How To Buy Bulk Stock Cheaper

Selling on eBay or Amazon can be a good source of income, if you know how to source your products. Selling refurbished products or surplus merchandise can be a lucrative online operation. But what if you are working on a tighter budget and would like to utilize your DIY skills? Well, this option could be the cheapest one, and if you strike a good lot, the one to bring you the highest profit.

Where Can You Buy Goods in Bulk?

Some online bloggers will claim that local distributors are the best option when it comes to finding products to sell online. The proximity means a lack of long-distance or international shipping is the bonus that helps you get the products at the cheapest possible price.

You can rely on Google searches by simply typing the name of the product you are looking to buy and sell, together with words such as “wholesale” or “distributor”. However, this search can be time-consuming and you will often get untried, unheard-of distributors.

It is also possible to source your goods elsewhere, at places like merchandise marts or trade fairs, but these have certain restrictions that often mean they are closed to the public, and generally won’t give you prices as competitive as you would get through liquidation companies or manufacturers.

Buying Liquidated Goods

Why go to so much extra work, when you can easily stay at home and source your products online? Buy online, sort the products, set some aside for parts, or fix up at home and sell back online.

Through online liquidation companies, you get access to a wide variety of products, from top brands, all due to the exclusive relationships between the site and the retailers and manufacturers. You can buy every day and even purchase smaller loads that enable you to test the demand, without committing to hundreds of units.

These sites offer also the safety of working with established businesses, with all the protections that affords.

However, looking at the merchandise conditions and lot descriptions you will find a number of lots sold as untested customer returns. While you might turn away from such wholesale pallets, here are a few reasons why you should go exactly for these pallets.

Why Buy Untested Customer Returns?

Firstly, you have to understand that products purchased online can’t be tried or tested, meaning that the probability of them being returned is higher. At times the buyer tries the product upon delivery and simply ships it back because it doesn’t fit or it is not what was advertised. This can often be the case with clothing.

Sometimes the seller ships the wrong size, wrong color or the product gets damaged during shipping. Upon returning to the retailer or manufacturer, these products, sometimes even unopened, can’t be sold as new and often end up being liquidated.

While sometimes the products get tested and refurbished before being liquidated, retailers and manufacturers often sort these products together and sell them ‘AS IS’ without attempting any repairs.

If you are wondering why you would go for a pallet of untested customer returns, here is the answer: the price. You are looking to buy cheap stock; these products are the cheapest.

Again, you have the right to question the quality of these products, however, on estimates around 75 percent of plug and play equipment works right out of the box. While there are no guarantees that you will hit such a percentage it could still bring you a great profit.

You can also work to increase your profit margins by doing a little digging, and trying to work out why items aren’t working, or why they were returned, and what you can do about it. You might purchase a wholesale pallet containing LCD TV’s that are missing power cables. While some might think that these products are only worthy for parts you should know better.

If you are able to make repairs on products that aren’t working, you’re helping yourself even more. Maybe 2 units that aren’t working can be cannibalized to create one that is.

It has to be noted that it is not always plain sailing and this business requires time, effort and patience, but for those who are willing to put in time and work, it can pay dividends.

Don’t Forget the Laws and Regulations

While you are getting the hang of purchasing untested customer returns from liquidation companies, you should not forget the regulatory obligations that can vary depending on your place of residence. In the majority of cases, you will need a resale certificate or a sales tax number, a business card verifying that you are operating on behalf of a company and you also need a commercial checking account. Don’t let this put you off, as this can be very simple and cheap to do, and allows you to play with the big boys of online commerce without needing minimum sales or investment.

Sourcing products from liquidators rather than general wholesalers can give you the head-start you need to stay competitive in the cut-throat world of online sales. Buying stock for the cheapest possible prices allows you to really make a lot of savings while stocking the products that your customers want.

The warranty on refurbished products provides the icing on the cake making your products even more attractive for potential customers. So why wait?

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Henley Johnson

Henley currently works as a sales representative for Direct Liquidation, assisting businesses with product sourcing of liquidated merchandise from the largest retailers in the world. Whether you are looking for a pallet or a truckload Henley is here to help you grow your business.

View Henley’s Bio on YouTube.