Dave Shevez
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If you know a little about shoes you can make good money flipping shoes you find at Thrift Stores.
Here, today we’re going to look at seven shoes that I sold last month for great profit on eBay. I don’t go into a Thrift store without looking at the shoe racks.
In general, shoes should be part of every flippers knowledge base.
I generally sell used goods that I find at thrift stores and garage sales and I put it on market places like eBay, Amazon, Craigslist, Mercari, Facebook Market place or my antique booth and other consignment & auction options I have here locally.
These seven shoes on a show you were purchased at Goodwill, which is a thrift store chain here in the USA. There are over 40 different types of thrift stores within a thirty minute drive of my home.
The 7 shoes I am going to cover in this article where all bought at Goodwill Thrift stores and all of these were sold on eBay. I sell dozens of pairs of shoes on eBay monthly. For this example I am going to share with you a variety of shoes that I have sold. I primarily sell sneekers, but there is a good market for all kinds of popular, quality shoes on eBay.
So I’m going take you through those seven shoes.
So the very first shoe is actually a duck boot. A lot of people might not think that this brand has good profits attached to it, but it does have some decent profits if you know what to look for.
- The very first shoe is actually a Sperry duck boot that was found at a Goodwill and it was $14.60 cents and I ended up selling this pair for $79.99. The step boot was something that kind of blends in a little bit. It had a little bit of a sheen to it, and as you can see from these pictures, they weren’t in really, really good condition.
What’s interesting about this duck boot is it’s a little bit more on the
fashion side as you can see by the side of these panels.
There are a little bit more, I guess pleaded might be the term I’m looking for
kind of a stitch that a lot of current day jackets will have on it. That’s a
little bit more on the Michael Kors look, they have that kind of a luxury look
to them. They have pleats on the side.
So, that was one of the things that really drew me towards the boots. I found this pair in the women’s section. And
as you can see underneath the boot, looks really good. And that’s one of the
things that I pay close attention to when buying shoes. How do the bottom of the shoes look.
I pay close attention, especially with boots. All kinds of boots, work boots, Moto boots, cowboy boots, a lot of those will have wear and tear on them. That can effect the price you can expect to get when you flip the boots. The better the condition, the better price you can expect.
In general when hustling & flipping thrift
store shoes I don’t want to tie up a lot of money in shoes that won’t sell
quickly.
In general, the better the condition, the more popular the brand, the quicker
they will sell.
So when it
comes to shoes, I pay close attention to boots.
- The second shoes I want to show you are these Star
Wars Vans that were actually bought the same Goodwill. These Star Wars Vans
were $9.72 cents out the door. They ended up selling for $69.99 very quickly.
As you can see, they’re in very good condition. They were a very vibrant that
had no fade to them. And a lot of times you can tell if they’re in good
condition by looking at the under sole.
More importantly, if you look inside the shoe, as you can see on this pig, I mean it is in really, really good condition to Vans logo inside the shoe is, you know, it’s not messed up or anything like that.
We look at the tongue and the tongue looks really good that the actual Vans tag on the tongue looks pretty much amazing.
When I turned the shoe over, I noticed the under undersold was in incredible condition as well. It was a sweet pickup. I like Vans sneakers, they sale very well on eBay. I always pick them up if they are in decent condition.
I knew these Star Wars vans would sell very quickly and even the sides of the
shoe looked awesome. They were pretty much white, you know, a couple streaks
here and there, but over all excellent pre-owned condition. I pay close attention to anything I find with
Star Wars logo or design. Star Wars has a huge cult following. So these Vans
Star War Shoes were a great find in a Goodwill that’s sold really quickly for
some good profit.
- The next shoe is one you don’t see every day,
but if I see them I buy them, no matter the condition, because I can clean them
up if I need to, and there will always be buyers for anything related to Shaq.
I think this shoe came out in the early nineties if I’m not mistaken, maybe late eighties. This was one of the first, if not the first Pump Up shoe. I know there are pro sneaker flippers who can tell you all about this shoe, I just know when I find them I buy them, and they always sell quick.
I guess that was produced more like these in the late two thousands it’s a Reebok Shaq attack, pump shoe. So it’s a really cool shoe. It’s a high top. The pumps worked and that’s one of the main things. When you’re dealing with these shoes, you want to make sure that the pumps work really well. If they don’t I still buy them, I just make sure I note the condition of the pumps in my auction listing.
So you pump them up and then you hit the deflate button.
So this was an amazing find for $24.35 cents and it ended up selling for $99.99 cents so that was awesome. They were not quite super mint, but it’s in really good condition.
The undersell of the shoes looked really good. This pair was good enough for a sneaker collector guy to add to their collection. I felt they would be a quick shoe flip. They were size 11, which is a really strong seller in men’s size.
On the back they said, Shaq which is really, really neat. This is a solid pickup,
a little bit more on the higher side. I had to check some eBay solds while I
was in the thrift store looking at this pair just to make sure I wasn’t over
paying. I bought them and they were out
the door for $24.35 that’s tax and everything, then I sold them 9 days after
they were listed for $99.99. That’s almost a 400% return on my money in 9 days,
I am happy with that flip.
- These are the next boot. It’s not shoes. These Wayne Brenner kind of work looking boots. These were amazing. And when I picked them up I was like, wow, you know, I was going to buy it regardless. And then I saw the brand and the brand is something that a lot of people out there don’t know about.
So, these were $12.65 cents. They ended up selling in about two and a half months for 79.99.
They were in decent condition. They weren’t completely messed up. They had
several scuffs here and there, but it’s not a huge deal. As we can see from the
pictures of the laces are all good, more than likely the original laces. And
people really liked this overall style of boot because it’s work-related.
You can classify these as a lager boots. Some people ride the cafe racer motorcycles with this type of boot. It’s very hipster. It’s just a perfect boot because it appeals to like four different crowds.
This is made by Wayne Brenner, which is a brand that not many people know about.
But like I said, this was a $12.65 cents and it sold for $79.99. The Interesting
thing about these boots is that it was a very small men’s size, size eight C. If
you didn’t know what C that refers to the width.
You often
see D and M, AA or E E or triple E, and we all know what those are. But a lot
of people don’t know what C is. And C is basically the first stage of narrow. These
were an eight C but not quite extra narrow into a category or anything like
that, but in great condition, if you look at the souls, that was definitely a
good pickup right there.
Don’t be afraid to buy odd sizes of anything.
People who take a 8 C or any other odd size find it hard to find trendy
cool shoes in their size. The selections
in the stores are not as good, and they know they can go on eBay, type in their
odd size and there will be items on eBay from them to shop.
So odd sizes should be an attraction for shoe flippers, not a de-traction.
- The next boot was very interesting because it kind of blends in with a lot of military grade boots and things like that. So so people that flip shoes, might pass these up thinking, oh, those are just military boots.
These were interesting boots, not only because thay had tags, but because they were made by a very strong brand name. I knew immediately it was pretty much a pickup if the price made any kind of sense.
So, these are Bellville boots, and these are the boots that people use in the
Navy and a lot of these boots will find their way onto aircraft carriers and
cruisers and destroyers and things like that. I mean they have a tags on them. They
had never even been not laced up as you can see in the pictures. They were in
mint condition. They were also bore techs, which means they are waterproof.
So, I mean they can withstand all the elements, but for the most part they’re
not hiking oriented or anything like that. They’re more of a work
safety/military grade, kind of boot, like an everyday kind of thing. So, you
know, when you have to find a replacement boot for the ones that’s messed up, they
will probably land on my listing. And essentially these $19.47 cents boots sold
in less than sixty days for $107.99
This is a great example of what you are looking for when sourcing shoes at a
thrift store to flip. A perfect,
perfect, combination of having tags and having an item that is very
standardized within the people that use them, like our service people in the
Navy. This is a standard boot that
people buy. It was a great find. Quality
mint shoes with tags is not something you run across very often at Thrift Stores,
but if you are willing to do the work, you will find your fair share.
- So the next pair of shoes I flipped was a pair that
is pretty ugly. You might not know, you might not recognize this name: Samuel
Hubbard. It’s a men’s casual shoe and it’s just really ugly. I don’t think it’s
a great look at all. But then again, I’m a re-seller. I don’t care what
anything looks like per say, but if the market is good. I’m going to pick it
up.
So these Samuel Hubbard, I think these are called rainy day founders, so they’re technically kind of Gore-Tex I believe. But, yeah, these are casual shoes and they almost look like walking shoes. There’s nothing really that jumps out at you. Outside of the actuals, undersold, the undersold, pretty cool looking.
But these shoes were in great condition. They were found at a Goodwill in the
men’s section and these were $19.47 cents. They ended up selling for $119.99
They were a
really good solid size. There were no scuffs or anything crazy on the leather. They
looked awesome. And just by the under soul, we all know that that’s a mint
shoe. They were a profitable pickup of a brand that not many people know about.
And you might want to look into Samuel Hubbard when it comes to men’s casual
shoes.
- Let’s take a look at the final shoe, which is the best shoe of the bunch. This one actually was founded at my least favorite Thrift Store in my area.
I invested $16.07 cents for this pair of boots. I won’t tell you what it’s sold for until the very end, but it’s a really cool boot and very mysterious. I think a lot of people would’ve passed it up.
Let’s talk about the boots. This pair of boots is kind of weird looking. It’s two tone panels. Half of it looks almost sway and the other half is actual like shiny leather.
So you know, a lot of people might pass this thing up and identify. It was a little difficult in the store, but I noticed two little initials, J and V on the bottom, as you can see in this picture. And if you can’t see it look harder. But yeah, the JV stands for John Varvatos, John Varvatos. Dude, John Varvatos stuff does have some incredible resale to it if you know what to look for.
These boots are awesome and they’re in ok condition. They were actually used
and you know, they’re one of those things that actual made it in Lee John
Barbados boots two-tone panel and this one is called a Capto Boot.
The very front of the boot is a capital, like a cap, there’s no actual Brogan
to it or anything like that. It’s just a cap on the toe of the boot. The heels
look like they were in pretty good condition.
These were actually sold for $229.07 cents. That’s an incredible, incredible
flip right there!
That overall style of boot is very sought after where it’s ankle style or maybe
mid cap Chuck a style. And a lot of people like that style too. Let’s say in a
boardroom or a meeting or whatever and you put your leg up and the pants always
go up, it’s pretty cool to see a boot down there instead of just a shoe in some
wild socks, at least some of us think so.
You know when you have a little bit of a wild sock and then the rest is a
really neat looking boot. I think it’s a totally awesome look as well and
people can argue that it’s kind of dapper and sophisticated.
All the comps in the completed on eBay were selling these boots between $200 and $300. So, I walked out making some pretty good money on this pair.
BONUS IMPORTANT TIPS FOR SHOE FLIPPERS
You Must have a Scanner
A scanner allows you to be aggression with your Thrift store flipping investment capital. If you know a pair of shoes is going to sale for 3-4 times your investment within 90 days, why would you NOT buy them?
Shoe scanning is so important into making some good decisions and good money flipping shoes.
Take Care of Your Investment Capital
It is really important to develop a sense of guarding your own money. You don’t won’t all your money tied up in slow moving shoe inventor. Sometime I will buy shows were I know I won’t be able to make 100% – 400% on my money, but I believe I can make a 50% return in a week. I am also a fan of the fast flip.
- You will develop an eye for condition with practice.
It is important in your listings to document and point out every flaw. It builds trust with you buyers, and makes the entire experience go much smoother.
Guarding your money is just as valuable as making money.
If you think about it, if you’re buying stupid shoes or shoes with issues or things like that and money is pretty much sitting there, it’s dead and the profit that you thought you would make is greatly reduced.
I don’t want you making those deals. I want you to make much better deals that are quick and fast and you can actually turn your money quicker.
Great shoe flippers are Talented at Cleaning Shoes
Sometimes you find a shoe that needs a little bit of a spot clean.10 minutes of extra work cleaning up a pair of shows can be the difference between making 50% on a shoe flip or 200%.
- Professionally ship Your Shoes
You can ship shoes in a box or bag. like what belongs in each one. How do I kind of ship shoes? In some collectible niches shoes in the ORIGINAL BOX bring premium prices.
For most shoes, I put them in shoes bags I buy at Dollar Tree (6 sets of Bags for a buck)
I bought Kindle book that taught me how to include ride along flyers in your shipments to make even more income.
It was called how to double your eBay profits, I will find the link and put it here for you, it is a very good read that has help me easily add to my bottom line profits.
If you are a reseller, shoes can be and should become one of the items you
specialize in.
Because when you go to thrift stores, when you go to garage sales, shoes are everywhere, right? They’re all over the place. So with experience, you will start learning the brands to look for. If you focus on this niche, it is very profitable. Start learning how to make money flipping shoes and you will develop foundational knowledge that will always make you money.
We haven’t even talked about buying new shoes at TJ Maxx, Marshalls, etc. if the team at OnlineAuctionU.com invites me to write another article for you, maybe I can talk about that next time.
The point is, you’re going to start realizing opportunities are all over the place to make money flipping shoes. Like everywhere you go shoes sells.
So, you’re going to need to get smart about how to sort out all the opportunities. Then it is simply rinse & repeat, repeat, & repeat.
You want to have a steady, predictable system for sourcing shoes. You need to have a supply of boxes and certain size poly bags, shoe bags, and supplies. You’re going to need to get everything super streamlined because it’s easy to find shoes that are profitable and it comes down to getting them listed quickly and creating a consistent, weekly, turn.
I think learning how to flip shoes is one of the best ways to get started as a reseller. I love the shoe niche, and if you have not focused on it, I hope this article gave you some inspiration and pointed you in the right direction.
Your comments and feedback is appreciated. Happy shoe flipping!
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