Does it Pay to open an Ebay store?

[auburnxx]

Okay, I am not a total idiot, but trying to understand if it pays to open an Ebay store or just list normally gives me a headache..I have tried to go through the blogs, etc and even the Ebay explanation..The Ebay explanation is like reading stereo instructions..Does anyone have any advice on this one? I sell normally 150 -250 items a month, and would like to save a buck anyway I can, but do not want to take a jump and find I just sank..thanks

[hardasrock]

I dont know but I have the same question. I plan to quit working in Aug or Dec and want to ebay full time.

[Gooddealie]

I don't have an Ebay store, but I'd think that if you're listing 150 - 250 items per month, it would be worth it. Ebay charges a lot in fees, but you still get the best exposure with them. Right now there are a lot of changes happening within Ebay, so it's hard to say how things are ultimately going to end up for sellers on Ebay.

Personally, I'd probably go for it. Even if you ultimately decide to sell elsewhere instead, Ebay is a good place to learn the ins and outs of things, and with the number of items you're selling, a having a store makes sense.

[auburnxx]

Well, I looked into the fees and quite honestly when I did the quick math it looked liked it was going to cost more to open a store and then you had to worry about a cross listing issue to make sure it ran with the regular listings, that's where I got frustrated..I know I got slammed the first day of the new changes, which I was blown out of the water with..The audacity of some of the buyers...One gal bought a pair of shoes on a Friday afternoon, and then sent me a nasty email on monday demanded to know where they were..Ah excuse me, I DIDN"T WALK THEM TO CALIFORNIA MYSELF.. Others followed suit the same day harassing on where the item was, most bought on fri & sat.. I have changed my listing information and stated point blank "I WILL NOT BE BULLIED"...Since then, it has stopped.. I have signed up on a alternative site that is wordwide and has already hit 500, 000+ active listings..I know alot of other Ebayers have moved there..The listing and fvf fees are a fraction of the Ebay...Same format, etc...I want to see how sales go on that end before I think of leaving Ebay completely...

[phoebe2m]

What is the alternate site? Are their fees more reasonable? I don't sell a lot but eBay's fees are killing me and I hate the new feedback system. Thanks.

[beachheathen]

Yes, we'd love to know more about this other auction site. I think many of of would welcome an alternative to E-Bay.

[auburnxx]

I found this site when reading the forums in Ebay..The other members were doing it covertly and you had to read between the lines to figure it out so that the Ebay police wouldn't edit it out..From what I have seen the FVF are in the 2% range, compared to Ebay's 8-12.25%...I bought a "Lifer" membership which they are running a deal right now(I think because of the Ebayers leaving) for $49. which is normally $99. and with that I NEVER pay FVF or Listing fees unless I choose to do upgrades, but the upgrades are still LESS than Ebay...You don't have to buy a membership, I chose to for the long run because of the deal they are running now..It is a .net rather than a .com, but I think it will pick up as time passes..It is international, listing is easy,they have Paypal , google, and pppay checkouts,and alot of the same formatting as Ebay..I have just started listing, so I will see how time goes..When I first started with Ebay it took me a year to get things built up, so I can be patient...I have looked at the other popular sites, but for the items I sell ( used designer clothing) there was not enough activity...hope that helped..

BTW, I did some more research on opening an Ebay store, HOLY COW!! the FVF jumps to 20% if an item is sold over $25 and under $100...PLUS you have to pay the listing fee AND the charge to have a store...NO THANKS...I am a small fish in the pond....