China | ResaleQueen

Season 1 Ep 6: Replacements.com, Selling China, Ship UPS

Sat, 23 Feb 2008 09:11:30 -0500

Resale Queen - 2008-02-23.mp3
Show: #006
Length: 15:25
Size: 10.6mb
Format: mp3

This Week's Show: How to get in to the China game.

Replacements.com

1. What is Replacements?

"The world's largest selection of old & new dinnerware," founded by a former junker named Bob Page

2. What do they want from sellers?

    Plates from those who eat lightly
    No Crazing
    No Stains
    No Chip
    No utensil marks

3. How do I sell to them?

    Find China at your favorite resale shop, garage sale or estate sale
    Call 1 (800) - Replace to see if they are buying
    If they are you will get an offer via email that is good for 30 days
    Buy your China
    Pack it up
    Ship it via UPS (insurance claims much easier than FedEX)

Next week: How to run your own garage sale

Most of you will know us from our podcast Croncast (every M-W-F)

Tags: Lenox China dept 56 Replacements Replacments.com 1800REPLACE

Season 1 Ep 2: Resale Kit, On the Driveway, No Co-Pilots

Sat, 26 Jan 2008 09:14:27 -0500

Resale Queen - 2008-01-26.mp3
Show: #002
Length: 18:36
Size: 12.8mb
Format: mp3

This Week's Show: What you need in your resale kit.
Cell phone
Don't call, but text
Don't draw attention to yourself
Use misinformation
1. Screw drivers - all kinds and Allen Wrenches
    a. Tape measure
2. Batteries - all kinds to test the toys
3. Magic Erasers - cleans everything
4. Grubby t-shirt - also for cleaning and camouflage
5. Knife
6. Some boiled potato type of dude to look stuff up
7. Car should be prepared
    a. Baby seat Removed
    b. Gas tank filled up
8. Black Light - to see if McLovin owned your product at one time
9. Stack of newspaper - so you can look homeless but also wrap your own stuff

Most of you will know us from our podcast Croncast (every M-W-F)

Next week: You're ready to brave the dumpster. Here's what you need to know.

Tags: Magic Eraser Sharpie Resale Kit driveway used china

Season 1 Ep 1: Resale Issues, Expired Food Sale, The Night Before

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 13:05:29 -0500

Resale Queen - 2008-01-19.mp3
Show: #001
Length: 19:53
Size: 13.7mb
Format: mp3

You've waited long enough!
I am now doing a weekly show focused on what else but resale
We'll talk resale issues and community trends
On this show we talk about how I got into this
Because you need some background
Most of you will know most of this from our podcast Croncast (every M-W-F)
And then I lay it all down
Topic: What to do the night before to prepare
I guarantee you haven't thought of some things that give you an advantage
Next week: What to keep in your resale readiness kit

Tags: Franklin Mint China chili and egg dinner first baby resale addict

Thought About Quitting This Morning, Karma Changed My Mind

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 13:47:15 -0500

This morning I lay in bed thinking about the whopping $140 I made on Ebay last week.

Thinking about the gas I guzzled into the dry throat of the Volvo, about the shakes I got from drinking too much coffee at 5 in the morning in line for the Catholic's garbage doesn't seem so bad...and I decided I have had it.

Do I really make money or am I just making and spending the same $25 I started this rat trap business with 5 years ago?

Sitting online waiting for auctions to end this afternoon I realized most mommies are probably reading romance novels and having "me" moments while I sit in the basement waiting for an Arkansas grammie to figure if she wants to spend that much on Build a Bears when a miracle happened.

Karma intervened.

I sold a bowl for $100.

A mashed potato bowl.

I just paid my electric bill with a mashed potato bowl.

Tags: Pfaltzgraff Yuletide Pfaltzgraff Sugar Plum Pfaltzgraff China Serving Bowl

American Girl Dolls & Ebay: A Love Affair

Wed, 08 Nov 2006 10:23:32 -0500

"My daughter wants an American Girl doll for Christmas. I've always loved them and have been looking at them on ebay. Could you do a ReSale Queen on the American Girl dolls? What should I look for? Is it worth it to invest in an older doll or should I just buy new? What do you think?"

I love American Girl dolls too- that is the whole basis for their success I think. They totally appeal to mommies as well as kids.

As a buyer you have to make a decision. Are you taking the Beanie Baby route- buying the dolls as some sort of investment your kid can retire on at 19, or are you buying dolls for your daughter to fall in love with, to drag along on her adventures and to make her best friend.

Or maybe you just are wondering whether the older dolls are higher quality and you just want the coolest little best friend for your daughter.

To help you determine which path to take I am going to give you a little background on how these things are listed on Ebay and what you can expect to pay for each classification.

American Girl was the brilliant idea of a Wisconsin teacher. She started Pleasant Company in 1986 with a catalog. The reason a lot of people think dolls from this period are higher quality is because they were made by the Goetz company in Germany, a respected doll manufacturer. These dolls are tagged made in West Germany. The earliest dolls also had white bodies. Remember that when she started there were only 3 characters Molly, Kirsten and Samantha- so if your daughter wants one of the newer characters like Kaya then you cannot buy a "vintage" one.

On Ebay a white bodied doll which is the rarest of the older girls can sell for over 500 if it is in the original box with all tags in mint condition. Check out completed item 320040707406. Also valuable are accessories produced during this early period as they are perceived to be of higher quality than current ones.

So the next batch of dolls were made in West Germany but had regular flesh colored bodies, the side tags on these dolls also state Made in West Germany, though they are not as highly sought after on Ebay because they are more common. Expect to pay between 50-100 depending on the character, clothing, and of course condition. If you are interested in purchasing one of these put pre-mattel American Girl into the Ebay search box.

In the early 90's dolls were still made in West Germany, then production was moved to Hungary for a year then finally to China were they are made to this day.

In 1998 the Wisconsin teacher sold the company to Mattel. Pleasant Company as a name disappeared and the company was renamed American Girl to better utilize brand recognitiion. This helps to date any accessories or dolls you may find second hand, anything marked Pleasant Company irregardless of where it was produced is pre-mattel.

Now what's with the whole pre-mattel thing? Well I guess people freaked when she sold the company- like Mattel was going to Barbieize American Girl- cheapen the brand and the quality.

Mattel has definitely expanded the line of characters as well as produced movies and other stuff to publicize the brand. There are also the American Girl stores now which are really fun if you haven't gone.

I have both pre and post Mattel American Girls and personally I don't see a huge quality difference. Please don't email me and tell me I am wrong- it's just my opinion.

The dolls retail in the AG stores or catalogs for around $87 new. If you can do better than that on Ebay and your child doesn't mind a previously enjoyed doll then go the Ebay route. I wouldn't personally spend $100 just to get a pre-mattel doll for my child to play with.

Ebay is a cool place to find all the retired play sets. This is where the brand has really excelled in quality- ever tried to put a Barbie doll on a Barbie chair- it takes concentration and luck to get Barbie furniture to function. American Girl stuff has wonderful detail and quality. Even the things I find at garage sales years later are in awesome condition.

Look for the current sets on Ebay as well they are generally cheaper on Ebay than in the catalog.

How are people doing that? For one thing there is an American Girl outlet store in Appleton Wisconsin and you see a lot of Ebay items from that area since people go to the outlet then sell the stuff on Ebay. I haven't been to the outlet yet so I don't know if it's super cheap.

Another fun thing to collect in the American Girl collection and something that has done well on the secondary market is the American Girl doll of the year.

This started in 2001 with Lindsay, the only Jewish doll American Girl has come out with. Lindsey's in the box can sell for around $300- I was lucky enough to buy mine at a garage sale for $25. If you are not picky about the box thing expect to pay $125-$150 for an out of the box gently played with Lindsey and 80-100 for a naked played with one. She was only out for the year then retired December 31st.

Christmas 2003 brought Kailey an environmentalist- worth about $130 on Ebay. She was retired 12/31/04.

12/2004 brought Marisol a dancer doll with an Hispanic face mold- same as Josefina. She was also retired promptly, and Jan 1st of 2006 about a million hit Ebay. She is easier than the earlier dolls to find new in box I think a lot of people bought her to resell so mint in box is more common for Marisol plus it hasn't been that long since retirement. She is still worth around $150 new in box.

For 2006, there is Jess. Her story places has her paddling around Belize in a kayak for some reason. She is not yet sold out- still available on the AG website for $87. If you think you might want one buy them now last year Marisol sold out in very early December.

For 2007, the doll is going to be Nicki Fleming a Colorado girl who lives on a ranch and trains service dogs. Rumor has it she will have brown curly hair and blue eyes. She will be available soon.

I personally like the dolls that have been loved, they have more personality than the new in boxers. My favorite doll has Kool-Aid tinted hair and Sharpie tattoos as well as a bad haircut- dolls like this aren't worth much on Ebay maybe $25-$35- but hey that's why I'm the resale queen.

Tags: American Girl Lindsey American Girl pre-mattel doll American Girl Retired Resale Queen Buy American Girl Dolls

Selling Cabbage Patch Kids - Ebay Value

Thu, 02 Nov 2006 14:41:55 -0500

Every child of the 80s has fond memories of Christmas morning 1984 when under the tree was a Cabbage Patch for every boy and girl. Mom watched us with tears welling in her one good eye- the other blackened from the beat down she took unable to defend herself both arms wrapped tightly around your "Angela Marie" at the bottom of a pile of mommies in the Kmart toy aisle.

Ahhhhh memories.

Today mommy wouldn't have had to take the beat down.

She could have just spent 850 dollars on Ebay and bought one with your first name and eye color to boot.

So 20 years later, what is a Cabbage Patch really worth.

Well that depends.

Back in the 70's Mr. Roberts took a fascintation with used women's undergarments and built an empire.

His initial dolls were sold at craft shows and were 100% pantyhose nylon.

These early dolls were produced from 1978-1983. I was lucky to find a pair of these early uglies. I thought I had struck Goodwill gold.

How much do you think they sold for?

After listing them 3 times they at last sold for around 80 each. A good return on 59 cents, but not retire to a beach in Boca good.

Babyland General (yes it is a real joint you can visit on your next white trash road trip right after graceland) still makes these soft-sculptured dolls and sell them for $180-upwards of $400. On Ebay these resale for around $200.

Sometimes the old soft sculptures sell for around $400 but again I think its one of those things people think is worth more than it is.

When Coleco bought the rights, they exploded. Coleco had them produced overseas and domestically but a the peak of the craze they couldnt keep up. They outsourced to 2 factories overseas and those produced 2 of the rarest dolls of this CPK phase.

The Jesmar doll was make at a Spanish factory and the Tri-Ang doll was made at an African factory.

Both are labeled on their side tag and head as where they were produced. The tri-and side tag has a strange papery feel. Both dolls also have a slightly different look than the others, like the head mold they shipped overseas melted slightly on route.

Tri-Angs sell for $30-$70 and Jesmars from $30 to $150 depending on condition, pacifier faces with paci are worth the most it seems.

Moving on Hasbro bought the rights when Coleco went under. Hasbro didnt have much success with the doll and that is reflected on the Ebay market, you will be lucky to get 5 bucks for your Hasbro doll.

The only exception is a doll that was recalled. It was designed to simulate eating with an opening and closing mouth. Unfortunately once the little thing latched on it didnt let go- whether that be a child's finger or hair. The macabre always adds to Ebay value.

Later Mattel bought the rights and now Play Along has them.
The doll has been made the doll larger, since Hasbro sized it down to market to little kids. The most successful from an Ebay point of view are the Toys R Us First Edition dolls, which sell from 30-200 depending on the doll's features, conditions, papers etc.

These dolls are labeled Toys R Us First Edition on the back of their head.

So what to do with a run of the mill 1984 China produced lemon (that is the CPK term for blonde) haired doll.

What I do is buy them for 60 cents at Goodwill and put them in a lot- or group. My most recent lot of 20 sold for 53 dollars- not a fortune but ok. I'm going to put a lot up this week which should sell a little better since many of the dolls have complete outfits, original diapers and shoes.

Tags: Cabbage Patch Cabbage Patch TRU Cabbage Patch Lot Resale Queen Betsy Smith