Press Releases
Feb 17

10 Tips for Sourcing Inventory in the Secondary Market

Liquidation.com Offers Business Buyers Smart Ideas for Capturing
Market Share During this Year’s $83.6 Billion Back-to-School,
Back-to-College Shopping Season

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Aug. 2, 2017–
Liquidity
Services
(NASDAQ: LQDT), a global solution provider in the reverse
supply chain with the world’s largest marketplace for business surplus,
is pleased to provide ten tips for sourcing back-to-school inventory in
the secondary market from Liquidation.com,
a leading e-commerce marketplace where professional buyers purchase bulk
lots of returned retail merchandise for their resale channels.

  1. Know What Works for You
    Source quality merchandise your
    customers will be looking for like clothing, electronics, shoes and
    school supplies. Start with categories you’re familiar with,
    personally like, or have already been successful for you. Know what
    items sell well and keep at it.
  2. Know Your Competition
    Check out the competition and what
    they’re selling. Be realistic about buyer demand and don’t be afraid
    to get creative if everyone’s selling one particularly hot item.
    Consider selling the accessories instead or package a small accessory
    with the primary item – a nice freebie that can help set you apart
    from your competition and ultimately increase sales price.
  3. Learn from the Past
    Check historical prices for each item,
    as well as bulk lots, then develop a purchasing strategy for sourcing.
    Think about how much you can resell each item for and benchmark price
    as you get started so you can adjust, as needed, to make sure you turn
    a profit.
  4. Understand What You Are Purchasing
    Online marketplaces are
    a terrific way to purchase items for your inventory. Before you buy,
    find out as much as you can about each product. Look for detailed
    descriptions, digital images, shipping dimensions, condition,
    technical information, and other item specific details. Also, search
    out the terms and conditions for each sale and make sure you
    understand thoroughly.
  5. Set Your Profit Goal
    Set your resale price for each item
    then estimate how much profit you’d like to make on each sale. Once
    you know this, you then can determine how much you are willing to pay
    for the inventory you source.
  6. Determine the Right Quantity
    Purchase the right quantity
    for your needs. Larger lots typically have a lower cost per item, but
    you don’t want to purchase more that you can sell. When sourcing your
    inventory, look for a vendor that offers some flexibility in package
    size and SKU mix. This will get you as close as possible to purchasing
    the right quantity of product in the right categories.
  7. Avoid Impulse Purchases
    Do you really need that “great
    deal?” Probably not if it doesn’t fit into your pre-defined product
    mix. Once you define your strategic plan, stick to it. Straying will
    cost you both time and money.
  8. Calculate Shipping Costs
    Find ways to eliminate or reduce
    your shipping costs. When sourcing inventory, look for vendors with
    warehouses or distribution centers nearby and opt for onsite pickup.
    If that’s not an option, see if they provide discounts on regional
    shipping or have negotiated rates with major carriers. Always obtain
    an estimate before purchase and factor that into purchase price. The
    less you spend on shipping, the more you can spend on merchandise.
  9. Create Additional Value
    When possible, look to create
    additional value for each item. A little extra cleaning, testing or
    refurbishment – especially for electronics and dorm room gadgets – can
    sometimes get you closer to retail value in secondary marketplaces
    like eBay.
  10. Select the Right Vendor
    Look for a vendor that has ongoing
    relationships with top retailers and manufacturers. Ones that do will
    have a consistent flow of inventory that mirrors the U.S. retail
    supply chain. Check out the availability of email alerts, search
    tools, account information and transaction settlement. Robust
    functionality is key to making the sales process simple and easy.

“This year, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF), consumers
are expected to spend more than $83 billion on back-to-school and
back-to-college essentials,” said Jim Rallo, president of Liquidity
Services’ Retail Supply Chain Group. “This traditional buying time
offers resellers a terrific opportunity to capture new customers and
increase sales by sourcing the top-quality, name-brand merchandise
students want most. These tips from Liquidation.com
offer great ways for savvy business buyers to make sure they source the
right inventory, at the right price, and are able to resell it for an
amount that generates a profit.”

To bid on top-quality merchandise for back-to-school and back-to-college
sales, visit Liquidation.com,
an e-commerce marketplace where professional buyers can purchase
commercial surplus inventory and government surplus assets in an online
environment. Bulk lots are sold by the truckload, pallet, or small
package, and conditions range from new in a box to customer returns and
used. The wide variety of product categories includes apparel,
computers, electronics, housewares, industrial equipment and vehicles.

To place bids on these items, or participate in any auction on a
Liquidity Services marketplace, please register.

About Liquidity Services

Liquidity Services (NASDAQ: LQDT) employs innovative e-commerce
marketplace solutions to manage, value and sell inventory and equipment
for business and government clients. The company operates a network of
leading e-commerce marketplaces that enable buyers and sellers to
transact in an efficient, automated environment offering over 500
product categories. Our superior service, unmatched scale and ability to
deliver results enable us to forge trusted, long-term relationships with
over 10,000 clients worldwide. With nearly $7 billion in completed
transactions, and 3 million buyers in almost 200 countries and
territories, we are the proven leader in delivering smart commerce
solutions. Visit us at LiquidityServices.com.

Source: Liquidity Services

Liquidity Services
Jeanette Hanfling, 202-467-5723
Director of
Public Relations
[email protected]