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Bootstrapping and Flipping on Craigslist Self-Employed Work from Home'

HoneyBadger

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Could you rent this badass triathlon bike out to somebody (could be risky) on a per race basis? Maybe to someone who is interested in trying a triathlon but doesn't want to splurge and buy a bike for something they may not do again.
 
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Scot

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Could you rent this badass triathlon bike out to somebody (could be risky) on a per race basis? Maybe to someone who is interested in trying a triathlon but doesn't want to splurge and buy a bike for something they may not do again.

That's a genius idea. Rent out race bikes for races to people who can't afford the crazy expensive bikes!
 

Carnage

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Could you rent this badass triathlon bike out to somebody (could be risky) on a per race basis? Maybe to someone who is interested in trying a triathlon but doesn't want to splurge and buy a bike for something they may not do again.

This is a good idea. You could reduce your risk by having them put down a deposit that they get back if they return the bike in good shape.
 

Mikkel

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This may break some sort of rule out there, but tell me if I am wrong. You could go to different places that sells bikes, or other products, and take photos of these products. Post them to Craigslist or Let go and see if they sell for the higher price. If it does, buy the product and than send it.

Does anyone know if this is allowed, by the way?
 
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94blackbird

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This is a good idea. You could reduce your risk by having them put down a deposit that they get back if they return the bike in good shape.

This is a common practice in the race car world where people buy seats for a race. Many teams have a you wreck it you "buy" it policy or they impose fines for hurting the car on track.
 

The-J

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Better to take an L than have cash tied up forever
 

MarekvBeek

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Hey Dude!
I Just got two of my bikes sold. It cost me over a month. And the other two are still depressing me. But what a kick gave it to me when I sold these two. It was hard.

It was a hard lesson to learn. I thought the bikes could easily be sold for two times the price. I had to find out that these were bikes for just 1,25. And my ego let me over. Now I have some cash so I can focus on other bikes.

The lesson I learned here is to focus on buying. Profit is made when I buy the bikes, not selling them. If you're not able to sell for your fixed price, try to lower it. If that's even not working then there has to be something with the bike or the listing. I still have one bike that I listed for €379 in the beginning. I had one offer of €300 but didn't accepted it. Now it's listed for €279 and still no people want to buy it. And I don't know why? So it has to do something with the bike or the ad. While I'm typing I think of relist it with some new pictures... Just keep trying.

Good luck!
 
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DuncDad

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So I finally got 300$.It's been a long crawl starting at 40$.

Have I done good?I think so, considering my current situation.However, I'm not sure what I should do now.Selling and buying bikes isn't as easy as you'd think.I could continue selling bikes, or I could invest in a vending machine.I could also flip other items, and I could also put some money into investing stocks/bitcoin (yes,I know bitcoin...).

My main goal at the end of this all is a eccomerce website, I could just start a site now and do dropshipping.However,If i do vending machines that goal could change.

Anyone got some guidance for me?
Drop shipping is one possibility but is a pretty busy space. Find local businesses that perhaps have no idea of ecommerce and arrange a private drop ship deal


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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Guest34764

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Damn I haven't updated this thread in forever.

Whoops.

So yeah, I managed to sell the Cervelo for 950 (yay).It was a pain, I went through 3 people actually coming over to my house only to say "no" at the end.Thankfully my savior showed up and bought it.

Now I'm in the process of making a few deals, I'd be lying if I didn't say it was hard as hell.

I've gone through so many ads and have found almost nothing.I'm going to have to have a big go at it tomorrow and try to find something.

I'm definitely looking to spend 300-400 on each bike but I'll go higher or lower if I need to.I'm thirsty for money so I'll take any good deal I can.

I'll update this thread when I buy another bike(s), really this update was just to say "hey!I'm not quitting".

Slow steps at a time, I was able to milk that bike for as much as I can (way more than I should have been able to).

Don't worry about time in the beginning, you're not going to have much money so try to milk them for all you can before selling them off.While you should value time, It doesn't really matter if the job only takes a hour or two of work and the rest you just sit there and wait.
 

HoneyBadger

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Damn I haven't updated this thread in forever.

Whoops.

So yeah, I managed to sell the Cervelo for 950 (yay).It was a pain, I went through 3 people actually coming over to my house only to say "no" at the end.Thankfully my savior showed up and bought it.

Now I'm in the process of making a few deals, I'd be lying if I didn't say it was hard as hell.

I've gone through so many ads and have found almost nothing.I'm going to have to have a big go at it tomorrow and try to find something.

I'm definitely looking to spend 300-400 on each bike but I'll go higher or lower if I need to.I'm thirsty for money so I'll take any good deal I can.

I'll update this thread when I buy another bike(s), really this update was just to say "hey!I'm not quitting".

Slow steps at a time, I was able to milk that bike for as much as I can (way more than I should have been able to).

Don't worry about time in the beginning, you're not going to have much money so try to milk them for all you can before selling them off.While you should value time, It doesn't really matter if the job only takes a hour or two of work and the rest you just sit there and wait.
Nice - you finally sold it. However - why are you going to look to spend 300-400 on each bike? Isn't that what got you stuck this time? Seemed like when you were buying them $20-$75 you were making good margins and selling quick.
 
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Scot

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Nice - you finally sold it. However - why are you going to look to spend 300-400 on each bike? Isn't that what got you stuck this time? Seemed like when you were buying them $20-$75 you were making good margins and selling quick.

Good point. @Omega do you live near a college campus? Reason why I ask, where I went to school, University of Florida, everyone rode bikes around campus. Twice a year Walmart would sell thousands of cheap mountain bikes (which are the worst bike to use on campus). You could tell who was a freshman vs any other year. Freshman rode Walmart specials. Everyone else had a decent road bike.

Reason why I point this out, you could easily acquire bikes from outgoing seniors for a low price and resell to freshman. Focus on volume vs high price. You could move more $1-300 bikes than $1,000 bikes.
 
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Guest34764

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Nice - you finally sold it. However - why are you going to look to spend 300-400 on each bike? Isn't that what got you stuck this time? Seemed like when you were buying them $20-$75 you were making good margins and selling quick.

I think the primary reason I got stuck was because the bike was focused on Triathlon runners.

200 to 400 I think is a good price point especially since I can't drive everywhere.I need to sit on a few high value bikes because my parents get mad having to drive me places.Though saying that I think I'll pick up a few lower value bikes and try my luck at them, I'll let you guys know when I get some more bikes.

Good point. @Omega do you live near a college campus? Reason why I ask, where I went to school, University of Florida, everyone rode bikes around campus. Twice a year Walmart would sell thousands of cheap mountain bikes (which are the worst bike to use on campus). You could tell who was a freshman vs any other year. Freshman rode Walmart specials. Everyone else had a decent road bike.

I don't really live near a campus.Good thoughts though guys, I'll try picking up some lower value bikes for quick money (maybe pay someone to deliver them too).
 

Invictus

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Any chance on diversifying? Stick with hustling/flipping, but maybe pick another niche you have some knowledge about. Might help you in lean times when there aren't too many bikes available.
 
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daivey

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i tried hustling on craigslist and kijiji but it seems like such a huge amount of effort for such little pay off.. I dont know, to me id rather spend more time at my job and getting good at that than craiglist side hustle.. maybe even picking up another job?

i would spend hours looking at listings at first.. looking at everything.. cars.. bikes.computers. phones.. and like there were no good deals ever. Every thing was priced to perfection..e.g. no margin to buy and re sell.. and then low balling people didn't really work, no matter how much charm, or how desperate they were.

but i am in Canada and it seems here people have never had famine. they would rather sell their iphone for $700 and hold on to it for 6 months, than for $550 sell it today, and feed their kids...
our social safety nets are too good.
 
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Guest34764

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i tried hustling on craigslist and kijiji but it seems like such a huge amount of effort for such little pay off.. I dont know, to me id rather spend more time at my job and getting good at that than craiglist side hustle.. maybe even picking up another job?

My version of hustling is small effort and big payoff,although I'm slowly realising I can't just stick to high priced items, this is the sort of mindset you should adopt because it makes you focus on the good deals and not the time wasters.

Spend more time at your job, have fun with it.Stay awhile, take off your coat and enjoy working.Sarcasm, of course, a hustle is simply a means to an end, there are several means to an end and luckily you have an option of choosing.Take the slowlane route with working 2 jobs and stay comfortable, or stay at your current job and hustle on the side and enjoy more time off and more money.Milk that job for all it's worth and turn that milk into gold.

By no means I'm I a shining example of a hustler,I don't even consider myself good since I've had such little experience with it.This thread serves the purpose of documenting my progress for others to look at and learn or get motivated to start doing it.I hope to god someone looks at this thread, goes out and makes more money at Craigslist than I do, because that's what I want, and that was the threads original purpose.

i would spend hours looking at listings at first.. looking at everything.. cars.. bikes.computers. phones.. and like there were no good deals ever. Every thing was priced to perfection..e.g. no margin to buy and re sell.. and then low balling people didn't really work, no matter how much charm, or how desperate they were.

You are dividing your focus way too much, stick to a few key categories that are used heavily in your area.I 100% guarantee you that there are deals out there, there's no way there isn't.Lowballing people hardly works, but when it does and you get a good deal It makes it worth it.

but i am in Canada and it seems here people have never had famine. they would rather sell their iphone for $700 and hold on to it for 6 months, than for $550 sell it today, and feed their kids...
our social safety nets are too good.

My area is like this too and so Is everyone else's.People are greedy, they want to soak up as much money as possible because that's just human nature.If they bought it for 600$ a year ago you can bet your a$$ that they will sell it for 550$ used.That's just how shit is unfortunately, but deals are out there, you just have to focus in and find them.

Have a good read, this guy knows his stuff.Enjoy.

http://www.lambopower.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=58618
 

miked_d

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I love your story. I am impressed with you starting with something simple and executing. I am more impressed with your ability to express yourself. You are better than many adults.

Have you thought about studying copyrighting? It will help you with your ad copy and help you in the future. You may even progress into that.

Keep on executing!
 
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Omni

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Hey @Omega, I respect your hustle. If you want to take this to the next level I'd recommend moving to a more scalable distribution like amazon or ebay and more scalable source of products like a manufacturer or even retail arbitrage to get your feet wet. Right now, you're using a lot of time on bespoke sourcing and selling via craigslist.

Also not sure if you're working now, but I'd recommend a job + doing this as a side hustle. E-commerce gets capital intensive and way more fun when you can finance your growth. Good luck!
 

AlphaWulf

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Super interesting thread.
Infact Gary Vee started his businesses flipping toys and what not in ebay after buying from Garage sales. He used to make $1000 a week at your age.

Pretty awesome right?
You are on the right track. I will keep an eye on the thread.
Gary Vee is great. I watch him on snapchat and he just went out last weekend and bought $300 worth of toys and estimated to sell it for 3.6k on ebay. Reselling is the most basic form of business. Simple yet effective
 
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Guest34764

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Where am I at with all of this now that I'm 18?

Well I managed to land a job working sales at JcPenny and I'm slowly wiggling my way into appliances and mattresses (the ultimate goal because of the commission and hourly wages there are insane).It became clear to me that I'd have to pick up a job, though for not for the reason of money (which the money is pretty nice), but for the reason of experience and furthering my skills in talking and analyzing customers.The experience is what I want, and the networking is actually pretty great too. I wanted to get better at engaging people and selling them so a sales job became the perfect opportunity for that.Credit cards are vital for JcPenny and I'm managing to get so many customers signed up that I've put myself in a good position among all the staff and I'm in great favor with everyone. I even managed to get a truck for free.However, I'll have to get it fixed up because it's in a bit of disrepair.This is a huge step though, I needed my own form of transportation, with my own vehicle i'm not dependent on my parents to help me at all now. I've eliminated them from the side hustle. What became a small thing with the bikes is slowly ramping up and I'm so excited for all of this. Since I've been gone from the forums I've been focusing on my mental health, and gaining as much knowledge as I can in the meantime reading old English literature and the like. While this update is brief, good things are ahead and I'm excited for the future. I have one thing on my mind and that's success. I will do another update once I get my truck fixed and I start ramping up my side hustle (Which will make more than working my job by about 5 times or so).

The only person that truly matters is you in the end, and be in a constant state of learning or you'll fall behind.

That's all for now.
 
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Guest34764

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I joined this website when I was 15, that seems like forever ago.

I am now 19.

I have not posted for a year, where have I been? Time seems to go by pretty quickly, but looking at the large picture things have tended to melt together. It's been four years since I read MJ's book and that means I've had four years of my life to get things greased up and running.

My last post was saying how I got my first job at JcPenny, I'm now on my third job. I won't reveal many details but during my position at JcPenny, I was introduced to a gentleman who gave me a sales job working for another company. I rocked that position and made a ton of money, more than my mother was making. I was quite happy with myself, or really it was the money I was happy with. It didn't work out in the end and now I'm working another job. It sounds boring, doesn't it? Working constantly...It is to me. I wanted to include this paragraph first before I told the good bits because life goes in the direction you aim it, but if your aimless it's going to follow the wind and the wind might lead you into a shitty place.

My last post was when I was 18, in a year I'd like to imagine I've come quite far. I'm seriously pretty happy about where I'm at right now. I even have a business. Albeit it's small and just starting, I can fully say that I went out and started something of my own that has come from my passion. I intend on scaling up my current business and getting a better, higher paying position at work. Not only have I started a business but I have also put away thousands of dollars and I started a portfolio of ETFs and Stocks that I picked out. I'd like to say I'm on track for a better future. I'm saving, expanding my inventory, and increasing the value of my portfolio whenever I can. Perhaps I'll do a highlight of my small business sometime, I intend to hopefully remain somewhat more active than just posting once a year.

I realize the original purpose of this thread was to talk about craigslist flipping, and I apologize to those who might search of this thread and see my blog posts as this was not the idea I had in mind of this thread and flipping is something I'll be getting back to. However, It's become a sort of journal for me to document myself and current position. I'm not sure how much attention this thread even garnered in the past but I hope in another length of time I can check up on this thread and read about how I started out flipping bikes on craigslist all the way to when I became financially free.

The fire inside has not died yet, to all of those even younger than me, learn, apply, repeat.
Something will definitely go wrong, learn from it, change up what you're doing and continue sprinting down that path of freedom.
 

ShamanKing

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Interesting your Niche is bikes. I focus on toys, games, and Men's Shirt (although I hate it bc the process of taking pictures and posting annoys me, I love the ROI). Thanks for sharing if you ever want to spread out to other niches I am glad to share what works for me.
 

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