For the Love of All That's Holy, Don't Pay Retail!!

One of the questions I get most frequently from people who read my blog is "who is your secret supplier?"  What if I told you there's absolutely nothing special about my "secret supplier" and that if you wanted to you could get the same kinds of things I get for CHEAPER than my asking price?

The shoe in the picture is a Christian Louboutin Declic 90 mm in a black patent.  It retails for $675 at Saks, Barneys and Neiman Marcus.  These shoes sell out quickly and never go on sale.

A while back, when I first started buying designer shoes to resell on eBay and Bonanzle, a friend of a friend (let's call her Maria) contacted me about the first pair of Louboutins I had for sale.  They weren't what she was looking for, but she wondered whether I could help her find a black Louboutin pump with a relatively low heel for less than the retail price.

Without giving away trade secrets, I located the gorgeous pair you see here from a seller abroad, had them shipped over and then sold them to Maria for about $100 less than retail.  I've had them authenticated TWICE, with the same results - 100% authentic.  And I made money.  Not huge buckets of money, but a little money.  Best of all, I had a great time trying to figure out how on earth I was going to get the shoes that never go on sale, well, on sale.

The truth is I've developed a knack for hunting things down and figuring out a system to obtain a discount. Which got me to thinking.  What if my next venture were to write an e-book about how to get discounts on expensive items?  It's not an elaborate system, but it does take time and persistence.  Since you guys have been supporting me all this time, here are a few tips:

1) Sign up for the email list to Off 5th (Saks), Last Call (Neiman), Nordstrom Rack, and any other brand that you're a fan of.  The stores will then send you information about upcoming promotions, as well as coupon you can use to get even better prices on your purchases.  It doesn't matter if you don't live close to the outlets.  Most shops will allow you to buy things over the phone and ship them to you for a low fee.  Once you've identified an item you want, call around, use your discounts and buy your item for 75% off.  Woohoo!

2)  Check eBay, Bonanzle, and if you live in the United States, Craigslist!!  You can use this link here to search all of Craigs, and despite the fact that Craiglist encourages users to trade locally, you can still safely purchase things from willing sellers and protect yourself from fraud by using Paypal and a credit card to complete your purchase.  Have the seller send you an invoice through Paypal with a detailed description of the item you're purchasing.  If something goes wrong you have the option of filing a case through Paypal, or even better, requesting a chargeback through your credit card.

3) Hoard coupon codes.  Right now I'm sitting on coupon codes from Piperlime, Endless, Banana Republic, Neiman Marcus Direct and a few other online retailers.  Using these coupon codes will allow me to buy hard to find items that never hit the sales racks at a discount.

4) Email me! :)  I may not be able to help you find what you're looking for, but I'd be more than happy to give it a shot!

Evaluating My Progress - 56 Stars Later

It's been a while since I sat down and re-evaluated my progress. When I first started this blog I had a measely 25 stars under my belt, and while I still only have a measely 81 positives, a lot has happened since you and I first met.

Remember my eBay accounting post, where I talked about conversion rates, margins and profit per item?  I was selling $10 items for $8 in profit back then.  My first big profit item was that skirt you see on the right - I made $18!  There was no "secret supplier," no CAMERA, no Facebook page, no Bonanzle and dirty carpeting gallore.  And after all this, where have I landed?  Well, I'm making more revenue, that's true, but what about profits?  And margins?  And conversion rates?

Back of the envelope, I would say my conversion rate has dropped to about 50%.  Half my items sell, but the other half doesn't.  Not surprising, considering not everyone can plunk down $200 on a pair of shoes.  However, my profit per item has increased from $9 to roughly $35, and I'm now selling an average of 15 items per month.  What's interesting though is that I've also started to develop a side business of finding things for people OFF eBay, which combines the two things I enjoy most about this venture - customer service and SHOPPING.

I'm currently working on three projects, with varying degrees of difficulty.  They all involve locating specific types of ladies shoes to sell to friends old and new.  And while I'm never going to become a millionaire in this line of business because I don't yet have the resources to find things cheap enough to add a good mark-up and still offer the people I'm helping a good deal, I can't begin to tell you how satisfying this is for me!  I LOVE the challenge of tracking down exactly that thing that will make my customer happy.  I looooove figuring out how I'm going to do it, where I'm going to find it, what strategy I'm going to use.  It's almost like a riddle, and I've always been obsessed with riddles.

Am I making a ton of money?  Not yet.  Do I have my ups and downs?  Yup.  Do I sometimes feel like this is a wasted effort?  You bet.  And then I make that sale, or find that thing, or get good feedback, or get a new blog visitor, and it makes my day.

Some bloggers celebrate their 100th post.  My 100th post came and went, business as usual, but given how far we've come, I'm thinking we've got to set something up to celebrate my 100th feedback whenever that happens.  After all, who else would I celebrate that milestone with if you not you, who have stuck it out with me since my $9 item days?

Thanks guys. Thanks for your support.

Things that Piss Me Off

1) The stupid USPS tracking thingie not UPDATING.  ARGH.  I'm going postal on my post office tomorrow if I don't wake up tomorrow to delivery confirmation for the TWO items I sent at the end of last week.

2) People who send $100 offers for my $389 shoes.  My response?  I very politely send a counteroffer for $379, just so they know how it feels.

On a happier note, here are some pics of my latest inventory items.  I've already posted one of them.  You won't believe me when I tell you how much I paid for these.  Are those Giuseppe Zanotti, you ask?  Why yes.  Yes, they are.

I have one more but I haven't taken pictures yet.

PS: Do you think buyers mind my dirty carpet?