Given the exponential growth of the resale and secondhand market, it’s likely you know someone dedicated to reselling products (or maybe it’s you!). Whether it’s a fad like Labubu’s, a high-end handbag pulled from your closet, or other desirable essentials, now more than ever, consumers want access–either to items they can’t find in stores, or to products at more affordable prices.
If you’re looking to bulk up your resale business beyond selling the occasional pair of shoes on Poshmark, read on for some best practices and helpful links. We’ll give you a rundown on:
How to find inventory to resell (and what works well)
Tips to grow your resale business
Benefits of buying on B-Stock
How to get started on the B-Stock platform
How Do I Find Inventory to Resell?
First rule of thumb: start small. Many resellers start by selling things around the house. Extra clothes, kitchenware, and electronics are easy to list online. This low-risk step is great for beginners who want to test the waters.
Flipping Single Items
Flipping single items works well for side gigs and is great for testing what sells, especially in today’s economy, where shoppers are looking for deals. But as you grow your resale business, buying bulk lots of inventory can save time and boost profits.
Retail Returns and Overstock Pallets
Instead of spending hours hunting through clearance racks or thrift stores, you can source discounted returns and overstock pallets online. Pallets offer hundreds of items at once, giving you volume and variety.
Here’s what makes returns in particular so great:
Plenty of supply to go around: Returns are a billion-dollar market thanks to the e-commerce boom and lenient returns policies.
Quality products: Perfectly functioning items get returned all the time. (Think about the times you’ve purchased the wrong size or color of something and had to send it back to the retailer, unused and in mint condition.)
Available at huge discounts: Retailers are willing to sell their returns and overstock for pennies on the dollar since it takes up warehouse space and keeps their capital tied up.
Best Categories To Start Reselling
If you’re not sure where to begin, these categories are popular starting points:
Toys: Games, action figures, plushes, toys for learning and exploration, and more. Brands like LEGO, Disney, Nintendo, Fisher-Price, and LeapFrog are fan favorites.
Tools: Hand tools and especially power tools do especially well in terms of resale value. Look out for brands like Dewalt, Stanley, Husky, BLACK+DECKER, and others.
Consumer Electronics: Pre-owned and refurbished tech like headphones, gaming consoles, laptops, and smartwatches are always in demand.
Apparel: From activewear to designer jeans and dresses, apparel has a relatively low barrier to entry.
Home & Garden: Think small kitchen appliances, furniture sets, decor, rugs, and seasonal items; this category is chock-full of potential.
Helpful Tip: If you’re just starting, you don’t need to buy a full pallet right away. B-Stock offers smaller, curated lots designed for new and growing resellers.
How To Grow Your Resale Business
Find Suppliers
Finding reputable suppliers/sellers–especially when it comes to sourcing returned and overstock merchandise– is crucial to growing your business as you need to ensure the quality of your inventory, and be reputable to your customers. Look for trust signals like:
Itemized manifests
Transparent fee structures
A clear chain of custody (is the vendor buying larger lots and breaking them down? Or is inventory coming directly to you from a retailer’s warehouse?)
What other buyers are saying online (Facebook groups, YouTube, Reddit, etc.)
Understand Your Buyer Base
Knowing who you’re selling to–and how to give them more of what they want–will guide what you source. Some customers are bargain hunters, others are collectors, and some just want everyday essentials at a discount. Always be ready to adapt to your customers’ changing needs and be ready to solve problems if and when they arise.
Want to take a deeper dive? Check out How to Run a Resale Store: Overcoming Common Challenges.
Testing and Diversifying Categories
What works for one reseller may not work for another. The best way to grow is by testing different categories and tracking results. Start small with curated lots or single pallets to help you learn what sells. Pay attention to seasonal demand, and avoid leaning too heavily on one category so your business stays flexible.
Organize and Track Inventory
Scaling your operation means handling more stock. A solid system for organization helps you avoid misplaced items and missed sales. Many resellers use labeled bins or shelving units paired with a spreadsheet or simple software.
We told you how to grow your resale business; now, here’s how B-Stock comes in. After all, we are the largest B2B recommerce platform out there!
Benefits of Working with B-Stock
B-Stock is your destination for all things resaleable, from parcels up to truckloads. We provide flexible buying options for those returns and overstock pallets we mentioned, plus a few other perks like: direct access, a continuously growing roster of top sellers, and transparency you won’t find elsewhere. Here’s how you benefit from sourcing your inventory through B-Stock:
1. Access
Whether you’re a solo entrepreneur or have a global resale operation going, we believe in access. It’s simple: retailers and manufacturers list their returns and overstock inventory directly on their B-Stock storefront. There’s no changing of hands, no cherry picking, and we never handle inventory.
2. Selection
Hundreds of listings go live every day across dozens of categories and lot sizes. Any product category or brand you’re after is likely available and in excess (pun intended).
Our buyers speak for themselves:
“One of the things we love most about B-Stock is the diversity of product that you can buy. Whatever you want to sell, you can find on B-Stock.” – Chad, ProBid Partners LLC
3. Flexibility
Everyone’s got a preference–that’s why we offer the most flexibility when it comes to how you buy. Prefer to bid, buy now, or negotiate? Choose the listing type and buying format that works for you:
Buying Formats: Auction, Buy Now, and Make an Offer
Listing Types: Spot (ready now) or Contract (subscription-style). Learn more about how contracts work here.
4. Transparency
Never second-guess whether your lot has been picked through or worry about what condition your inventory will be in. Most B-Stock storefronts follow standardized product and packaging conditions, and we provide lot manifests with line-item level of detail (and a lot of other helpful data like MSRP and quantities) so you can bid with confidence.
How Do I Start Buying Inventory on B-Stock?
Let’s go into registration requirements, platform tools, and tips to get started.
What You Need To Register
You’ll need a sales tax ID (also called a resale certificate). This allows you to buy wholesale goods tax-free. The certificate usually comes from the state where you operate your business. Read more about resale certificates →
Note: Resale certificates are state-specific; depending on where your inventory is being purchased and shipped to makes a difference.
Filling Out Your Buyer Profile
Keep your shipping addresses updated so you can receive shipments without delays and avoid unnecessary fees. For example, you can note whether your address is a commercial space vs a warehouse, whether or not it requires a liftgate, and keep all other delivery addresses on file.
In your Buyer Profile, you can also set up seller notifications so you never miss new listings. More info here →
Utilize Smart Sourcing Tools
B-Stock takes a tech-forward approach to sourcing. Use the Distance Filter to find listings near you and save on shipping. You can also find inventory faster with personalized, Saved Searches and switch between favorite searches instantly.
Building Your Strategy
Before you bid, estimate resale value and shipping costs. Understanding your margins first helps you avoid getting swept up in the heat of the moment (or worse, bidding wars). Set a maximum price that leaves room for profit and stick to that number. As you continue your buying journey, remember to track your average profit per sale and use it as a benchmark when sourcing.
Start Exploring Smaller Lots
If you’re just starting, you don’t need to buy a full pallet right away. B-Stock offers smaller, curated lots designed for new and growing resellers. These lots let you test categories and find what works best for your business. Inventory you would not otherwise have access to is just a click away on B-Stock!
*Limited-time availability. For more inventory, you can view live listings here. Looking for volume and velocity solutions? We have you covered. See if you qualify here.
What’s the cheapest way to start reselling?
Start with items you already have. You can also search the clearance aisles at big box retailers or Goodwill for items with high resale potential. Remember: your operation doesn’t need to be fancy, just make sure your math adds up.
Do I need to pay tax when buying liquidation pallets?
No. As long as you’ve submitted a valid, state-specific resale certificate*, you can purchase goods tax-free on B-Stock. It is your responsibility to charge sales tax to your customers.
*You may know this as: a reseller tax ID, business tax ID number, seller permit number, sales tax certificate number, or sales tax ID number.
Where can I get a resale certificate?
Liquidation is made up of returns and excess goods that retailers need to move quickly, often sold for far less than their original retail price tags. Wholesalers frequently purchase lots from large liquidators, break those lots apart, and then repack and redistribute them in smaller lots to smaller retailers and resellers.
Can I make money reselling liquidation pallets?
Yes! Thousands of buyers build successful businesses reselling liquidation pallets. Some start with as little as a couple of hundred dollars, flipping individual items or sourcing smaller lots. When you’re getting bulk amounts of inventory for pennies on the dollar, you can resell each item closer to its retail price tag.
How do I know what products will sell best?
See what the going rate is for bestsellers on marketplace sites like eBay and Amazon. Generally speaking, the higher the price tag, the more it can resell for, but it can vary depending on the item’s condition and seasonality. What’s more important is ensuring you have a buyer for the product.
Is it better to buy pallets or truckloads of inventory?
If you’re just getting the hang of things, start with pallets (or go even smaller, if possible). You want to ensure you can move through your inventory first before going bigger–the worst thing for a reseller is having cash tied up in sitting inventory.
Where do resellers buy bulk inventory online?
Resellers can buy inventory on online auction sites and from other big liquidators/ brokers. However, going through wholesalers (instead of direct to the source, like on B-Stock), you may find the merchandise has been through multiple middlemen and price markups.
