What Is Retail Arbitrage
Retail arbitrage means purchasing underpriced items from retail stores, charity shops, car boot sales and clearance events to resell at higher prices on platforms like eBay, Amazon, Facebook Marketplace and Vinted. The price differential between purchase and sale price minus platform fees and shipping represents profit.
Best Sourcing Locations
Charity and thrift shops provide the widest selection of underpriced items particularly for books, clothing, toys and housewares. Supermarket clearance sections offer branded food products at significant discounts suitable for resale. Car boot sales and garage sales provide negotiable pricing on individual items.
Profit Margin Calculation
Calculate profit before purchasing by checking completed eBay sold listings for identical items. Subtract the platform fee of 10-15%, estimated shipping cost, packaging materials and your sourcing cost to arrive at net profit. Items yielding less than $3-5 net profit typically are not worth the time investment unless you are processing very high volumes.