What’s the best way to sell refurbished vacuum cleaners in today’s market?

[thevacuumbarn]

Subject says it all. I like to repair and resell used machines, but the main problem I have is not getting the machine or repairing them, but getting them sold once they are ready to go. I’ve tried craigslist, and more recently Facebook marketplace, but not much luck either way. Any thoughts or suggestions? Thought about using E-Bay, but wanted to get input from other sources before I made that venture.

 

[fanofvacuums2]

I use eBay and I have pretty good look on there. As long as the machines are free of mechanical issues, look decent, and are packaged well in the smallest box possible (for cheaper shipping), then you should have a fine time and even perhaps build a reputation with positive feedback. I typically set a "buy it now" price and include an option to make a best offer. In my experience, this gets them gone the quickest.

 

[lesinutah]

It

Depends on the vacuum. Kirby, Royals I usually sell on ebay. If I get a rainbow I sell it locally.
I had a black rainbow i was into it $225. I sold it for $850. I getblue or gold rainbows $30-$150. I sell them for $550-$750. I don't pat seller fees or shipping.
You just have to know what people buy.

 

[thevacuumbarn]

Wow! That’s quite a bit. So it appears eBay is the way to go then.
So in your experience, how much do people usually pay for newer Kirbys? I have two of them I need to sell, and ultimate G and a Sentria, both refurbished and in great condition, but with no hose or attachments.

 

[lesinutah]

If

I were you offerup/let go or Mercari is where I'd sell Kirby.
$100-$200. Ebay will charge a boat load of fees and if your okay with making $20-$50 on a $200 dollar sell go ahead.
The rainbow I sold cot $225 for me to own. I basically made $250 on a sell almost 4 times that.

 

[thevacuumbarn]

So it appears eBay is following Amazon’s lead, in that they are making things extremely difficult for small sellers? Very well then; I’ll definitely check out some of the other options you mentioned. I don’t want to be selling on eBay if they’re going to fee me to death.
Up to $200 on a Kirby? Well, that might explain why I’ve been having trouble selling elsewhere. It appears I’ve been setting my price is a little too high. Thanks for the tips.

 

[joshp83]

I have the best luck with FB Marketplace: It gets the best reach of users, and you don't get near the spam or flakes like you do on CraigsList. You could also try apps like OfferUp, although I don't have very good luck there.
If you live in a larger metro area I'd try and sell locally. I stick to local sales since eBay charges a lot, shipping can be hard to estimate, and big boxes get expensive to ship really quickly.
I've not experienced it myself, but I've been told that eBay promotes listings with "free shipping" so you may be better off baking the shipping fee into the item cost itself rather than charging shipping separately. I'm pretty sure eBay takes their fee out of the Shipping cost too, so it doesn't matter "what" the money is for, they take their cut regardless.

P.S. - I've experienced similar brand trends as Les. Rainbows command the highest resale, by far. Even current gen Kirbys are hard to sell above $200. Kirbys can be found EVERYWHERE for CHEAP and people don't see any difference between an Avalir 2, 1, the Sentrias, or even older generations. Unless they care what color the bag is, why pay more?

P.S.S - Take lots of pictures and have everything be as CLEAN as possible. I even post pics of the brushroll, inside the bag chamber, etc. People don't want to buy someone else's dirt.

 

[dysonman1]

I have no trouble selling refurbished vacuums, it's getting them in the first place that's the problem. I only refurbish vacuums with "good bones", which means no crap. Kirby, Rainbow, Lux, Tri-Star, etc. all have 'good bones'. Even some Simplicity and Riccar models do too.

As someone who would rather fix a vacuum than sell a person a new one, it's rare that I ever get a trade-in that amounts to anything other than dumpster food. Sure wish there was a door to door vac dealer in my area. Sadly, most of their trade-in machines are also crap.

 

[thevacuumbarn]

Thank you!

A lot of great suggestions here; thank you all for your help.
I definitely need to get better at taking pictures of my machines. I’ve started taking pictures of the brush roll, but I never really thought about taking pictures of the bag chambers or inside of the fabric bags.
As far as refurbished vacuum cleaners, some people have just given them to me because they don’t want them and know that I fix them. Lately though, I’ve been picking them up at auctions for dirt cheap, fixing them up, and selling them.
It’s funny what some people are willing to bid on. I’ve seen Sharks and Dysons going for $90 and over, while I’ve snagged Kirbys and kenmores for under $20. Personally, I wouldn’t bid over 10 bucks for a Shark, as I’d be using it for parts instead of trying to resell it as a whole unit. For this reason, I haven’t picked one up at an auction yet, and that’s probably a good thing, as you can find them on the curb just about anywhere.