Appliance Flipping

[G-Man]

Not my business, but one I just bought from that I thought I would share:

If you go on Craigslist in my city and search for used appliances, almost all you find is one repeated ad for used/refurbished washer& dryer sets and fridges. I go down to this place, buy a nice clean set for dirt cheap, and the owner is on the phone negotiating with someone to BUY the set they have listed on Craigslist. From what I can understand of Spanish here's what he's doing:

1. Call everyone that lists their appliances on Craigslist, give them a lowball offer, but offer to pick up and pay same day
2. Clean up said appliance and re-list on Craigslist offering 90 day warranty and same day delivery and installation.

Anyone who's thought of buying an appliance on Craigslist knows the logistics are a huge pain in the a$$: Going to a stranger's house, having to arrange to meet without them flaking, finding a truck and some people to move it for you, etc. He removes the hassle for both buyer and seller.

This guy removed a huge pain point for the price of some cheap warehouse space and having his wife sit there posting ads all day while her kids go bonkers in the lobby.

Just thought I would share. It's easy to get distracted from focusing on removing simple but real pain points in people's lives. This dude provides a lot of value to a lot of people with a simple idea and relentless execution.

 

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[amp0193]

The fact that it's difficult/impossible to scale did occur to me, but, it was very interesting to see the hustle.

I think the most off-putting part of the customer experience was having to drive to the guy's shitty warehouse. I almost wonder if you couldn't replace the entire operation with roving box truck trucks that carry the inventory, and give the drivers mobile POS devices. The biggest difficulty with that model would be people calling your truck out to their place, then not buying anything. It's a common problem, and I haven't seen a really elegant solution yet. Must mean there's opportunity there.

Another difficulty with a roving box truck, is simply the time it would take to move around machines. Oh, they want the one in the back... F*ck, now I gotta move 4 washers out of the way. I had 30+ machines in my one-car garage at all times... there was a lot of time wasted shuffling machines around.

I think the best strategy, is to clean and paint your machines, so they look pristine, and take great pictures in the sunlight. My pictures were better than anyone elses, and most people just wanted me to deliver what they saw on the ad. I would say that less than 10% wanted to come by my place and check them out before hand. Most were content to just see it running after I hooked it up in their house. Before I quit, I was planning on building a spinner stand to take 360 spin photos/videos of each machine for the website, and was going to take videos of each machine running, to up the trust level even more.


There is a market for mid-price used machines, if you can deliver a high-quality, working product, and generate a lot of trust to the buyer. There is an opportunity here to make a killing, with a very high entry barrier, as you'll need to franchise out into more cities to get any real scale. I just didn't enjoy the business enough to make it work.


Another note: when demand was slow, I looked into every possible trucking option to see if it was at all possible to have machines trucked and delivered out of city, to increase the customer base. I don't remember what the costs were... but it really wasn't feasible at all from a profit or price standpoint.


Last tip: If someone wants to give appliance hustling a go, here's the #1 money maker: Offer Free Delivery in exchange for their old appliance. Most broken washers/dryers need $10 or less in parts to fix, and 30 minutes or less of work. So, there's your free inventory.

 

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[amp0193]

I'm also going to look into simple lead generation for existing guys.

There is definitely money in this model. I was pivoting into a lead gen or subcontracting model, when I decided to drop the whole thing and commit 100% to my ecommerce stuff. I'm telling you... No one is internet marketing, no one. I read 3 or 4 @Andy Black local lead gen posts, and was able to secure very cheap clicks for myself. The guys who are running adwords, are targeting only the most basic, obvious keywords... and they don't have matching landing pages with city names and all that.

I'm also in DFW by the way. I bought my machine down on Harry Hines.

I'm in Denton.

Was this a side-thing for you? It sounds like you were operating out of your garage, yes?

It started as an evenings/weekend thing when I was a teacher. Then, I committed 100% on my summer break, to really go after it, to see if it could pay the bills. It made me less than my teaching paycheck, with longer and more gruelling work hours, so I gave it up.

Did you have your own truck with a lift gate, or did beast those things in and out of a pickup?

And no, I opted for the cheapest working F150 money could buy... $2,200. And before that, I operated for a year with a utility trailer behind my honda civic. I got really good at man-handling appliances. Got a couple of huge fridges in/out there by myself. A lift-gate would be a must though, if you were going to do this seriously.

Applianceschool.com is where I learned to repair washers/dryers. The owner runs a blog that I read and have contributed to in the past. $150 for all you need to know to get started. The associated forum and/or youtube could quickly answer my repair questions when I came across a new problem.

 

[amp0193]

I actually saw your Civic & trailer in Park Glen on Beach street a year or 2 ago. I actually thought you was going around picking up things by the curb. I didn't know you sold washers and dryers.

haha, no way! I don't remember doing any deliveries out that way... but I did so many that's it's possible.

I bought a 2001 Dodge mini van ($1300) to do my deliveries. Very easy working out of the van, weather is never a problem and great mpg. If needed I can fit 2 washers and 2 dryers at a time.

Yeah, that van sounds great. There was a number of times where I had 6-8 appliances being hauled around, but you could easily do that with a cheap utility trailer behind the van.

So now I've been back at it about 1 year and doing better than ever at it. Once I learned some tricks of the trade it is easy now.... just time consuming but I like it.

The toughest part of the job is getting the labor necessary to scale. As soon as I took on a full-time repair guy, the quality control went down, and I had to deal with more returns/repairs after the sale.

The easiest way to start is to get a couple of part-time delivery guys, if you can. Local college kids needing beer money are great for this. You just get their available schedule, and then schedule deliveries/pickups with customers based on when your college kid can get it out there. Getting myself out of deliveries was a game-changer.

My #1 tip though, is offer "free shipping in exchange for your old broken kenmore/whirlpool/estate washer/dryer". This really kept the inventory coming. I wouldn't do free deliveries on GE or other shit washers/dryers.

Also, be sure you're up-selling. Charge for curbside delivery. Charge an extra $20 for installation and hookup. Charge for hoses. Charge for dryer ducts. Get an air compressor and a skipper and you can add a vent clean out for $40. Just try to maximize the average customer order to make the drive out to their place worth it.

 

[minivanman]

Ok, here are the problems with the above posts. In order to make the most money in the appliance business, you not only need to sell washers and dryers but you need stoves and refrigerators as well. Now as we all know, washers and dryers and refrigerators are now smarter than we are. So just 'basic' knowledge of repairing will probably be out the window in the near future.... and it really already is if you want to have a large business like you are talking about. You need to sell front loads and everything that works off a computer board. While this wouldn't be impossible, it is harder than linking to a simple Youtube video.

But the HUGE.... H U G E positive to something like franchising this business is this..... why buy my franchise? Because I can supply you with washers, dryers, stoves and refrigerators. If the franchisor can ship the franchisee machines.... that is the best answer for..... why buy my franchise.

Like I said before, I've thought about it and have the means to do it but nowadays I just don't have the energy to mess with something this big. I even have a marketing campaign that could go to all 50 states within 1 week ($0 upfront for this campaign and does not include Craigslist). Another reason to buy my franchise. But I got out of the cleaning business to get out of the hectic day-to-day operations of workers and customers. So personally, I'll probably just stay very, very, very small and near stress free.

On a side note: I see one of our local used appliance stores went out of business. The original owner started back in 2012. He thought if he got a store front on a busy road that would be all he needed to make enough money to have a successful business. Then he sold it to a family that probably saw a business on a busy road and thought it would make enough money to be successful.... they failed to realize that they didn't have a steady supply of washers, dryers, stoves and refrigerators and they also failed to realize that the business is not about repairing appliances (they could do that EASY).... the business is about selling. You need to be an advertising/marketing person in order to make most businesses successful. <<<< That is why most businesses fail by the way

 

[amp0193]

Not my business, but one I just bought from that I thought I would share:

If you go on Craigslist in my city and search for used appliances, almost all you find is one repeated ad for used/refurbished washer& dryer sets and fridges. I go down to this place, buy a nice clean set for dirt cheap, and the owner is on the phone negotiating with someone to BUY the set they have listed on Craigslist. From what I can understand of Spanish here's what he's doing:

1. Call everyone that lists their appliances on Craigslist, give them a lowball offer, but offer to pick up and pay same day
2. Clean up said appliance and re-list on Craigslist offering 90 day warranty and same day delivery and installation.

Anyone who's thought of buying an appliance on Craigslist knows the logistics are a huge pain in the a$$: Going to a stranger's house, having to arrange to meet without them flaking, finding a truck and some people to move it for you, etc. He removes the hassle for both buyer and seller.

This guy removed a huge pain point for the price of some cheap warehouse space and having his wife sit there posting ads all day while her kids go bonkers in the lobby.

Just thought I would share. It's easy to get distracted from focusing on removing simple but real pain points in people's lives. This dude provides a lot of value to a lot of people with a simple idea and relentless execution.

I did this for a year. Fixing and flipping appliances.

It's difficult to scale... as to get yourself out of the biz, you have to find skilled repair techs, or train them yourself. The costs of delivering appliances, and then going back to fix them if they break a week later were frustrating. @mikeyjd is making this exact thing happen, however, because he's amazing at systems & efficiency. You want to widen the mileage of your delivery range to gain more customers, but as you do that, you're also doubling the time investment and fuel cost if you have to go back for some reason.

Ultimately, what killed it for me was supply/demand. When I was really cranking out machines, I would have like 24 ready to go... and I would go days without phone calls. I was on Craigslist, my own website with adwords, phone apps. There was a fair amount of competition in the DFW area, however, NO ONE is doing any sort of internet marketing. I was the only dude in the city with a website, and I was getting cheap leads through it. If I was more central in Dallas, I probably would have got more traffic... but that's the trouble with such a business, is that it's so LOCAL.


A model I liked, was applianceswap.com. They would hook up buyers with local "trusted" dealers. That was more fastlane, as they were leveraging the backbone of appliance techs, without actually having to move any machines themselves. It looks like it didn't work out, however, as the site's homepage is redirecting to something else now.


However, it's a great way to hustle together some cash if you have a truck and some muscle.

 

[amp0193]

A General Contractor I know removes appliances out of flips and remodels and sells them to an appliance flipper for $50-75. He has a storage container full of them and it is a way to generate some side cash. Can you say bulk purchase???

Yup, the next level is bulk purchasing inventory. I did a couple of bulk purchases from re-habbed apartment complexes. I'd pay $40-50 for "as is" washers/dryers that I knew were a good brand that I could work on.

The cost of shipping get's too high to make money after a certain distance.

Yup, I really tried to figure a way to make the numbers work on national shipping. Not happening on used appliances.

The way to scale this is through Intentional Iteration. Probably Franchise model, but chaining may also be able to work. "We Buy Ugly Houses" made a fortune franchising.

This is the big money. Right now, there is no nationally recognized brand of used appliance dealer. There's a couple strictly "appliance repair" chains, but no used appliance dealers. I got out of the biz, but the opportunity is RIPE for someone who can do internet marketing and franchising. There was not one competitor in the entire Dallas metroplex who had a website with inventory, except for me, for the year that I did this.

I think the opportunity for the used dealer market is great, because of the incredibly low quality of new washers/dryers being sold in stores these days. They are built to fail in 4-5 years.

This pick one up drop one off thing is cool but thinking too small.

It's just a part of the strategy. If you have to go out to their house to make the delivery anyways, might as well get a free piece of inventory out of it, that you can fix for $20. I would say 40% of my deliveries yielded a new piece of inventory. Bulk purchases would be the ideal way to get inventory for the 60% of inventory that is gone after the deal is done.

 

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[Scot]

I've never understood franchises like this.

Why should I buy your franchise when I can just go purchase a washer on my own and fix it up with YouTube?

Because you're not buying the ability to fix a washer. You're buying a turn key working business system.

Anyone can buy a couple moving vans and rent them out. But if you buy a uhual franchise you get the system, the support and the success rate that come with it.

Also, you need to look at this from a Slowlane mindset. Would a Fastlaner or anyone on this forum buy that franchise? No. But slowlaners buy franchises every day.

 

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[amp0193]

@amp0193 How's the Ecommerce business going for you? Do you find it more profitable and enjoyable as oposed to the appliance business? Which business do you think has more potential to be successful?

I enjoy ecommerce a lot more than appliances.

Both are profitable and good businesses.

Ecommerce is much easier to scale. I could be running a business worth 5M with a couple of employees. Employees come into play much earlier in the appliance biz.

There, your growth is limited by your human resource pool. To scale, you'd need to develop a reliable way to recruit skilled labor, or a way to train in house.

As far as I know, there is no one doing used appliances on a national scale. Almost no one doing used appliance sales through any kind of a website. There is an opportunity.


It's not, "which would be more successful?" it's "what makes the most sense for you personally to do, given your background, experience, and what you enjoy doing?"

 

[minivanman]

Yes, very difficult to scale. That is my problem now. I can sell more but that means I need more time to repair, paint and deliver. Not to mention I'd need more time to sell. The original poster said it seemed like an easy business, just get some appliances and have someone answer the phone.... I wish. I could be a millionaire in no time if that was the case. I could hire someone but I have a lot of experience with employees and with only 1 worker it would be very tough. What if they quit? What if they call in sick for 1 day or 3 days? 1 worker is hell... I've been there before. 3+ workers is really needed for less stress.

I actually saw your Civic & trailer in Park Glen on Beach street a year or 2 ago. I actually thought you was going around picking up things by the curb. I didn't know you sold washers and dryers. I bought a 2001 Dodge mini van ($1300) to do my deliveries. Very easy working out of the van, weather is never a problem and great mpg. If needed I can fit 2 washers and 2 dryers at a time.

I was going to retire from another business I've had since 1998 so I tried the washer and dryer business 4 years ago. I lasted about 3 months but I really liked it. I had 2 partners back then and they flaked out so we closed up shop. So now I've been back at it about 1 year and doing better than ever at it. Once I learned some tricks of the trade it is easy now.... just time consuming but I like it.

 

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[Greg R]

I like this guys,

You are on to something here.

A General Contractor I know removes appliances out of flips and remodels and sells them to an appliance flipper for $50-75. He has a storage container full of them and it is a way to generate some side cash. Can you say bulk purchase???

I don't understand why it would be difficult to scale this though. The way I see it, this is definitely a local thing. The cost of shipping get's too high to make money after a certain distance. The way to scale this is through Intentional Iteration. Probably Franchise model, but chaining may also be able to work. "We Buy Ugly Houses" made a fortune franchising.

I like what you guys have said about the whole delivery aspect of up selling, that is cool.

Buying used appliances in bulk is the way to go though. This pick one up drop one off thing is cool but thinking too small.

Just my two cents.

 

[minivanman]

Well, the scrap yard would probably pay you about $10 or so per unit so you would lose a lot of money fast. If you bought a set for $125 and you sold them at the scrap yard for $20 you would lose $105 in your first hour of being in business. lol

Most guys will look on Craigslist and try to buy from there. Sometimes it takes an hour to do that and sometimes it takes 2 weeks. Then you have to drive to where it is located.... try your best to make sure it works good.... then load it and bring it back. So not only would you lost $105 you would also lose all that time.

I normally don't buy from Craigslist nowadays because I have access to all I can sell but I still look on CL sometimes. A few months ago a guy had an almost brand new Whirlpool washer & dryer $650 (used only 2 months)... I emailed and asked if he would take $300. He said no way. 3 weeks later on a Saturday morning he emailed me and said he would take the $300 but I told him all I have now is $250.... he said come and get it. lol So I brought it back home, re-listed it for $550 and sold it within a few minutes. lol Now I could do that because I didn't NEED the set to sell but if you only buy from Craigslist and are kind of desperate for sets, you can't really do that. And, most guys do this to pay the bills and eat (I don't). If that is the case, you can't really mess around like that. If you are doing this to pay the bills you will need to quickly give the guy $300 and not try to haggle (already a GREAT price) because it's very easy for them to find a last minute buyer. I'm not saying to not haggle, I'm just saying to not make the seller too unhappy about low balling.... I'm all for low balling.... just don't push it.

 

[Scot]

So I thought of this thread the other day. @minivanman touched on it a bit and I know @amp0193 said he's out of the business...

But wouldn't an operation like this be perfect for franchising? Look at franchises like the "we buy ugly houses" or even Uhual.

If you were systematize the process, hire a couple of low skill guys and then train them, you could prove the concept.

Put together a training source like a master excel sheet with every model and the links to YouTube or manuals on how to fix each one, then put together a short training program to teach the basics. Take 2 guys with basic skills (they know how to use a screw driver) and take them through the training and have them properly repair appliances with minimal supervision.

Streamline the process of acquiring old appliances and selling repaired ones. Make a master marketplace website for sales. Think uhual. You search for the truck you want in your location and you pick it up from some random franchisee. When you get franchisees they just list their appliances for sale on the master site and people shop by location and price.

Then just make sure you make this process as streamline as possible and as profiteable as possible. Then start to market the concept as a franchise opportunity. Each franchisee you sell to goes through your training program to fix appliances then they get the "key" to their franchise once they show decent proficiency.

Bonus selling point, become a distributor of repair and replacement parts, sell them to your franchisees (dominos pizza makes the majority of its income selling the ingredients to its stores, not selling pizzas).

 

[ChickenHawk]

Some potential marketing insight...Maybe the Washing Machines Aren't USED so much as VINTAGE

I HATE the new washing machines. Hate them. The "energy efficient models" take forever to wash a single load of clothes, which come out only half clean. When I moved into a new house, I paid double the going rate to buy a "non-efficient" washing machine. (This is a new washing machine, made to the older specs.) I could've bought a new high-efficiency machine for $450. However, I paid nearly $900 for a new "vintage" one.

All this to say, I think price isn't the only selling point when selling old washing machines. Lots of people hate the new government-mandated "energy-efficient" styles, but are unwilling to pay nearly $900 for a brand-new, old-fashioned design.

Machines made before 1996 made customers a lot happier, as illustrated in the following article:

How Washington Ruined Your Washing Machine
http://emp.byui.edu/MarrottR/101_WashingMachinesRuined_SKazman-WSJ.pdf

 

[Ryan Finlay]

Hello minivanman! I banned you because after reading your posts for a few months I never saw you give any specifics that would indicate that you were actually buying/selling and repairing appliances. It was all talk, and the details you would give were outlandish. It didn't appear to me that you were having anything to do with appliances and when you announced that you were walking away from the used appliance business and that you wanted to share with everyone a hot new business, that was when I removed you from the forum. I simply didn't trust you, and had no reason to.

Below you talk about a faulty "structure of a business". Could you give me some specific critiques of the model that I encourage people to use? Please, specifics only.

I agree, the message boards are valuable even if you aren't using them to learn. They can be used as recruiting grounds for all sorts of things, but that is not allowed in this forum, nor mine. So you got banned. You knew that is not accepted pretty much anywhere, yet you are bitter at me for banning you?

You said $1,000 cash that most of the numbers are dreamed up. What specific numbers are you talking about? I'll take your bet!

Probably the best way to allow you to air your grievances would be for you and I to get on a live video chat and invite everyone here to watch. This would give you and I a fair opportunity to question each other and let others judge for themselves. Let me know if you are interested and we can get it setup.

I am bitter at Ryan but not at his 'school'. Maybe he added more stuff to it since I was there but when it first started it didn't really help at all.
I only joined so I could get to the message board, I had already watched Youtube and got an idea of what to do when repairing them. Personally I didn't really need anything to start making money in this business except help on repairing them. As far as any structure of a business, his structure was/is laughable anyway but I guess it could kind of help people get a start. As you said, it was only $150 and that is why I paid. If it had been much more I doubt I would have. Personally I think the message board was worth $150 (to me) but now we are here and this is free so there is not really a need to pay him money. lol By the way, I'll bet you $1000 cash most of his numbers were dreamed up in his head because he kept giving me different numbers... but I never said anything. It wasn't a big deal, I let him feel good about it all.

As far as interaction with him, we got along great until he blocked me with NO warning when I told him what I was going to post. A real business man would have said... I'd rather you not tell people that. And I would have said Ok since it is his site and his world... I would have respected that. And instead of hating him now I would love him since I got back in to the business.

I wouldn't mind getting together. The only problem would be time. I stay on the internet selling most of the time (or cleaning them and delivering them) so for me personally it would be hard to get away and lose money. For example, since I've been typing this I've sold 1 set, and I'm a fast typer. The guys that have done it before know how it is. You are kind of tied to your computer if you want to make money.
Do you also sell appliances The Dillion?

 

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[Lajuan S. Diggs]

Hey man cool to have another titan of the appliance flipping game here with us lol. Yeah between your blog and YouTube videos and Ryans blog I've learned a lot about selling appliances, y'all helped me get started, so thanks a lot for sharing your knowledge with us.

You been flipping any appliances lately or have you been venturing off to do other things?

I still flip a little here and there, but lately I have been traveling the world and promoting my book The Craigslist Hustle: Live, Laugh, Travel, Repeat. My past flipping has put me in a position to where I don't have to do it as much now, but I still do because it's in my blood and I can't pass up too many sweet deals.

 

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[minivanman]

I offer different delivery prices. $19 driveway drop-off. $39 deliver and hook-up + $15 over 5 stairs (plus I will need help from buyer). I usually make the buyer get at the top of the appliance dolly so they do all the work. lol I don't have to offer free delivery to get free washers and dryers, if they have a set they usually want me to haul them off for them. I have a really nice Whirlpool set that I got for free that I'm going to sell for $300.

We live in an upscale apartment with a garage so I have several problems. I can't pull the units out until after 6pm and I have no water or 220... so here is what I did. I found a guy that doesn't speak English very well but was trying to sell washers and dryers. He has a connection, so he gets them in bulk, repairs them if needed and gives me a guarantee on them so if a customer has a problem, I bring it by his place, he fixes it and I take it back to the customer. I buy them from him and bring them to my garage, clean them and paint them. I always change the dogs no matter if they need it or not. That way in my ad I say things like, "The agitator has new gears". I get them for $ .75cents so no big deal. I tried to make a paint booth but it didn't really work very well.... I was having trouble with the fumes and mist. I didn't want the mist to get on a car in the parking lot and get in trouble. So, I've started rolling the paint and to my surprise it looks better than the spray.... who knew! We have been looking for a house for 9 months but the nice ones sell as fast as they come on the market.

Yeah, the thought of franchising has crossed my mind. More-so because I could supply the used washers and dryers.... that is one of the biggest problems is getting supply but if I can get the supply, I have that problem solved. I have the knowledge how to do it but the will power just isn't there anymore to mess with the people to do it. lol I owned a large cleaning service for 19 years so the less people I can deal with nowadays, the better. Although I never offered the service I have trained on how to clean vents. With my house cleaning business we also cleaned carpet and with the carpet cleaning training I also learned how to clean dryer vents. If I have someone else do the work I'd add it on but it doesn't interest me to do it personally nowadays.

So when you hired the college guys did you let them drive your civic or did you make them drive their own?

 

[minivanman]

For anyone interested in doing this.... update on the roller vs spray paint. I got sick for 3 weeks partly because of the fumes I was taking in so while I was sick I decided to research rolling the paint on. I saw that it was possible and started doing it. 2 weeks in to it and I LOVE it. Once I learned how to not leave roller marks they look better than new! Oh so shiny. And it seems to dry much faster which means faster turn around which means more profit.

 

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[HustleHard]

Hopefully this can help some people out...

https://recraigslist.com/2013/03/10-best-things-to-buy-and-sell-on-craigslist/

https://recraigslist.com/2011/10/i-earn-my-entire-living-on-craigslist-ask-me-almost-anything/

The Craigslist Hustle- Tax Evasion at its Finest!

Flipping Appliances for Profit

Check out this guy's you tube chanel

View: https://youtu.be/yxckW-eUJEc


Mikeyjd's Appliance Sales and Repair Journey

Make a Modest Living or Side Cash Buying and Selling Used Appliances

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.th...-used-appliances-one-man-makes-2000-week/amp/

http://hustlerskungfu.com/how-to-make-a-million-dollars-a-year-on-craigslist/

https://appliantology.org/blogs/entry/972-servicing-vs-appliance-sales-i-may-have-found-an-answer/

If you really get into selling used appliances, Google wholesale used appliance warehouse and buy them in bulk to resale. Get them delivered or rent a Uhaul truck and pick them up.

http://nmbwholesale.com/wholesale-appliances/ Example

Below I will copy and paste an email exchange I had with a very successful used appliance dealer...


Hi my name is Adam and I'm interested in the used appliance business, if you could answer a few questions for me when it is convenient for you I would really appreciate it. I live in the south east so no worries about competition.

I would have messaged you on appliantology but it seems they won't let me without a subscription. Anyway it seems from reading a couple posts by you in the fast lane forum that you took the appliance school training program by Ryan from recraigslist.

Did that program really seem to help you and would you recommend I look into that for myself?

Do you know if I could join the forum at applianceschool even without a subscription to the program?

When first starting out would you recommend concentrating mostly on selling washers and dryers or do you think stoves and fridges are worth doing as well?

Where do you get your appliances for resale from? Mainly craigslist and offerup? Or appliance wholesale warehouses? Contracts with appartment complexes for their used units? Other?

When you first started out where did you store your inventory?

Do you think now that you have a shop you'll be able to make a lot more sales as opposed to just selling on craigslist and offerup?

Do you think that you close a lot more sales by offering a warrenty as opposed to if you didn't offer one?

Have you thought about renting out your appliances in addition to selling them?

Do you think adding a service division to your business would be profitable?

Did you first start out selling appliances under the table for cash and then eventually register your business as an LLC or other structure?

When you deliver appliances on your own and have to deliver up or down stairs do you use a stair climbing dolly such as one of these below?

http://www.m3-shs.com/product-line.html. looks like some really nice ones here

http://m.northerntool.com/products/...MjkOyCV5L7lR6NNTsZtAEDvDs5yusR1Ub3RoCDG3w_wcB

Any other tips or advice would be greatly appreciated!


His answer:

The program is a very good baseline. A lot of the material is covered in his blog (maybe 70%), but there's some good stuff in the material. I think it's easily worth the nominal $100 cost considering how lucrative this business can be. You're likely to cover it in the first week just based on time savings if you value your time at $20/hour. The forum is probably the most valuable part of the membership and is for members only as far as I know.

I think it's easier to get started with washers and dryers from a refurbishing standpoint, mainly because the Whirlpool direct drive system is so plentiful and easy to master. I started on stoves and fridges by flipping working ones. You can make a lot of money by just cleaning/transporting them.

I started getting everything on Craigslist. Now I only search specific machines off craigslist. I have an app that searches for stainless ones (along with specific niche vehicles I like to flip). I mostly buy from a few wholesale relationships I've cultivated along with a network of about a dozen scrappers that bring stuff to my shop.

I started out in a single bay of my dad's pole barn. I spent about 6 months leasing his 3 car garage at $300 per month. After that, I rented several storage units before we got our current shop location.

The shop has made a difference in sales, but I think it's mainly because we're able to process a lot of units compared to when we were in a smaller location. I think I could do the same thing out of a pole barn if the location was convenient enough for people.

The warranty has been very key in landing several of my largest repeat customers. I have one account that's purchased $25k worth in the last 18 months and it's hard to say if they would have been willing to even give me a chance without the warranty being involved.

I've considered a rental program and even had a proposal drawn up for a larger client who owns roughly 25 rentals. In the end, my monthly price was higher than what he wanted to pay. I'd be willing to do it, but the terms have to make sense.

I advertise in home repairs and service. It makes up about 10% of my business, which is how I prefer it. I clear about $80/hour including drive time on my service calls, whereas I'm netting closer to $120/ on my sales. The service business, in large part only exists, to support the sales business and increase networking.

Originally I ran my appliances through my flooring LLC, which allowed me to take credit cards and checks immediately without worrying about text liabilities. Of course, there are always cash deals in this type of business. I currently have a separate LLC for my appliance business.

I like to have 2 people any time an appliance is going upstairs or in a basement. You get into a lot of situations that won't allow for the use of a dolly. Unless you're a champion power lifter you're probably going to need a 2nd hand at least occasionally if you offer installation services.

 

[HustleHard]

I'm just going to unload some stuff I've read online about the appliance business... and some email exchanges I've had...

Idea for you: Put up business flyers advertising that you sell used washers and dryers at such and such a price, around businesses and stores near laundry mats.

Make a Modest Living or Side Cash Buying and Selling Used Appliances This guy uses a generator to test appliances, that may work for you as well and cut down on your electric bill, or maybe not considering gas cost. Something to consider though.
I tested the appliances in the storage yard by wheeling a generator out in front of my unit. I had one with a 220v socket, and the generator ran me about $500 bucks, but luckily when I was through with it, it also resold for $500. These things have a nice resale value, same with dollys and pick-up trucks. I spliced a 220v extension cord with a variety of 3 and 4 prong outlets, which made me nervous at first but as long as you follow good electricity safety habits, you'll be fine. This allowed me to both test the units I was buying and also demonstrate them for people. No one was weirded out by the generator, miraculously.
Auctions are great places in general, but for the small business they can be absolute heaven. If you have some extra space and extra time, watch restaurant equipment auctions. I try and keep myself limited to things I can actually test, but the sky is really the limit.

In-person only auctions tend to have better deals than online auctions because too many people are watching and bidding online. If you go in person, maybe there's 100 people there, but only a few of them want the thing that you want. Don't be afraid to take something kind of goofy, because it wouldn't be for sale used if people didn't occasionally buy them.

Find uninstallers and demolition crews. Often times, they'll bulldoze apartments and condos and take out the working units if they know someone who will buy them *hint hint*. I got 15 dishwashers for $100last month from a demo crew that was overjoyed that they weren't going to be thrown away. Honestly, they were plain but all worked fine and they looked nice enough to sell fast. One time I bought an entire apartment worth of stoves. I had storage units piled ten stoves deep and two stoves high. One time I bought 30 ping pong tables, and was flipping them as fast as I could for double what I bought them for.

Little deals pay the bills and keep you hustling, but big deals make you feel good inside.

I leave you with a quote by Warren Buffet “Opportunities come infrequently. When it rains gold, put out the bucket, not the thimble”"

Starting A Washer & Dryer Repair Business? (pay, startup, vs) - incorporation, advertising, financing, small business... - City-Data Forum
You may be kidding, but it's not a bad idea. I used to work for a big box store that sold and delivered appliances. We would haul away the old appliances free, and rather than mess around with evaluating the condition of every unit that came back we'd just slap a minimal price on it (usually $9) and sell them first come, first served. I had several guys who would come in once a week and buy whatever we had on hand, clean up and fix what was worth fixing, salvage parts off of what wasn't worth fixing, and sell the leftovers for scrap. Some of them made pretty decent money doing this, plus doing repairs on the side.
Flipping Appliances for Profit Mr Craigslist hustle

The Craigslist Hustle- Tax Evasion at its Finest! Mr Craigslist hustle

Wholesale Appliances-Untested or Reconditioned with warrantywholesale

http://www.rmcappliances.com wholesale

This are going fast. Everyone I get they move in two days. Very popular right now. It is new I just buy from big box stores when they have damaged boxes. First come first serve sorry no holdies it would look great in you home. They are roper which is made by whirlpool.

B-Stock Sourcing Network | Appliances

 

[HustleHard]

Honestly man - you work way too hard.

You have to pick these up - clean and test them - deliver them when sold. All for $200? Maybe less?

If, as a side benefit, you're built like a brick sheet house, then that's a great side benefit. But the money - - - I hope your customers tip you well. I would. We've had some pretty hefty furniture delivered lately, and those boys didn't get out the door without a hefty tip!

It can be hard work yes, but I'm not sure if I plan on really starting a business doing this or just build capital to start other types of businesses, when I was hitting it hard last summer I was averaging $1,000 per week which sure beats flipping burgers or working for the man at some other crappy low paying job haha. I just created a dummy ad with pictures I downloaded of a front load set I found on craigslist in Houston Texas, ( when doing this I quickly respond when someone asks about them and say they've been sold to not hold them up from finding something esle) I listed this set for $700 with Free Delivery in the city I live in in the South East on Craigslist, offerup, letgo, and Facebook market place to see what type of interest I can get, I'm trying to find more profitable appliances now to flip, the most $ I've made in a single day so far is $700, that was just the 4 deliveries had in that day and doesn't count the picking them up, cleaning and testing them a different day. I hurt my back a little while ago though ( I listen to my body better now and don't over due it and work to many straight days or if to sore) and had to stop flipping for a bit, I spent all my savings and am just now really getting back into it to save again for starting something up. But I'm also learning about the ecommerce, cleaning, and real estate business.I do have analysis paralysis though and spend way to much time reading and not enough taking action and applying what I've learned, I just gotta pick something and go with it darn it

Top loading washers and dryers aren't that heavy though, I have a regular size dolly I bought from Lowes or Home Depot, and a stair climbing dolly I bought from Northern tool for $100, the wheels rotate to help climb stairs. they also make heavy duty large appliance dollys, and fancy more expensive type stair climbing dollys, and even more expensive hydraulic style or power operated stair climbing dollys that I may invest in in the future. There are lots of different types.

https://dollyinnovations.com Fancy style stair climbers

Roughneck Industrial Appliance Truck 1200-lb Capacity 188212UHeavy duty industrial style dolly

Wesco Stairking Battery Powered Stair Climbing Appliance Hand Truck Power style stair climber

Roughneck Stair Climber Hand Truck — 550-Lb. Capacity, Solid Rubber Tires | Northern Tool + Equipment Stair climber I have... Tip don't use it for going down stairs, it will try and pull you down with it use a regular dolly for going down

Harper Loop Handle Hand Truck - 55HA22 I have this one too



I use a 1997 Ford F150 truck I bought off of Craigslist for $1,750 to haul my washers and dryers. Some people use a Van to stay out of the weather, others use a utility trailer. I can fit two W/D sets at a time in the back of my truck. Tip... if you turn the washers and dryers side ways they are less wide, so I load them front facing front x 2 in the back of my truck, and also to get through a skinny doorway when delivering them. I have to cock one of the dryers up on my wheel well to fit them like this, I can fit my dolly in the back as well. I then strap them in with ratchet straps or just bungy cords. When I deliver or pick them up I get someone to help me load or unload them into the back of my truck if they are willing, if not I place a blanket over the tailgate to keep from scratching them and lift them in on their sides, then adjust upward and into position. When I get them home I use a ramp I bought online to unload them, I don't like carrying the ramp with me though to get them because it takes more time to hook it up, and it takes up too much space if picking up more than one set at a time. Also, if delivering to a second or third floor I require help from the buyer to get them up stairs.

Black Widow Aluminum Extra-Wide Punch Plate Tri-Fold ATV Ramps I bought the 94" ramp, it is a good one

I bought a 10 x 20 storage logic shelter to store my units in, I bought two extra large spiral anchors from tractor supply to go along with the 4 smaller size anchors that came with them, I also bought a big 10 x 20 or was it 20 x 20? Thick heavy duty vinyl tarp online to drape over the top of the shelter, I read the thinner tarp that comes with the shelter logic storage shelter rips after a while on the top when exposed to prolong sun light, and read in a forum somewhere about a guy using the vinyl tarp on top. I also bought a gromet making kit to make gromet holes around the edge of the vinyl tarp, then draped the vinyl tarp over the finished storage logic shelter and used rope through the gromet holes to tie down to the spiral ground anchors. The ground anchors were hell to install, I used a probing rod that I beat into the ground with a block placed on top the rod and a hammer, or was it a sledge hammer? To make a pilot hole, then spun down the anchors, will make a man of you quick lol.

My dad helped me install a 3 prong and 4 prong dryer plug outlet into a receptacle box that holds both, we installed it outside on the side of the house coming out the breaker box. It is my dryer testing station, much easier than dragging them inside to test. To test washers, use a y 2 way hose connector, 2 hoses, and extention cord.

If anyone has any questions, don't hesitate to ask my friends

 

[Greg R]

Yup, the next level is bulk purchasing inventory. I did a couple of bulk purchases from re-habbed apartment complexes. I'd pay $40-50 for "as is" washers/dryers that I knew were a good brand that I could work on.



Yup, I really tried to figure a way to make the numbers work on national shipping. Not happening on used appliances.



This is the big money. Right now, there is no nationally recognized brand of used appliance dealer. There's a couple strictly "appliance repair" chains, but no used appliance dealers. I got out of the biz, but the opportunity is RIPE for someone who can do internet marketing and franchising. There was not one competitor in the entire Dallas metroplex who had a website with inventory, except for me, for the year that I did this.

I think the opportunity for the used dealer market is great, because of the incredibly low quality of new washers/dryers being sold in stores these days. They are built to fail in 4-5 years.



It's just a part of the strategy. If you have to go out to their house to make the delivery anyways, might as well get a free piece of inventory out of it, that you can fix for $20. I would say 40% of my deliveries yielded a new piece of inventory. Bulk purchases would be the ideal way to get inventory for the 60% of inventory that is gone after the deal is done.

It sounds like a decent opportunity to jump on. I'm sure the wheels are turning right now for all of the forum lurkers.

 

[amp0193]

So, I've started rolling the paint and to my surprise it looks better than the spray.... who knew!

Wow, never thought to roll. Very interesting.

So when you hired the college guys did you let them drive your civic or did you make them drive their own?

No way. I had a truck by that point. Get them covered on your insurance... easy to do with a phone call.

 

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[amp0193]

Yeah we did that with the girls cleaning. Lucky thing too because the 1st day out a girl had a wreck in a company car.

To the lurkers having big ideas.... it ain't easy. If these were socks we are selling it would be easy but these are big ol' washers and dryers with moving parts and computer boards. Finding a good deal takes time. Then you go and buy it, think you got a good deal, clean it and resell it..... 2 days later the buyer calls because of a problem. What are you going to do? Do you know how to repair washers and dryers? These are the real life problems that if I would have known before I bought my first set to resell.... I probably wouldn't have done it. It's hard when first starting out or atleast it was for me.

I did this course: ApplianceSchool - Learn the Appliance business

Not comprehensive, but for $150, it's enough to have a working knowledge of the most common washers/dryers, and it gets you started quick.

That plus youtube was all I really needed to fix 90% of machines.

I only touched the ones with messed up computer boards a couple of times, haha, not worth my time usually. Maybe for some pro that has the skills... but you're talking time to test the board, and $120 replacement parts. Just not worth the risk.

 

[minivanman]

I also was a member (one of the first) but I have 2 different views on it. After paying the $150 I found that I could learn way more on Youtube (especially nowadays). But I was not in any way bitter.... I willingly paid the $150 just to find out what it was. I have no problem with that. Now to the point of why I would like to see Ryan in person to have it out with him. I gave him some 'inside' information on something and then he blocked me from the private message board on his site because at that time I was getting out of the business and he didn't want everyone else to know what I told him. That was a chicken(*) move and I would like to knock the hell out of him for doing that. But all in all don't you agree that Youtube has more information on washers and dryers than his 'appliance school'.... which is not a school at all. And come to think about it, I'm not sure he can even legally call it a school. But to be clear, I'm not bitter on wasting money on Ryan, I am bitter because he screwed me over. Also, to be clear about me knocking the hell out of him..... he knows how I feel. On the other hand maybe I should thank him because to this day I use the tactic I told him about yet no one else does; or atleast not to the point that I do.

What I meant by the computer boards is that one thing, today all the washers have computer boards. Most of the old Kenmore 90 Series type of washers are getting to their end. 3 years ago I could sell the 90 Series all day long with no problems, now if I sell a set something usually goes wrong within 30 days. So I'm moving away from those that are that old. But what I meant was that if a new guy buys a washer, he might think that it works great but it might not.... it could have a problem.... and then what? Even the cheap Amana's have computer boards nowadays. We don't mess with the computer boards either, although I can get them for $68 it's still not worth it right now. But if a new guy buys a washer and the computer is messed up he needs to have a plan and be ready to lose a little money at first. Once I get a house with a large garage, water and 220 I will replace the computer boards.

 

[minivanman]

What exactly is a new machine made to old specs? I don't understand.

As for the new machines..... yes, they suck. Below I will tell you how to wash with as much water as you want in some machines. The article is a little mis-leading or maybe just confusing. Until January 31, 2006 I could buy a washer that did exactly like one did in 1979. Just because they asked people that had bought the 'new' type doesn't mean that they had stopped making the old type yet. Friday I sold a Kenmore made in 2006 that worked just like they did in 1976 basically. But I'll give you the lowdown on the older machines for sale and this is going to be honest so if anyone reading this doesn't like it... sorry, it's the way of the appliance world, get over it. Most smaller guys selling washers and dryers are mexicans and they don't know how to work on the newer types of machines.... YET. So, in order for me to buy a set of the older ones, they cost more.... supply and demand. There isn't much demand for computerized ones from the smaller guys right now so I get them cheaper than the mexican guys get the old ones so I can sell a 2016 Kenmore washer & dryer cheaper than they can sell a 2006 Kenmore washer & dryer. But, pretty soon that MUST change because eventually there will be so few older machines out there. The mexican guys say that when the time comes they will learn how to work on them. I guess we will see. If you want to wash with more water, look and see if your machine has a setting for BULKY or maybe Sheets or Bedding. That usually fills the washer up with water. Also if you don't like the lid lock feature, go to a used appliance guy and ask for the part of the lid lock that is attached to the lid and fits in the hole on your washer. Go home, place that in the hole where the lid switch is and leave it there. Now you can lift the lid anytime you want. That's how I check to see if they are working correctly.

 

[mikeyjd]

I remember you "ken more". Curious what the post content that got you banned was. I asked him why you disappeared, as I found you one of the more engaging and interesting people on the forum. He said you wanted to post something that would have hurt his business. I was always curious what that was.

 

[mikeyjd]

What was the big secret?

 

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[HustleHard]

Washer and Dryer Rental | Appliance Rentals - Appliance Warehouse of America Appliance rental business

APPLIANCE MONEY

INTRO - Mikeyjd checking in from Michigan Appliance business

EXECUTION - 15 months later. You might want to read this. Good thread, page 2 has appliance info

GOLD! - How I earned money (hustle arbitrage) to start a real business. Appliance flipping info in here

So you want to flip used items and make cash? Cool! Some Appliance flipping info in here

 

[HustleHard]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JDPKVA2/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

From book description:

In What are the “Big 7 Items” that bring the most profit on Craigslist?
Anyone read this book? Can share what the big 7 are?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00YD4XK4M/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BSL2DNW/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00589WXSU/?tag=tff-amazonparser-20

View: https://youtu.be/86nyt5SI0AI

View: https://youtu.be/tToglxcO34I

 

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