selling baby stuff: how much should we charge?

[briannas auntie]

My sister has a lot of unused baby items that she is wanting to get rid of, now that Brianna doesn't need them anymore.  Many things have never been opened, because they were baby shower items she never used.  She also has TONS of baby clothes that are for a girl.

I too have a couple bottles and bibs that I had around for Brianna (when I watched her at my house) that I want to get rid of as well, since she is too old to use bottles.  The bibs are not stained or anything, so that's a plus when selling them.

We have stuff ranging from different baby slings, clothing, to a bottle warmer.  The only trouble is that we have no idea how much to charge for it to sell.  Like I mentioned above, quite a few things are unopened and have never been used (especially pacifiers and bottle nipples that Bri never used) Any advice?

Jessie

[crunchy_mommy]

I would see if you can return the unopened items -- it depends on the store, some will give you a full refund (W*lmart!) and others won't accept returns without a receipt but many will at least give you store credit. I think that's the best way to get the most money for those items! You can google to see where the items are sold if you're not sure where to try to return them.

As far as everything else, where will you be selling it? If it's on Craigslist, you could probably set the prices at 25-50% of the original price (unless it's a high-demand item, i.e. certain baby carriers, or in the original packaging, then you might be able to go up to 75%!) If it's at a yard sale, though, people are generally looking for GREAT deals so I'd think more in the 5-25% range for most items (again, except things in high demand). Think also about offering a bulk discount -- buy 4 bibs, get the 5th free, or fill a bag of clothes for $5. It all depends how much time you're willing to hang on to the items, if you price them low, they will go quickly, and if you price them high, you can gradually lower the price but it could take longer (months!) to sell... Generally, I try to look at the items and think how much would *I* be willing to pay for this if I were the shopper?

[pianojazzgirl]

Originally Posted by crunchy_mommy 
Generally, I try to look at the items and think how much would *I* be willing to pay for this if I were the shopper?

Yes.  Exactly.  TBH I don't think you're likely to more than a small percentage of the original price for things like bottles, pacifiers, bibs, baby clothes, etc - even if they haven't been used.  Probably your best bet is to sell them in lots on Craigslist (unless you can return them to a big box store - even better!).  Larger baby "equipment" you'll probably be able to get a better percentage of the original price, imo.  Babycarriers you might want to try to sell on thebabywearer.com, and if she has cloth dipes you could list them on diaperswappers.com.

ETA something I often do if I have something to sell is look for how much similar items (in similar condition) are going for on craigslist in my city (or on whatever forum, etc I'm going to list the item(s)).

[briannas auntie]

Originally Posted by crunchy_mommy 

I would see if you can return the unopened items -- it depends on the store, some will give you a full refund (W*lmart!) and others won't accept returns without a receipt but many will at least give you store credit. I think that's the best way to get the most money for those items! You can google to see where the items are sold if you're not sure where to try to return them.

As far as everything else, where will you be selling it? If it's on Craigslist, you could probably set the prices at 25-50% of the original price (unless it's a high-demand item, i.e. certain baby carriers, or in the original packaging, then you might be able to go up to 75%!) If it's at a yard sale, though, people are generally looking for GREAT deals so I'd think more in the 5-25% range for most items (again, except things in high demand). Think also about offering a bulk discount -- buy 4 bibs, get the 5th free, or fill a bag of clothes for $5. It all depends how much time you're willing to hang on to the items, if you price them low, they will go quickly, and if you price them high, you can gradually lower the price but it could take longer (months!) to sell... Generally, I try to look at the items and think how much would *I* be willing to pay for this if I were the shopper?

The majority of the baby items we got on Ebay almost 2 1/2 years ago, that were brand new and still in the package, so I will have to resort to selling stuff on Craigslist.  I'll let my sister know this on Monday when I babysit Brianna. 

We do have a couple of cloth diapers, but they are all going to my caregiver for her upcoming baby (it will be her first time using cloth, so we are giving her the 6 assorted AIO cloth diapers). 

Jessie