Finding Items to Resell From Your Local Auction

Running an eBay reselling business can be challenging. Especially when you’re trying to find items to resell. The winter months can be even more challenging when the car boot sales have finished for the year, or you don’t want to trudge around charity shops in the rain. So your local auction house can be a good place to find cheap, quality items to resell on eBay, Etsy, Facebook Marketplace or whatever platform you use. (For the purposes of this blog post I’m just going to say eBay from now on). However buying at auction is still a learning curve so here’s my step by step guide to help you find items to resell at the auction. I’ve included one of my recent YouTube videos at the end showing you some lots I bought to resell.

Exploring the auction house for items to resell

The local auction house I use most has sales every Tuesday and on a Monday you have the opportunity to go and have a look around the lots on sale. The auction houses I’ve visited are based in huge warehouse type buildings and the lots are displayed on rows of tables. They might have single items on trays or lots of items piled into boxes. You’ll also find some items are behind a counter in glass cabinets – these tend to be the more expensive, breakable items. It can take a good hour (maybe even more) to have a look around so make sure you give yourself plenty of time.

Prepare for your ‘look around’ visit

There’s usually a lot of things to look at so make sure you charge your phone battery so you can take photos of the lots you’re interested in. You need to remember as much detail as possible so you can do some research when you get home. And don’t forget to photograph the lot number. I’d also suggest wearing some comfortable shoes and a warm jacket in the winter!

Browsing the items to resell

If you’ve been a reseller for a while you might already have in mind the things you’re looking for, but it’s good to keep an open mind as auctions give you the opportunity to branch out into lots of different items to resell. If it’s a general auction you’re looking around then they will have a large eclectic range of stuff from furniture to china to clothing to comics. You see all sorts at an auction.

Tips for looking around the auction house

• You’re allowed to pick up the items in the auction house so make sure you have a good look at them. Check for damage. Your items to resell need to be in good condition. No-one wants broken china or torn clothing. If you’re looking at a tea set, pick up each piece and have a good look at it, run your finger around the rim of a cup (sometimes it’s hard to see a small chip). Open books to check for marks or writing in them. Unfold blankets or tablecloths to check for holes. Take the lid of a game and make sure all the pieces are there. Unfortunately if you’re buying used jigsaws I don’t think you could check if all the pieces are in the box. Be as diligent as you can. Once you’ve bought something from auction you can’t return it!

• Take photographs of the lots you want to research, preferably from different angles, including brand names.

• If you want to look at anything in that’s in a cabinet, then there’s usually staff on hand to help you. Examine the ornaments and the jewellery for defects and identifying marks.

• You’ll find boxes of assorted items at the auction so don’t be afraid to have a good rummage in the boxes. Take things out so you can see what’s at the bottom (sometimes you’ll find some hidden treasures). Be careful not to break anything while you’re doing this though. You can sometimes get boxes of items like this really cheap as people don’t take time to rummage so don’t bid on them.

• If you’re looking at china/pottery items and have never sold anything like this before please consider the packaging and shipping of them when they sell. It takes some effort to pack up a 21 piece china tea set or dinner service. Luckily my husband loves a challenge like this, he prides himself on his excellent packaging and loves it when a customer leaves specific good feedback about it. But it’s not everyone’s cup of tea (pardon the pun lol). You’ll need strong boxes, lots of bubble wrap and filler material to make sure it gets to the buyer in perfect condition.

• Some auction houses will sell you a Sale Catalogue or there will be details of each lot on their website. Don’t take the auction details for granted. I once bought a lot of what they listed as ‘Whitby Jet’ jewellery. Unfortunately I hadn’t take the time to look at this lot at the auction house and most of it turned out to be ‘French Jet’ (not typically as lucrative). This was a £75 mistake I made (and never repeated). The auction house doesn’t always get it right.

Tips for researching your items to resell before you bid

• Make a list of all the lots you are interested in and get your photos to hand. You need to research your items on eBay. This is where the details you photographed come in handy. Type the brand, colour, pattern etc into the eBay search bar to see if the item has been sold before and how much it sold for. Check the item you’re going to bid on is the same as the ones that have been selling … especially if it’s a vintage toy, you need to make sure it’s the same manufacturer and date.

• If you can’t find the item on ebay then do an image search on Google. This doesn’t always work, especially if it’s an antique piece of china, but it’s worth a try to see if you can locate more details about it. Knowing what your item is selling for helps you decide how much you’re going to bid for it at the auction.

• Consider the fees. You’ll be paying fees at the auction when you win the lot. As a guide if I buy something for £20 it will cost me £25.04 once the auction puts their commission on top. Check with your local auction house what their fees are first. There will obviously be eBay fees when you list/sell the item too so make sure you take all these into account when deciding how much to bid. You want to make as much profit as possible. Of course what profit you are happy to make may be different to what someone else is happy to make.

• Also consider shipping costs. It’s difficult to weigh an item before you buy it but if you’ve held it in your hand you probably have an idea of weight and size so can make an educated guess at how much shipping will be. If the shipping costs are too much in proportion to how much you sell the item at, then the customer may think it’s too expensive.

• Once you’re done all your research you can write down in your notes the maximum bid you’ll be happy with. Keep this safe as you’ll need it on auction day.

Where to bid and how to bid on your items to resell

In some auction houses you have the option to physically go there on the day and bid or you can bid online from the comfort of your own home. All you need to bid online is a good connection to the internet. I love physically going to the auction – you can’t beat the atmosphere but as it takes a lot of time out of my day I usually find it better to do it online via The Saleroom. A lot of auctions opt to broadcast their sales via The Saleroom website. All you need to do is register with the auction house, get approved to bid by filling in a few details including your credit/debit card and then register with The Saleroom (this is all free to do).

If you’re bidding physically at the auction house then it’s just a case of raising your arm when your lot comes along, then giving your auction house number if you win the lot.

If you’re bidding online you can log on the day before and put in an autobid, which means you leave your maximum bid for each item and the auctioneer will bid up to that for you. Or you can watch and listen to the auction on your computer or mobile phone. Just follow the instructions from your auction house website or find your auction house sale on The Saleroom website. You’ll see the auctioneer and be able to listen to what’s going on, just as if you were in the room. If you haven’t put in auto bids you need to be online and signed in to click the bid button. Remember to not go over the maximum bid you set for yourself during the research stage … it can be very easy to get carried away!

What happens after you’ve won your items to resell?

• At the end of the auction you’ll either go to the reception desk at the auction house to pay for the lots you won, or you’ll be emailed an invoice to pay if you bid online.

• You can now pick up the lots you won. You could either take them on the day if you’re already there or within 5 days if you bid online. Check your own auction house for more details about how long you get to pick your lots up. Make sure you take plenty packing materials with you to get your items home safely. They will be given to you as you saw them in the auction house. So if they were displayed on a tray you’ll have to pack them yourself and give the tray back. If they were displayed in cardboard boxes then you can take the lot away like that, but you might still need bubble wrap if there’s a lot of china in it … you don’t want it breaking in the car on the way home.

• Once you’re home it’s time to go through your items to resell, sorting out what needs cleaning (some things can be really dirty) and what needs testing (very important if you’ve bought electrical items). I usually have a separate box for what can go to the charity shop if it’s not worth listing on eBay or throw it away if it has been broken. There are occasions when I haven’t been to the auction house to view items before the sale, so when I get the boxes home it’s quite interesting to see what I’ve actually bought! However I don’t recommend buying without viewing first if you can help it.

• Store your items safely. I have a dedicated room in my house that I use as a stock room. It’s full of shelving so I can keep items safe. If you don’t have a lot of space it may be worthwhile packing your items immediately after you’ve listed them. This should give you extra space but don’t seal the box after packing just in case you get questions from potential buyers that require you checking them again.

That’s basically my step by step routine for buying items to resell from my local auction house. I’ve bought lots of really good things at bargain prices and made some really decent profit on them. Don’t expect to get great stuff every week though as auctions, like car boot sales, can be a bit hit and miss depending on what they’ve got coming in. But 9 times out of 10 I pick up something interesting.

If you buy at auction let me know if I’ve missed any tips. Or if you have any questions about buying at auction to resell on eBay I’d be happy to answer them in the comments section below.

Take a look at my recent Youtube video where I show you what I bought at auction to resell on eBay, how much I paid and in some cases how much I expect it to sell for.

Happy reselling 🙂