The Authoritative BLUEPRINT for Buying Retail

241 Pages·2012·5.09 MB·English

by  Chris Green

The Authoritative BLUEPRINT for Buying
Retail Products to Sell Online for BIG
PROFITS.

HOW it works, WHY it works, and how you can
get in on it.
(Don’t worry; we’ll cover books & media,
too )

Chris Green

PBLLC Press, Rehoboth, MA
2011
Retail Arbitrage:
The Authoritative BLUEPRINT for Buying Retail Products to Sell Online for BIG PROFITS
Green, Christopher John
Hi, Mom!
Copyright © 2011 Chris Green. All rights reserved.
Edited by Chiara Therisod & Tom Sutton
Published by PBLLC Press, Rehoboth, MA 02769
First Printing, September 2011
ISBN-13: 978-1466303546
ISBN-10: 1466303549
Printed in the United States of America
Cover photo by istockphoto.com
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by
any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise), without
the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book.
The scanning, duplication and distribution of this book via the Internet, or via any other means
without permission of the author is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only
authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of
copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for third-
party websites or their contents.
Dedicated to my loving wife, Jenn.
Without her love and support, none of this would be possible.

This book is the result of a lifetime of learning. I am very thankful for support that I’ve received
from family and friends along the way. The last five years have been one amazing ride. Not
everyone gets to work with amazing people and amazing products everyday and it is even more
rewarding when those products are able to produce a positive change in so many people’s lives.
When Chris Green talks, FBA sellers listen.
Opportunity Summary
We live in an amazing time! Entrepreneurs now have access to powerful tools and information
that were simply not possible just a few, short years ago. Barriers to entry have been shattered
and small entrepreneurs can now compete with the big boys on the biggest stages practically
from day one. Information has always been power, but never before in history has information
been so powerful and at the same time nearly universally accessible. A smartphone in your
pocket gives you access to Wikipedia, your Kindle library, a few thousand apps, and let's not
forget this little thing called the Internet. The next wave of successful entrepreneurs will be the
ones who use this information to their advantage. When you see the world this way, you see
that there are so many opportunities all around you. Since time is limited, you can't do them all;
so find your passion, find people who share your passion, and take action!
Setting up an Amazon business that utilizes the Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA) program is much
like buying a franchise opportunity. With a franchise, you buy a package, get some knowledge
and equipment to get started, and then it’s up to you to run with it. One of the big differences
is that buying and selling online using FBA really has no ‘buy-in’. There are no major upfront
costs to get started. All you really need is a little knowledge, some motivation, and some
inexpensive tools and services. You probably already have a computer with an Internet
connection at home in order to list products for sale and a smartphone like an iPhone or
Android phone that you can use to gather pricing information on products. It is common to
underestimate the real, legitimate income that can be generated by this business because it is a
business that truly does not have a high cost of entry.
Retail Arbitrage is the first book of its kind to provide a complete and exhaustive look at the
fascinating world of arbitrage and resale.
This book is intended to be much more than just descriptive information about topics related to
Retail Arbitrage and selling online. This book explains the WHY behind everything that you’ll be
reading. Sure, I could stop by just explaining what FBA is, but the important part is
understanding WHY FBA works. I could tell you how to price FBA items, but I want you to
understand WHY you can price them that way. I could tell you that you can buy retail products
from local retailers to sell online for big profits, but I want you to understand WHY you are able
to find the same product at dramatically different prices from two separate places and WHY
some buyers are willing to pay much more for that same product from a different sales channel.
It’s the difference between giving you a fish, and teaching you to fish.
In this book, you learn about the primary market (retailers, both brick & mortar and online) and
the secondary market (Amazon third-party sellers and eBay). You’ll also learn to understand
SUPPLY and DEMAND and how they affect PRICE, as well as how TIME affects all three.
In this book, I will give you the keys to the Retail Arbitrage kingdom with the mindset of
unlimited opportunities and abundance rather than one of scarcity. The techniques described in
this book can be used by anyone, anywhere to build a small side business or large empire. The
only limit is your imagination.
Arbitrage is the practice of taking advantage of a price difference between two or more
markets, striking a combination of matching deals that capitalize upon the imbalance. The
difference between these two market prices is the profit realized by whoever brings the deal
together.

Think of it this way; you want to be able to ‘SEE’ items that are selling locally for much less than
what they are selling for online. These items represent the potential for arbitrage opportunities
(and profit).
At the same time, you want to avoid items that cost more locally than what they sell for online.
When you have the right information, it’s like you have special goggles that allow you to see all
of the opportunities around you (while those without the information simply cannot).
Remember this: the markets are terribly inefficient and buyers do not make all buying decisions
based solely on price. Identical items sell for different amounts in different places all day, every
day. Sometimes items are less expensive at local retailers; sometimes they are less expensive
online. When you can identify these differences, you can be the one who profits by matching
the lower cost supply with the higher priced demand.
Things change over time. At the time of this writing, all links, fees, rules, and laws are
represented accurately. It is always best to check the current web pages for any changes that
may have occurred between the writing of this book and when you start your business. The
fees to sell on Amazon.com and eBay.com can change and will affect prices and payouts. Laws
may change regarding paying and collecting sales tax.
I suggest finding a good certified public accountant (CPA) that can help steer you in the right
direction. Like any service, they should save you more money than they cost you. If they don’t,
fire them!
Earnings Disclaimer
I can’t make any promises as to how much money you’ll make in this business. It’s up to you to
go out and run with this information. I can’t promise that you will make a certain amount of
money, or any money, or not lose money, as a result of following the information in this book.
What I can do is give you as much useful and accurate information that I can and trust you to
learn it and use it to the best of your ability.
I’ll show you deals that we have done and the profits that we made but there is no guarantee
that you will be able to replicate them exactly. With any business, your results will vary and will
be based on your personal abilities, knowledge, and level of desire (among other things). Each
person's results will vary.
The use of the information provided in this book should be applied and used based on your
own due diligence and you agree that we are not liable for your success or failure.
Basically, we can help, but it’s up to you to actually run your business. 
The good news is that we are here and we are happy to help!
To your success,
Chris Green
-Chris Green
CEO, FBAPower
For latest updates, new releases, and additional features, always check the websites:
http://fbapower.com
http://retailarbitrage.com
Amazon, Amazon.com, and Fulfillment By Amazon are registered trademarks of Amazon.com,
Inc. This book is not affiliated with nor endorsed by Amazon.
eBay and eBay.com are registered trademarks of eBay, Inc.
All other names and trademarks are property of their respective owners.
Retail Arbitrage

Table of Contents
Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1
Chapter 1 – What is Retail Arbitrage? ................................................................. 9
Chapter 2 – Amazon vs. eBay ............................................................................. 12
Chapter 3 – What is FBA? .................................................................................. 20
Chapter 4 – Why Does FBA Work? ..................................................................... 33
Chapter 5 – Understanding the Amazon Customer ........................................... 41
Chapter 6 – Economics of Supply, Demand, & Price ......................................... 44
Chapter 7 – The History of Scouting .................................................................. 48
Chapter 8 – FBAScout – Mobile Scouting App for iPhone and Android ............ 50
Chapter 9 – FBAPower – To List, Label, Price, and Ship ..................................... 69
Chapter 10 – FBARepricer – To Keep Items Priced Competitively ..................... 76
Chapter 11 – An Emerging Business Model ....................................................... 80
Chapter 12 – From Toys to Toiletries ................................................................. 85
Chapter 13 – THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW! ........................................................... 89
Chapter 14 – Anyone Can Do This ................................................................... 102
Chapter 15 – The Rules of the Amazon Marketplace ...................................... 110
Chapter 16 - Sales Rank Explained – What It Is, What It Is Not ....................... 115
Chapter 17 – Risk Management ....................................................................... 119
Chapter 18 – It’s a Margins Game.................................................................... 120
Chapter 19 – The ‘Race to the Bottom’ & ‘Chasing the Next Sale’ .................. 122
Chapter 20 – What Makes a Product Good for Resale .................................... 125
Chapter 21 – Sourcing Products – Retail vs. Online ......................................... 127
Chapter 22 – Purchasing TAX FREE for Resale ................................................. 132
Chapter 23 – Coupons, Discounts, Rebates, Rewards & Cashback ................. 134
Chapter 24 – Retail Deals ................................................................................. 137
Chapter 25 – Retail Secrets .............................................................................. 140
Chapter 26 – Online Deals ............................................................................... 145
Chapter 27 – Online Secrets ............................................................................ 151
Chapter 28 – DealsDoneRight.com .................................................................. 153
Retail Arbitrage

Chapter 29 – Used Books & Media – Still Easy Money .................................... 155
Chapter 30 – Book Sales, Thrift Stores, Estate Sales & Garage Sales .............. 163
Chapter 31 – Penny Books Explained............................................................... 169
Chapter 32 – International FBA & Advanced FBA Techniques ........................ 174
Chapter 33 – Multi-Channel Fulfillment – List on eBay, Ship From FBA .......... 176
Chapter 34 – So Why Isn’t Everybody Doing This? .......................................... 184
Chapter 35 – Summary – Go Feed Your Amazon Monster! ............................. 188
Bonus #1 – How to Compete Against Amazon ................................................ 190
Bonus #2 – Creating New Product Pages for Items NOT on Amazon .............. 193
Bonus #3 – Why No One Can Take Over .......................................................... 197
Bonus #4 – The ZERO RISK Way to Start .......................................................... 199
Bonus #5 – The Pixar Effect.............................................................................. 201
Bonus #6 – Attitude is Everything .................................................................... 204
Bonus #7 – Your Lazy Competition .................................................................. 206
Bonus #8 – How To Run A Book Drive Fundraiser ........................................... 208
Bonus #9 – How To Run An FBA Consignment Business ................................. 211
Bonus #10 – How To Get More Books Than You’ll Know What To Do With ... 214
Bonus #11 – Why Seasonal Products Sell Year Round on Amazon.com .......... 220
Bonus #12 – FBAScout vs. Local Database Scouting Services .......................... 222
Bonus #13 – Children’s Books .......................................................................... 225
Recommended Reading ................................................................................... 227
FREE Online Information .................................................................................. 228
Membership Based Sites .................................................................................. 230