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 I’ve 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 seller’s 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 I’ve 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!
