I have been looking for a chart like this for YEARS! Thank-you for posting. I think we should have this as a link on this site. It looks good when you look at it quickly, but when you look at the realistic end prices (and this is without BIN or reserves) on average eBay and paypal are taking 15 - 20% which is what I thought. AND that is IF it sells.
Not to be a party pooper or eBay flag-waiver, but how much are rent, utilities, insurance, etc, for B&M's?? DON'T HURT ME, PLEASE!!! Janine:snowman:
Janine, I am the Ebay cheerleader here..lol I totally agree with you. I have had b&m's before and I would have been thrilled back then if I could have kept overhead at less than 30% of sales.
The difference however is that in a b&M you can sell a lot of things we dump on eBay for a lot more money. There is no way I would sell an Edwardian camisole for less than $35.00 in a store, whereas I am lucky if I get $10.00 for it on eBay, plus there is more work involved in selling it through eBay. In a store all I do is wash, iron and put it on a hanger with a price tag. Also, Doyle's and Sotheby's take 20% to sell items through them and they do all the work of photography, accounting etc. eBay used to be the economical way to sell, it isn't anymore.
I thought that was a great question that Janine asked, certainly fair! Interesting about Doyle's. With a b&m store would you have more volume sales then? Deb
Depends on where your store is and traffic of course, but I would think so. Obviously in a place like New York your rent will be high but so will your traffic. I have a friend in Toronto who used to operate a vintage clothing store from 1984 until 1999. Her rent, utilities etc. were $1200.00 per month for a shop that was about 20 X 12 feet, plus a back room and bathroom. She was in the artsy end of Queen street West which was where a lot of the punk bars and junky antique stores were - very hip with the young crowd. She did very well and only gave up the biz because she got tired of being chained to her store 6 days per week and her sources had pretty well dried up. Also, the building she was in had been sold and the new owner was going to double the rents. I regularly sold to her until I discovered eBay where I could (at the time) get better prices for things than by wholesaling to her. I used to sell her camisoles for $15.00 each, plain Edwardian petticoats for $20.00 or $25.00, crinolines $25.00, stiletto shoes $12.00 and up, 1950s prom dresses $45.00 - $65.00, Edwardian white cotton lace insert dresses $50 - $75.00 each, little black dresses from the early 60s $25 - $40, plain Victorian dresses $85 - $200. This was all run of the mill mid-market stuff. She would generally double and sometimes triple my prices, and if she bought in bulk I would offer a 10 - 25% discount. I was buying the stuff for about half of what I sold them to her for and every time I went, which was usually once a month with a couple of garbage bags worth, she would buy it all, rarely turning anything away, and usually what I had sold her the previous month was all but gone from her store. Those prices I quoted are about what I now get for the same items on eBay, with the exchange rate, so there is no value in selling through eBay for me anymore since I am getting what I was getting 15 years ago selling to her. I am not whining here, although I know it sounds like it, I am just stating the facts. A lot of antique clothing stores come and go, but many survive the changed in market and since the late 90s antique clothing has upscaled from where it used to be in the 80s and 90s. It would be interesting to hear from b&m store owners today, like Jim and Bret on what their view is re:store costs versus eBay, but you don't see Jim and Bret selling on eBay much... I don't think the money is there for dealers on eBay anymore.
yes, I got a rude awakening when I was going to relist a dress that tanked after their 5 cent listing fee. With a gallery photo no other extra add ons a whopping 3.00!! That's without the final value fee and paypal fees. excuse me, but I can grab a table at the flea market for that much. Gone are the days that ebay was a bargain.
B&M overhead cost in Vernon BC My store is 2500 sq.ft. Downtown, mainstreet. Monthly charges: Rent: 1070.00(cheap cause I've been there 20 years!) Power: 76.00 Gas: 133.00 Phone: 63.00 ==== 1342.00 That is just the main 4, which are always the same. The insurance/advertizing/supplies etc. vary per month but are at least 650/mth. So, before I sell anything I have to make sure my prices will bring in at least 3X's what I have to put out every month. Otherwise it isn't worth my time. I use eBay to sell some better things and some stuff that vernonites will not pay big $$ for.(tightwads!) Like the mink I sold for $422us that I couldn't sell in the store for $200cdn! Hope that helps explain what B&M costs are. Gayle:spin:
