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Meet the eBay Millionaires
From iPods to African collectibles, savvy entrepreneurs are making big money selling just about everything on eBay.
Posted 3/ 23 11 at 3:00 PM | Business Trends, Advertising & Marketing, Sales, Leadership, Starting a Business, Home-based Business, Online Business, Consumer Products & Services, Retail
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While many of us have had some experience in either selling or buying an item on eBay, few can actually claim to have made millions doing so. But, as these everyday entrepreneurs prove, with its global reach, eBay can be a fantastic way to transform your small business into a thriving one.
Based: Seattle
What he sells: Electronics
Revenue: More than $8 million
Revenue: More than $8 million
Jordan Insley got his start on eBay back in 2002 by selling sports memorabilia. After moving to Seattle from New York in 2004, he saw a bigger opportunity in selling electronics like cell phones and cameras. But it was sales of the now ubiquitous iPod, some 300,000 over just the past three years, which helped propel his company's growth. Insley says his nine-employee company is now expanding into LCD and plasma TVs as well as computers. "We have grown to the point where companies are coming to us to sell their products because they know we do a great job and make all of our customers happy," he says.
Based: Denver
What she sells: African clothing, art and other collectibles
Revenue: $1.2 million
Revenue: $1.2 million
In 1997, about a year after Elizabeth Bennett started her business, she heard about someone selling beads on eBay. More as a way to test it out, she, too, started listing her items for sale. "At first, I was like, 'Wow, we made just $50 a week,'" Bennett says. "I would never have guessed we could grow our business into what it is today." Bennett's business, which now employs seven, involves buying and selling unique items from African traders, such as clay pots, carved masks and textiles -- a trade that results in some $500,000 being pumped into the local economies of small African villages. Her biggest challenge? Shipping fragile and uniquely shaped items, like a seven-foot-tall giraffe statue, around the world. "I've had to do lots of learning over the past 14 years," she says.
Based: Chicago
What they sell: Bubble wrap and other packing supplies
Revenue: $1 million
Revenue: $1 million
After getting their start on eBay 11 years ago, Mark and Robin Le Vine (who founded the business with her former husband), estimate that they have sold about 2,838 square miles of bubble wrap -- enough to cover the distance between Maine and California. Bubblefast has continued to capitalize on the needs of other eBay sellers by expanding its product line to include other useful items such as boxes and packing peanuts. Perhaps more amazingly, they run their company -- taking and shipping orders from a warehouse near their home -- by themselves. "People assume we are this gigantic company," Le Vine says. "But when the phone rings, it will be Robin or myself who picks up."
Based: Beverly Hills, Calif.
What she sells: Designer handbags
Revenue: $4 million
Revenue: $4 million
It was a chance encounter at a kids' clothing store in Los Angeles in 1999 that changed Sarah Davis' life. After she found out that a woman standing in front of her in the checkout line was buying up kids' blankets and selling each one on eBay for a $20 profit, Davis, who was enrolled in law school at the time, decided she also could turn her fondness for finding bargains into her own profitable business. Starting out of her bedroom, Davis' business has grown by leaps and bounds -- leading her to move first to an office and, more recently, to a retail location in Beverly Hills that specializes in vintage and mint condition pre-owned designer handbags. The business has also become a family affair -- most of the company's 12 employees are Davis' relatives.
Based: Lothian, Md.
What he sells: Ski equipment
Revenue: $1.2 million
Revenue: $1.2 million
Chris Chapman spent years working in the retail business before making the transition to start his own wholesaling operation in 1999. One key benefit? "I got to be home for Thanksgiving for the first time in years," he says. It wasn't long before he learned about eBay, so he decided to put a pair of high-end skis up for sale to see what, if anything, would happen. "I didn't have a market to sell them anywhere else," he admits. To his pleasant surprise, he sold the skis at a tidy profit. That led him to start a daily routine where he would line up 20 pairs of skis, take pictures and post them online. Five years later, that routine became the norm, as 80% of Chapman's sales -- resulting from the sale of some 10,000 pairs of skis -- originated from eBay buyers. Today, the business is thriving, selling not only skis, but boots and clothing as well. "The keys to our success are to be honest, take good pictures and respond to our customers as quickly as we can," Chapman says.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Mark and Robin Le Vine have sold 2,838 square feet of bubble wrap. They have sold 2,838 square miles.
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Comments (Page 1 of 9)
I wouldn't advice anyone to start a business on E-bay unless you sell something no one else sells. E-bay put my wife out of business! A few years back my wife had about $12000.00 closing and after that she got suspended. We got a call from somebody saying your going to get kicked off of E-bay and started laughing. We thought it was a prank but right after that my wife gets suspended. It turned out somebdoy broke into her account and started shield bidding. She called E-bay and the guy said don't say I said this but I believe this is an inside job. I was told people who work at E-Bay can sell on E-bay. So if you are taking business away from somebody you know what happens. People bidding with zero feedback was another problem. People who sell on E-bay would make up fake names and fake bid on your item you are selling to discourage buyers from buying your item in hopes they will bid on their same item. This happened everyday and E-bay did nothing to stop this nonsense. Another time a lady bought 8 items and left 8 bad feedbacks so my wife got suspended. She said she never received her tops. She calls E-bay and says ask the lady to show that she paid for the items. E-bay says that is our problem. I could go on and on. E-bay is a nightmare!
you must work at ebay. no other douche would write something so lame.
and I was replying to Rowenabeau not MagicRum. Ebay SUCKS!
You are absolutely right in everything you say; it's harder and harder
for the small business person to make any money on ebay. They do not care about their sellers and plus shipping has gotten so expensive if you
don't sell high end items you don't make anything.
another thing about ebay is if you have a good connection on a legal product they will ask for receipts to prove that you anr not selling stolen goods and if you say that it is of my best interest not to tell them ( if you prove your legal connection you will probably loose it ) you will be kicked off. the big company's has a hot line direct to ebay to protect their interest!!!
I agree with MajicRum e-bay did the same to me. The seller is not protected by them they can get more sellers. They beleave everything the buyer tells them and screw the seller!!!
I'm finding eBay to be more and more of a nightmare to use. They're actually (don't know if everyone else got this notice or not) but they're going to drop the listing fees for auction items and start taking a bigger cut of final selling price and that stuff. Then they'll be able to take a larger chunk of the sellers money. I think that article Selling My Stuff For Cash on SaveCreatively's site
was worth reading. I was glad I found it because it does make sense and help you consider if it's worth the listing or not. Great for some people to make a success out of eBay, but it's sure not for everyone.
I have never heard of any company charging a fee on shipping ! I would think that many local , state and federal laws would be broken by doing so !
You're right on the money! E-bay killed our auto sales business just when everything was going well here comes E-bay with a complaint from another dealer on a car he purchased from us at a 10k discount because of issues that were disclosed to him before he purchased the car. E-bay simply shut us down period. E-bay reports all transactions to the IRS anyway......who needs that?
i would not start ebay 5 weeks ago a woman bought 295.00 worth of product from me . i deal with smc all there product is new. anyway i got them drop ship to her the money was still in my paypal. all of a sudden she tell ebay and paypal that everything was broke when arrive. i got ahold of smc and she was to ship everything back. ebay shut me down paypal gave her money back to her and smc never got there product back. paypal and ebay both suck and there own by the same people. i been selling on different place and this is the only place that a ripple off. and im out of all the money.
paypal should be shut down themselves they had also the nerve to try to draw out 300.00 dollar from my checking account because they claim that i sign into my account and draw out my from my bank. i called my bank told them to freeze that i got my 300.00 dollar back from paypal but the woman mary jackson got away 295.00 plus the product she got from me
so now im on onlineauction selling making 500.00 aweek not using paypal because they suck and not using ebay because they suck.
if you need a good place to sell come to onlineauction you can make it there and dont have all the fee just 8.00 a month. and you can put as many as you like in to sell
I was on ebay for ten years. They kicked me off because my brother burned some customers. I tried to appeal but they said I could not appeal. I believe ebay wants big business. I tried to appeal but I could not speak to anyone in charge. My old ebay rep isn't there anymore. My paypal rep know we're separate however she had no say so. A few months later, my home was foreclosed and cars repo thanks to eBay. My ratings prior to this was 98%.
EBAY, YOU MEAN FEEBAY. I have been selling on that site for the last 3 years. Now they are going to charge a Final value fee on the total including shipping. (I think that is illegal), but I am not a lawyer. I am going to sell on EBID. Maybe they will loose enough sellers that they will go out of business. You guys are right, they don't care about the small sellers. I am a Top Rated Seller and I worked hard to get there and I do not rip people off on shipping, most of the time, I loose money to make people happy. I do not have a regular job and this helps me pay the bills, now I will not be able to and I may loose my home and be out on the streets, but Ebay does not care. They really doSUCK and I am going to EBID. Tell your friends to check it out. They are much cheaper with fees.
Excellent, inspiring examples. Everyone setting up a small business on EBay should be sure to read the rules, and to join the VERO and VRT programs.
One thing *not* to sell on EBay (or anywhere else) are collections of e-books written by living authors, even if they are snagged from "sharing" sites and burned onto CDs or DVDs by the downloader and would-be vendor.
E-books can only be sold by the author, or by someone who has a signed contract with the author. If the author has a website, they probably own their own copyrights, and anyone on an auction site who tells you that they own "resell rights" is probably deluded.
I had a bad experience with Ebay as well. I bid on a motorcycle and won. When I called the guy he said, "That one is already sold but I have another one that's 3 years older for the same price." When I asked him why he didn't close the auction when it sold he said, "I forgot." Bait And Switch! I told him to shove it and both he and Ebay said "You won the auction, you have to pay." I told them to come and get their money, and my two friends Smith and Wesson would be happy to assist them. I never heard from either the seller or Ebay again. Good riddance.
Hey , isn't that the Dave from " Storage Wars " ? Bid his azz up !
"I told them to come and get their money, and my two friends Smith and Wesson would be happy to assist them." That comment made my morning, lol
Ebay was once the place to pick something up, but today only the ignorant bid there. A sucker is born every day and on Ebay it's no different.
You have to do your homework before buying anything.
I mean't to say that E-bay said it isn't our problem.
eBay sucks giant donkey balls they do not care about the sellers and the CEO will burn in hell on a lake of fire for all eternity.
This is so true! I have noticed over the past year or so Ebay prices are no longer bargains. The price difference between Ebay sales and retail are not that much different, so I'd much rather go to a nearby store so if I have a problem w/my item they are right here to deal with it! I hardly ever buy from Ebay anymore and I used to get packages everyday! LOL