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!
