, Pop Culture collectibles will usually generate a higher profit-per-item simply because of a combination of two forces. Scarcity and Desirability. Pop Culture collectibles can run the gamut from a special early edition pair of Levis to a rare Coca Cola collectible. However, when I discuss Pop Culture items in this article, I will limit the definition to only the types of collectibles that Ive managed to have any experience with and that would be T.V., Movie and Toy collectibles. Obviously, the category of Pop Culture collectibles is much bigger than this limited definition, but in the interests of keeping this a knowledgeable article, I will focus on the limited definition here. One of my first experiences with Pop Culture collectibles was with a box of unused "The Fonz" posters that I found at an antiques swap meet a few years ago. I came across this box at a sellers stand. It had one poster taped to the outside of the box and the price tag on the box said $5 each. I asked the seller "How much are the posters?", not ever assuming that the price on the box was the current price. The seller replied with "Three bucks each." Being new to eBay and wanting to experiment, I counted the posters, which were still in shrink wrap material. There were 25 posters in the box. The box looked like it had been loaded and unloaded too many times, but the posters were in perfect condition. So I asked the seller, "How much for the whole box?" He asked, "How many are there?" I told him, "25". He said, "How about $40 for the box?" I said, "O.K.", and handed him $40. I posted an auction for one of the Fonz posters that week. It was a large photo of "The Fonz for Prez", sort of a campaign poster with Fonzie in his traditional Leather jacket, thumbs up and a "Sit on it" button on his jacket. The auction was set to close on a Sunday, and when I checked it on Friday, it was up to $22 ! I was shocked and happy at the same time. On Sunday, I took my family out to dinner and got home to see that the auction had closed at an astonishing $42.50 ! That experience was the one that cemented me in the area of Pop Culture collectibles! I continued to sell the Fonz posters, one at a time (so as not to "flood the market") at prices from the $42.50 high to a low of $12.50. My estimate for gross sales is somewhere around $450 for that box of posters. This type of profit exists in the area of Pop Culture collectibles, but it does take some guts to seek out and "gamble" on these types of deals. I had no idea what the posters were worth when I purchased them, but I had a good hunch, which proved to be correct. Other Pop Culture deals Ive made, most found at antique swap meets: M.A.S.H. action figures - purchased a box of 28 of them for $50, sold them individually for between $9.00 and $15.50 Star Wars Figures - purchased a box of special limited edition figures for $120 at a regular swap meet, sold the box to a Star Wars dealer for $2,100. Evel Knievel figure, mint in box, purchased for $10, sold for $115. Alien 3 movie theater poster (massive, about 4 tall by 12 wide), found at a yard sale for $10, sold on eBay for $50. Bionic Woman action figure, mint in box, purchased for $30, sold for $85. In each of these cases, I had no idea what the value was, I just went with my gut. But the fact that they were Pop Culture collectibles made it much easier to take that chance and buy the items. Another solution many sellers use is to have their spouse at home, ready at the computer to do price research on unknown items! Armed with a cell phone and a significant other at home doing research, your results will be less of a risk and more fun, too! |
