Bootstrapping and Flipping on Craigslist Self-Employed Work from Home'

[Guest34764]

Going to make this post before I head out to buy the Cervelo (this guy is an absolute douche, but a good deal is a good deal).

Could a mod possibly change the title of my thread to resemble something more flipping?I want this thread to be able to be searchable by title so having the words "craigslist" or "flipping" would be cool.Or something like "Is a 16-year-old kid making more money than you?", just kidding .

Thanks! @Vigilante

EDIT:Thanks Vig!That's prefect.

 

[JokerCrazyBeatz]

You seem like a great salesman , i love it , im ready to see how you go about making your income passive

 

[Guest34764]

This bike is depressing me.

It's beaten me to the bone without it selling.I haven't made a post in this thread due to the reason of this one bike.I didn't want to update with nothing to show, but It's been a bit too long since I've updated.

I will sell this bike, I don't buy things that won't sell, It's just the way it is.I don't care if it takes another 2 weeks or however long, I really don't want to quit on it, and since I put all my money into it, I truly need to sell it.I'm still selling it for 1K, any lower and I will honestly feel like shit.

I don't know why this is troubling me so much, It's not even that I can't sell it.It's just staring at me in the garage like a huge bastard it is.

1.Admit to your mistakes, this bastard was my first mistake, I'll make many more, but this was the first.

2.Understand why it was such a big mistake, the bike is in a very small niche ( the triathlon niche), I shouldn't have been blinded and realised this bike would take forever to sell.

3.Learn from your mistakes and apply the solution in real life, will I ever buy another bike in the triathlon niche?

No.

I'm I going to update this when the bike sells?

Nope, It doesn't even deserve a ounce more of my time, that bastard.

Once It's sold I'll move on to bikes in the 300$ range and focus on mountain bikes ( the biggest hit so far).

I guess I should say I'm sorry for you guys for not updating, but in reality I'm sorry for myself for not seeing such a dumb move.Nonetheless, this bike will be sold, I don't care If I have to spend more time on it, I'm getting my 1K and moving on.

I'll update when I buy another bike/sell one, and I'll put up some more tips or something along the way, I'm not sure.

Until next time, see ya.

 

[Guest34764]

Obtain another $300 and work another line of bikes. Use 'the bastard bike' as a lead magnet.

Sounds like a plan, back to square one for now.

 

[94blackbird]

This is a good idea. You could reduce your risk by having them put down a deposit that they get back if they return the bike in good shape.

This is a common practice in the race car world where people buy seats for a race. Many teams have a you wreck it you "buy" it policy or they impose fines for hurting the car on track.

 

[The-J]

Better to take an L than have cash tied up forever

 

[Guest34764]

Damn I haven't updated this thread in forever.

Whoops.

So yeah, I managed to sell the Cervelo for 950 (yay).It was a pain, I went through 3 people actually coming over to my house only to say "no" at the end.Thankfully my savior showed up and bought it.

Now I'm in the process of making a few deals, I'd be lying if I didn't say it was hard as hell.

I've gone through so many ads and have found almost nothing.I'm going to have to have a big go at it tomorrow and try to find something.

I'm definitely looking to spend 300-400 on each bike but I'll go higher or lower if I need to.I'm thirsty for money so I'll take any good deal I can.

I'll update this thread when I buy another bike(s), really this update was just to say "hey!I'm not quitting".

Slow steps at a time, I was able to milk that bike for as much as I can (way more than I should have been able to).

Don't worry about time in the beginning, you're not going to have much money so try to milk them for all you can before selling them off.While you should value time, It doesn't really matter if the job only takes a hour or two of work and the rest you just sit there and wait.

 

[daivey]

i tried hustling on craigslist and kijiji but it seems like such a huge amount of effort for such little pay off.. I dont know, to me id rather spend more time at my job and getting good at that than craiglist side hustle.. maybe even picking up another job?

i would spend hours looking at listings at first.. looking at everything.. cars.. bikes.computers. phones.. and like there were no good deals ever. Every thing was priced to perfection..e.g. no margin to buy and re sell.. and then low balling people didn't really work, no matter how much charm, or how desperate they were.

but i am in Canada and it seems here people have never had famine. they would rather sell their iphone for $700 and hold on to it for 6 months, than for $550 sell it today, and feed their kids...
our social safety nets are too good.

 

[Guest34764]

i tried hustling on craigslist and kijiji but it seems like such a huge amount of effort for such little pay off.. I dont know, to me id rather spend more time at my job and getting good at that than craiglist side hustle.. maybe even picking up another job?

My version of hustling is small effort and big payoff,although I'm slowly realising I can't just stick to high priced items, this is the sort of mindset you should adopt because it makes you focus on the good deals and not the time wasters.

Spend more time at your job, have fun with it.Stay awhile, take off your coat and enjoy working.Sarcasm, of course, a hustle is simply a means to an end, there are several means to an end and luckily you have an option of choosing.Take the slowlane route with working 2 jobs and stay comfortable, or stay at your current job and hustle on the side and enjoy more time off and more money.Milk that job for all it's worth and turn that milk into gold.

By no means I'm I a shining example of a hustler,I don't even consider myself good since I've had such little experience with it.This thread serves the purpose of documenting my progress for others to look at and learn or get motivated to start doing it.I hope to god someone looks at this thread, goes out and makes more money at Craigslist than I do, because that's what I want, and that was the threads original purpose.

i would spend hours looking at listings at first.. looking at everything.. cars.. bikes.computers. phones.. and like there were no good deals ever. Every thing was priced to perfection..e.g. no margin to buy and re sell.. and then low balling people didn't really work, no matter how much charm, or how desperate they were.

You are dividing your focus way too much, stick to a few key categories that are used heavily in your area.I 100% guarantee you that there are deals out there, there's no way there isn't.Lowballing people hardly works, but when it does and you get a good deal It makes it worth it.

but i am in Canada and it seems here people have never had famine. they would rather sell their iphone for $700 and hold on to it for 6 months, than for $550 sell it today, and feed their kids...
our social safety nets are too good.

My area is like this too and so Is everyone else's.People are greedy, they want to soak up as much money as possible because that's just human nature.If they bought it for 600$ a year ago you can bet your a$$ that they will sell it for 550$ used.That's just how shit is unfortunately, but deals are out there, you just have to focus in and find them.

Have a good read, this guy knows his stuff.Enjoy.

http://www.lambopower.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=58618

 

[miked_d]

I love your story. I am impressed with you starting with something simple and executing. I am more impressed with your ability to express yourself. You are better than many adults.

Have you thought about studying copyrighting? It will help you with your ad copy and help you in the future. You may even progress into that.

Keep on executing!

 

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[ShamanKing]

Interesting your Niche is bikes. I focus on toys, games, and Men's Shirt (although I hate it bc the process of taking pictures and posting annoys me, I love the ROI). Thanks for sharing if you ever want to spread out to other niches I am glad to share what works for me.

 

[Azure]

So I finally got 300$.It's been a long crawl starting at 40$.

Have I done good?I think so, considering my current situation.However, I'm not sure what I should do now.Selling and buying bikes isn't as easy as you'd think.I could continue selling bikes, or I could invest in a vending machine.I could also flip other items, and I could also put some money into investing stocks/bitcoin (yes,I know bitcoin...).

My main goal at the end of this all is a eccomerce website, I could just start a site now and do dropshipping.However,If i do vending machines that goal could change.

Anyone got some guidance for me?

Where are you that bikes are so cheap? You could sell that Peugeot here in Toronto for an easy 250-300.

 

[Guest34764]

Did you try buying and selling Apple products?

No, I've tried staying away from them.The first reason I stayed away is because I didn't have enough money to buy one (unless it was a previous model), and second because I didn't really know too much about them.The first reason was the main one.

Since flipping bikes I've learned quite a bit about them and I've been able to fix some issues on them.Direct exposure to any product will do that to you I think.So now I'm at the point where I have 300$, I can now buy the big boy bikes (or at least some of them).

I'll post pictures of the Cannondale I get today, but I'll be shelling out 150$ or a little less.It was listed as 300$, but I got it down to 150
Since I haven't really posted anything valuable I might post pictures or list steps of cleaning a bike or I might show you how to test it before buying.

 

[InspireHD]

Which sites are you hitting the hardest lately? Are you still only using Craigslist and OfferUp? I was looking last week sometime and wasn't really seeing anything. I see some bikes people sell are off the rack at Dick's or Walmart or something.

 

[Guest34764]

Try let go aswell. I have a group of friends that use letgo because they dont want to deal with craigslist people. PS already flipped a jeep this week and made 700$ and already purchased a volvo for a 2nd flip

I also have letgo, but I primarily use it for scouting than selling.Those flips are awesome man, you should make your own thread and help others out too.Good job.

 

[BryanGee]

I did it again, just like the Cannondale.I managed to entirely wager my money on a single bike.

It's nerve-wracking and exhilarating all at the same time.I can only sit back and see how this plays out.I'll either be up to 1k or around 600-800ish.Not sure, and only time will tell with a bike such as this.The guy I had to meet up with was a complete annoyance the whole way through.He couldn't drive to my house 20 mins away to make 500$, said it wasn't "worth" his time.Okay buddy, we'll I'll be 1k richer, so I can't complain.Sometimes you just got to suck it up for a good deal.I say a good deal but honestly, it was meh, and that's why it's a little nervewracking.The bike was in worse condition than I thought, it rode fine but cosmetically had more damage than I anticipated.

Thank god It's a racing bike where cosmetics don't mean a thing to a buyer in this niche.I spent a total of 5 minutes cleaning some rusty screws with sandpaper and I took epic pictures,wrote copy, and posted the ad 4 times in around a hour-ish or less.My goal for this flip is to put in the least amount of effort, so when I sell it the people who make 0$ will have no excuse for not making $.I don't have a car, I don't have a lot of money, in fact I started with 40$ I got from good grades on my report card, and I don't even have my permit yet.

If I 16-year-old kid can do it, why can't you?What's your excuse to not hustling when you should?

I'm going to stop referring to my bikes as "bikes".Instead, they'll be aptly named, as an "investment".

So let's hope this investment brings home the money.

To be fair though in most situations I would expect the buyer to come pick it up. I guess it is all in how bad he had to sell the bike, if it is a good deal as it sounds I don't think he is being unreasonable. Just my .02 cents.

 

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[Scot]

Could you rent this badass triathlon bike out to somebody (could be risky) on a per race basis? Maybe to someone who is interested in trying a triathlon but doesn't want to splurge and buy a bike for something they may not do again.

That's a genius idea. Rent out race bikes for races to people who can't afford the crazy expensive bikes!

 

[Carnage]

Could you rent this badass triathlon bike out to somebody (could be risky) on a per race basis? Maybe to someone who is interested in trying a triathlon but doesn't want to splurge and buy a bike for something they may not do again.

This is a good idea. You could reduce your risk by having them put down a deposit that they get back if they return the bike in good shape.

 

[Mikkel]

This may break some sort of rule out there, but tell me if I am wrong. You could go to different places that sells bikes, or other products, and take photos of these products. Post them to Craigslist or Let go and see if they sell for the higher price. If it does, buy the product and than send it.

Does anyone know if this is allowed, by the way?

 

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[DuncDad]

So I finally got 300$.It's been a long crawl starting at 40$.

Have I done good?I think so, considering my current situation.However, I'm not sure what I should do now.Selling and buying bikes isn't as easy as you'd think.I could continue selling bikes, or I could invest in a vending machine.I could also flip other items, and I could also put some money into investing stocks/bitcoin (yes,I know bitcoin...).

My main goal at the end of this all is a eccomerce website, I could just start a site now and do dropshipping.However,If i do vending machines that goal could change.

Anyone got some guidance for me?

Drop shipping is one possibility but is a pretty busy space. Find local businesses that perhaps have no idea of ecommerce and arrange a private drop ship deal


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[AlphaWulf]

Super interesting thread.
Infact Gary Vee started his businesses flipping toys and what not in ebay after buying from Garage sales. He used to make $1000 a week at your age.

Pretty awesome right?
You are on the right track. I will keep an eye on the thread.

Gary Vee is great. I watch him on snapchat and he just went out last weekend and bought $300 worth of toys and estimated to sell it for 3.6k on ebay. Reselling is the most basic form of business. Simple yet effective