Which retailer shall I target next?

L[Deactivated] on 17/04/2021 - 15:01
Last edited 17/04/2021 - 16:10 by 1 other user

So basically, I am a retail arbitrage type of dude looking for my next prey LOL.

I have been given my walking papers from a company I have been targeting for a few years, and I'm looking at where to zone in on next. I have a few ideas but I thought I might attempt to recruit the wisdom of OzBargain at large and basically crowdsource the optimal new host.

I am mostly interested in Bunnings, Repco , Big W and QBD books. But am very open to other suggestions.

Big W cancels all my online orders (we have a past), so this makes it tricky to go commercial scale with them (though far from impossible). Repco really wants me on deck but I don't love their clearance lines and I kind of want to diversify out of just automotive stuff if for nothing other than keeping my shopping exciting (I do it for the adrenalin rush of finding bargains too LOL). Bunnings has no idea who I am or anything. I have only done very small stuff there.

How I operate is on the ground basically. First, I will study the clearance lines of the retailer. Then I will go around store to store and scope out what is happening on the ground. I will learn all the little intricacies of the company at a micro level whilst partaking in some small scale acquisitions as to justify my time in going around and such.

Over time I become a familiar face at the stores and they learn about why I am actually there. Then deals come to me, information comes to me about what is coming up for clearance etc.

So stores with alot of non online deals would be good prey for me. Stores with alot of inconsistency happening from store to store (this is actually one of the reasons why I chose Bunnings). And big stores where I can fly under the radar are preferred (because once Head Office finds out they generally send me a legal letter to stop targeting their outlets).

Yes, I do realize that this is mostly a place for individuals to get a bargain and not for commercial type buying. But I am going to be commercial buying regardless of OzBargain (and was doing so long before I ever joined here). Also, I am a person that is happy to share my treasures here. Over the past few years I have let millions of dollars in bargains pass me by quietly, because I wasn't on OzBargain. I either didn't have enough money to buy them all, didn't have enough space to keep them all, or just realized that I already have way too much stock that I haven't had time to list on eBay yet so the last thing I should be doing is buying even more.

For years I have looked on OzBargain and kind of laughed that none of the actual bargains and serious deals are ever posted here. Seriously, they are not. Most of the REALLY good bargains are gone instantly to people that target the stores and have insider knowledge about what is happening (friendships with managers and stuff). So shall the forum help me in my new quests, I shall help the forum by posting my treasures here as I see fit.

To be quite honest I am looking for the retailers that are most ripe for my strategy and ones where I can acquire massive amounts of stock very inexpensively using my methods.

Suggestions of which retailers, what you have noticed about how they operate, and why you think they would be a great target?

General Discussion

closed Comments

  • Hybroid on 17/04/2021 - 15:06
    +350

    I read all that. Twice. Still have no idea what you're on about. Something something middle man to get rid of clearance stuff?

      • Hybroid on 17/04/2021 - 15:19
        +308

        Right, I think I get it. A very long winded way to say you go to clearance racks in stores, buy discounted stuff and resell it online for profit. Okay.

          • Hybroid on 17/04/2021 - 15:36
            +98

            @[Deactivated]: Well isn't that exactly what you do? Or have I misunderstood?

            Had a look at your eBay store and it's just full of really old suspension parts and random stuff for cars that are mostly discontinued.

            So you buy these clearance lines up from stores that want to get rid of them for floor space or whatever then resell online to make a profit. So I'm not surprised people here haven't taken kindly to your request to help you facilitate that further.

            It's really no different to people going to auctions, grabbing bargains and reselling for profit too.

            Happy to be enlightened if wrong as seems quite a few others here don't quite get it either.

          • cheeseburger on 18/04/2021 - 03:22
            +67

            @[Deactivated]: If you're already netting millions of stock per year, why are you asking an internet forum composed of random individuals that have nothing to do with your line of business for suggestions?

            • MrBear on 18/04/2021 - 11:17
              +37

              @cheeseburger: Well, he is buying stock at clearance, but using the RRP value to say it is millions. Like if something is $100RRP but I buy it at $1, I have a net value of $100 (or $99 if you want). It doesn't mean he is worth millions like I think he thinks. Realistically, it just means he has a TON of crap sitting in his garage he trying to flog it on Ebay or Amazon.

              • macrocephalic on 19/04/2021 - 09:08
                +3

                @MrBear: Yes. Basically, stores do the numbers and decide that their shelf space and inventory costs are worth more than the value of the stock - so they sell it on clearance so they don't have to store and maintain the inventory. The OP decided that his time and space are worth much less so he buys their clearance items and resells them.

                Sure, there's a value in this, and he's probably making money, but it's basically the same thing that people have been doing at weekend markets for half a century.

            • striker5950 on 19/04/2021 - 11:57
              +4

              @cheeseburger: "He isn't confessing, he is bragging"

            • MrMoo on 19/04/2021 - 14:48
              +1

              @rompastompa: You need to remove this one if that is his actual address lol. Not good to post =( Good cyber sleuthing though lol.

              • rompastompa on 19/04/2021 - 15:04

                @MrMoo: Agree, it was probably a bit much. I'll let the mods remove it.

                They're claiming to have millions, yet their details are publicly available via government websites within seconds. Simpletons! ;)

                • MrMoo on 19/04/2021 - 15:06
                  +3

                  @rompastompa: Did you see the post where he isn't even registered for GST and is selling less than 75K a year? Yet claiming millions in stock? I mean the numbers just don't add up. Maybe a fake it until you make it kind of thing. But to each their own, it was an interesting and funny read, and we move on with life lol.

        • SeVeN11 on 19/04/2021 - 01:19
          +2

          This YouTube clip explains it much better.

          I'm pretty sure this is what the OP is doing.

        • sauce2k on 19/04/2021 - 14:27

          Love it Hybroid!

      • GrueHunter on 17/04/2021 - 15:24
        +120

        So I target a retailers clearance lines, separate the wheat from the chaff, pick all the fruit, and resell it on eBay.

        22 words vs the essay you wrote first time around. There's some arbitrage for us I guess.

        • ozbjunkie on 18/04/2021 - 09:17
          +14

          How dare you steal this man's business model when he clearly contributes so much to the site. /s

      • Dr Techno on 18/04/2021 - 00:56
        +40

        Upscaled commercial version of broden then..

        • jc8 on 18/04/2021 - 15:20
          +27

          Can sum it up in 2 words…

          Full-time Broden.

          • living4music on 19/04/2021 - 00:41
            +1

            @jc8: To me, it looks like 3 words and a dash.

            • buckster on 19/04/2021 - 11:10

              @living4music: Not according to a 25 words or less competition form it doesn't..

      • temporiser on 18/04/2021 - 07:49
        +1

        Iā€™m still canā€™t quite understand how you are sharing your treasures with me. I would like to buy these cheap items. Will you let me know when theyā€™re on?

      • AustriaBargain on 18/04/2021 - 09:34
        +4

        Shouldnā€™t these stores be happy you are clearing their old stock?

        • JIMB0 on 18/04/2021 - 15:33
          +4

          Not if he is stealing their website photos of the products to use in his ebay listings.

      • gimli on 18/04/2021 - 10:33
        +3

        As people have mentioned already we call that Brodening.

        You are not doing anything new…

        • striker5950 on 19/04/2021 - 12:00

          let me use the fancy name, retail arbitrage lol
          my friend uses the term support engineer as that was the advertised job position (hint: he is just a support call guy to reset passwords)

      • SKiZO on 19/04/2021 - 09:08
        +2

        Oh I get it now. You should have just said you were a (profanity).

    • Baghern on 19/04/2021 - 13:33

      He wants to be a Super Broden…

      While at the same disparaging… a website that is for the general public…

      Of course a site like this isn't going to be able to keep up/post all the ridiculous deals that require insider knowledge and disappear in minutes

      The entire post just comes across as bragging, than asking for advice

  • pantsparty on 17/04/2021 - 15:07
    +6

    Can you give us some examples of the great bargains you have found in the past? What do you do with them once you buy?

    • brendanm on 17/04/2021 - 15:10
      +4

      He puts them on ebay

      • DoctorCalculon on 17/04/2021 - 20:59
        +36

        And then writes longa$$ essays.
        LOL @ retail arbitrage!

        • taoz on 18/04/2021 - 21:25
          +1

          Arbitrage. must not know what it is.

      • ddhar on 18/04/2021 - 16:59
        +4

        Ebay must be making a fortune based on the million of sales.

      • pantsparty on 17/04/2021 - 19:33
        +8

        How much profit did you make last financial year from these bulk buy and ebay sales? (Factoring in all your expenses - travel, ebay fees, shipping etc).

      • Franconian on 17/04/2021 - 21:04
        +11

        "I brought this particular $70 item for $1''.

        What? You bring in items? I thought you buy cheap to sell with profit?

      • Mistredo on 18/04/2021 - 12:55
        +4

        If you are so experienced in picking good goods, why aren't you going to suppliers and buying directly from them and opening your own shop?

      • Eeples on 18/04/2021 - 19:39
        +3

        I think we believe you but I am wondering how do you manage to turn over so much product.

        Do you live in a Post Office?

  • mapax on 17/04/2021 - 15:08
    +23

    None of the stores I like please. As an ultra-small time recreational bargain hunter that only spends maybe $50-$100 a year youā€™re making it hard for me to find mega bargains…

      • mapax on 17/04/2021 - 16:15
        +4

        Wait, what did I spend $58 on?
        I think the last thing I spent money on was engine oil which cost $2 after cash back.
        Iā€™m mostly being facetious, but I will be checking if my local sca has any metal signs tomorrow.
        Also, I didnā€™t neg you, not that it really matters

          • timthetoolman on 17/04/2021 - 19:17
            +29

            @[Deactivated]: Your wires are most definitely crossed

          • blint000 on 17/04/2021 - 21:32
            +30

            @[Deactivated]: You really should learn the difference between bought and brought.

            Past tense of buy is bought.
            Past tense of bring is brought

            • ozbjunkie on 18/04/2021 - 09:19
              +22

              @blint000: Again, stop helping him, he hasn't contributed enough to the site to deserve a markdown price on 2nd grade vocabulary.

            • Preet on 19/04/2021 - 08:53
              +3

              @blint000: He has millions of dollars of stock, he doesn't have time for grammar!

  • robbyjones on 17/04/2021 - 15:22
    +89

    You've been here five minutes and you want this community to give you something you will trade on and make bargain hunting worse for them. Yeah, right!

    • Franc-T on 18/04/2021 - 16:48
      +9

      This is pretty much what the poster seems to be doing. The very fact that the poster is on this site means he is using ozbargain to get and buy out stuff.

      The post for the bags had stock left in only regional centres, so I would imagine the OP has bought them out from the city and those werent cost-effective.

      Its a business model, but kinda against ths spirit of this site.

  • iNeed2Pee on 17/04/2021 - 15:24
    +56

    The dogecoin guy made more sense than you.

    • s1Lence on 17/04/2021 - 22:16
      +6

      I am a man of the people, this guy is not.

      • modiika on 19/04/2021 - 09:52
        +3

        Thanks for showing up

  • Ryanek on 17/04/2021 - 15:25
    +42

    You want us to help you make money and reduce the chance for us to save money?

    • Techie4066 on 19/04/2021 - 11:41
      +1

      One person profiting off everyone else's losses. Haven't heard of that business model before…

  • bloom on 17/04/2021 - 15:28
    +70

    You should target Harvey Norman šŸ‘

    • bchliu on 19/04/2021 - 15:13

      Doesn't work well with their franchise model.

  • Lysander on 17/04/2021 - 15:29
    +84

    So, let me get this straight:

    You want us to help you target stores that have bargains so you can swoop in and get all the clearance items (commercial quantity) which leaves nothing for us, the individual bargain hunter.
    That would be kind of self-defeating for us and very, very stupid, wouldn't it?
    By the way, why do you think you get legal letters from HQ?
    In the finance world what you seem to be suggesting is called insider trading and it will net you a nice bargain: several years free accommodation and food and a secure job (however the pay is crap).

    • pegaxs on 17/04/2021 - 15:34
      +17

      If only there was a site OP could subscribe too that showed bargains and low priced items for them to buy…

      • surg3on on 19/04/2021 - 16:57

        If you find such a site you should send me a link.

    • serpserpserp on 18/04/2021 - 07:49
      +9

      Oh you forgot that he said he would share his quality bargains with us when he feels like it. Pretty generous.

      • GrueHunter on 18/04/2021 - 11:00
        +1

        "I'll pay you in exposure, my business is the next Amazon"

  • mskeggs on 17/04/2021 - 15:33
    +109

    You make millions reselling bigW clearance items. Lol.
    BigW doesnā€™t even make millions selling the stuff at full price.

    • serpserpserp on 18/04/2021 - 07:55
      +1

      To be fair he was talking revenue not profit I think.

    • nickj on 18/04/2021 - 10:40
      +3

      I don't even understand why big W would ban him. I mean if he pays his bills, doesn't interfere with other customers or cause problems, and is polite, why would Big W (or any other chain) not want someone to buy lots of their clearance items? Something here doesn't add up to me.

      • MarcusJones on 18/04/2021 - 11:32
        +11

        Quite often having bargains and clearance lines (or loss leaders) help attract people into the store… sometimes that converts into additional sales. Having someone buy all clearance items quickly means less bargains for normal customers and possibly results in lost sales of higher profit items

        • dizzle on 18/04/2021 - 13:16
          +4

          As well as that there can be supplier issues.

          I've worked for an importer that got in trouble for selling a large amount of BT speakers to someone that then sold them overseas. This went against the suppliers agreement with an importer in the other country.

          It can also happen in Australia. Officeworks did this with headphones from a particular brand when they were not an authorised reseller of that brand (ie supplier would not sell to them directly). As they were on selling it was considered Grey market goods.

          • berger on 18/04/2021 - 21:55

            @dizzle: Sounds like a company I work with, they are not fans of their gear going overseas. I get resellers coming in at least once a week hoping for a deal. I just shut them down.

          • modiika on 19/04/2021 - 09:54

            @dizzle: which is not illegal. There's usually little a supplier can do about it.

            • dizzle on 19/04/2021 - 11:24

              @modiika: Except the supplier can stop selling to the reseller.

              There may also be terms in thier dealer agreement that means financial penalty or removal of discounts.

              • modiika on 19/04/2021 - 11:29

                @dizzle: Well i mean presumably there is little relationship between the grey market seller and the official distributor. That's the problem. The distributor has to try and go after which of their downlines is selling to them. But usually its a overseas import, so that's usually outside local official distributors hands, they make complaint to the overseas head company and they try to determine where its being sourced from. But often these case are more bark than actual bite.

                The only reason to comply for someone like officeworks is if they want to keep a good relationship with the relevant other party.

  • djones145 on 17/04/2021 - 15:35
    -6

    noob
    u need to read trift wars.

    u won't be able to get prices low enough frequent enuff at chain stores

    trift stores are the way

  • DingoBilly on 17/04/2021 - 15:38
    +135

    I never understand people like this.

    Half of the post is saying how smart they are, overly explaining themselves, and insulting us plebs that we don't know how the real deals go down.

    The other half is asking the people they just said have no idea about those deals for advice on what to do.

    • Deridas on 17/04/2021 - 21:06
      +6

      It's weird flex but ok.

    • bongom on 18/04/2021 - 03:55
      +16

      Unfortunately most dumb people don't know how dumb they are?

      • ozbjunkie on 18/04/2021 - 09:21
        +6

        I would offer the name of this effect buy I'm worried the OP would corner the market and we'd have to rename it the MarkyMarkdowns effect.

    • MessyG on 18/04/2021 - 08:04
      +7

      I too am confused by "I'm laughing at you but also please help me' vibe.

  • mbck on 17/04/2021 - 15:39
    +1

    You do you op. But just so long as you're not dropshipping stuff from aliexpres….

    • serpserpserp on 18/04/2021 - 07:56
      +8

      He probably hasn't discovered that yet.

      • smartazz104 on 18/04/2021 - 10:42
        +5

        I hope he does and ends up with ā€œmillionsā€ in unsellable stock.

    • Franc-T on 18/04/2021 - 16:50
      +2

      I dont mind people who ship from aliexpress….as long as they get it in the country first, half the reason I dont buy little things from Ebay and use Amazon or Ali directly is because people are dishonest about this and I want to know when it will arrive.

  • fd9 on 17/04/2021 - 15:59
    +7

    Initially I thought this guy was just having a laugh, but after googling his ebay store, he has 924 items for sale and 616 items sold.

    • mskeggs on 17/04/2021 - 16:15
      +13

      Yep. He buys the stuff the shops canā€™t sell on clearance then lists it on eBay back at full price.
      I guess it is profitable if he can fund tying up lots of capital for potentially a long time, and has no storage and handling costs.
      Risky to buy stuff that isnā€™t selling at retail, as you might end up with a lot of stuff nobody wants.

      • fd9 on 17/04/2021 - 16:16

        True. I would assume he is making a profit if he's still going.

        • mskeggs on 17/04/2021 - 16:25
          +10

          Seems more like a hobby at this stage.
          600 items sold isnā€™t going to pay the rent.

          • fd9 on 17/04/2021 - 16:30
            +2

            @mskeggs: Yes I suspect he has another job, but I know several people who earn some decent side cash with buy-sell ventures.

            • Quantumcat on 17/04/2021 - 18:30
              +5

              @fd9: No way is he making more than $5 an hour though

          • dizzle on 17/04/2021 - 17:41
            +2

            @mskeggs: But apparently netting him millions per year in stock

            Last I checked my criteria was netting me millions per year in stock. But I'll have to take it from you that I could describe what I do as simply thrift shopping.

      • fd9 on 17/04/2021 - 16:39
        +3

        I am actually quite impressed.

        When you say XXX store want you on board, like do you have an actual relationship with someone there that rings you to offload stock they can't sell to you?

        What % of items do you reckon just don't sell and you have to sell at a loss? I assume with experience you are better at picking items now.

        After accounting for all your storage and other expenses - how much % margin are you making at the moment?
        And when you break it down to per hour of effort, is it worth it over a regular 9-5 employee job?

        • [Deactivated] on 17/04/2021 - 16:52
          -2

          Yes I have relationships with store managers. They have my number, I have (some) of their numbers. And we keep in touch. If they need a clean up. They call me in and we do a deal. It happens over time if you are a regular buyer of clearance. They will start to offer you all kinds of things.

          Repco recently learned the SCA dumped me (the bosses at Super Retail Group decided to dump me, basically). So some managers at Repco have tried to get me in with them. They're passing my number around and I am getting calls but actually I am totally out of warehouse space at the moment.

          As for selling at a loss, at the risk of getting flamed further, it would be nigh on impossible. I am buying much cheaper than you imagine. And much cheaper than even the clearance price most times. My Trade Account was the biggest in Australia and had an incredible discount attached even on clearance lines. I could do a 50% off storewide sales, quadruple my sales volume and still make profits.

          I am moving to a bigger warehouse very soon (am looking as we speak) and am buying with a 10 year outlook. Much of my store is not even marketed properly yet (look at all the brake pads that are on there by part number). You sell by keywords not part numbers.

          So basically you are looking at a very haphazard store right now. A store slapped together in between my buying sprees.

          • stringbean402 on 18/04/2021 - 14:20
            +34

            @[Deactivated]: Biggest trade account in Australia but not even registered for GST on the sales side? … your having a big wank mate.

          • TheBird on 18/04/2021 - 22:38
            +4

            @[Deactivated]: Dude, something isn't matching up.

            I could do $75k pa from my spare bedroom. You're struggling for space in a warehouse and under $75k. Talk about BS meter going off. No wonder you're doing it all wrong, going from store to store. If you were up front where you were at instead of trying stroking your ego, I'd bet you'd get some good advice.

            I've done a little dabbling in this area a while back. If half of what you're saying is true, I can tell you, you're making your life way harder than it needs to be while earning way less than you should.

            • jorf on 19/04/2021 - 15:07

              @TheBird: He sounds like an Amway salesman… it's the same spiel.

              ie.
              - Look at all the profit i'm making!
              - Ignore all the expenses!
              - Ignore that it took me 10 times longer to achieve whatever profit
              - Ignore scalability
              - Ignore dead money from holding stock that can't be sold/devalues over time
              - Make up stuff about all these store managers who apparently have me on speed dial because they're SO IMPRESSED!
              - Yes, i'm making SUPER amounts of money, but i'm not GST registered. Ignore that bit too because it exposes my lies.

      • brendanm on 17/04/2021 - 17:16
        +29

        Lol, so you say you have millions in stock, yet you've got less $ sold on eBay than I have šŸ˜‚.

        My Trade Account was the biggest in Australia

        Sure it was šŸ™„

        • bloom on 17/04/2021 - 17:30
          +34

          I heard he has many leather bound books and his apartment smells of rich mahogany

          • Switchblade88 on 17/04/2021 - 20:37
            +2

            @bloom: Baxter, you ate the entire wheel of cheese?!?

            I'm not even mad, I'm impressed!

            • Franc-T on 18/04/2021 - 16:51

              @Switchblade88: I asked the supermarket if i could buy the whole wheel. They said it wasnt real cheese, it was promotional.

              Still tasted better than coon cheese though.

        • [Deactivated] on 17/04/2021 - 17:30
          -2

          I can get these kits for $41-$44 on my Trade Account (as an example).

          https://www.supercheapauto.com.au/p/toolpro-toolpro-12v-ultiā€¦

          If you dispute it let me know and I'll post the screenshot from my portal right now.

          The rest has been addressed here if you care to read.

          • brendanm on 17/04/2021 - 17:36
            +3

            @[Deactivated]: Post away with the screenshot.

            You have a lackluster eBay account, no items for sale on gumtree, your Facebook account is gone, and have a very very poorly made Shopify site. Not sure how you are getting all these sales if there's no way to buy from you.

              • brendanm on 17/04/2021 - 18:12
                +5

                @[Deactivated]: It takes two seconds to find your accounts, you made a blog listing them.

                You are selling obsolete crap that even Supercheap auto, with a massive bricks and mortar as well as online presence, cannot sell. Gabriel (shit) shocks for old clunkers?

                Oh, now you can't post it. How unfortunate.

                No, not jealous, I sold on eBay as a hobby when the Aus dollar was good.

                https://files.ozbargain.com.au/upload/268582/88387/screenshoā€¦

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