Flipping guitars

[Jethro_Dull]

I have a corporate America job and I absolutely can't stand it. Is anyone out there successfully flipping guitars for a living or, in the alternative, flipping guitars for secondary income. I'd love to get out of SuitLand and do something fun for a change. Someone, anyone, give me hope. Thanks, Jeff

 

[blueman335]

Re: Flipping guitars

Don't quit your day job.

 

[Jethro_Dull]

Re: Flipping guitars

Don't quit your day job.

Now I'm even more fraught with depression.

 

[ehdwuld]

Re: Flipping guitars

You could work for minimum wage at GC with a degree or years of toiling behind the counter, you could be manager and make as much as the burger flippers

*(Sent from my durned phone!)*

 

[aleclee]

Re: Flipping guitars

How to make a small fortune selling musical instruments:

Step 1. Start with a large fortune...

 

[Jeff5]

Re: Flipping guitars

Probably not. WAY too many external factors and costs to consider. Personally, I take my corporate job, suck it up (it's not that bad really) and use it to fund my hobby/passion/addiction!

 

[ericmeyer4]

Re: Flipping guitars

You will have better success looking for a different job. Flipping musical gear will not easily provide you with money to live on. You need to have money to buy a lot of gear, pay under market value, then sell it quickly.

P

 

[trevorus]

Re: Flipping guitars

The only way to make money selling guitars is to sell them as a dealer. With the internet and EASY market research, you'll not find enough deals to make it worth the time. Even then, any normal small business won't make any real money for a good bit of time. If the shortcuts ever worked, it would just be "The Way."

 

[jon the art guy]

Re: Flipping guitars

You may be able to turn profit if you live in the same town as an affluent college and are willing to sell out of town. By profit, I mean less than a weekend job at GC. Every time I think about wanting to go into business as a guitar builder or effects pedal builder, I remember how many times I've seen local guys try to do the same thing and end up working retail.

 

[Masta' C]

Re: Flipping guitars

I bought and sold guitars and accessories for a few years online. Problem is, it takes a LOT of time, materials and space to run that kind of business and the returns are slow. You really need a mini-warehouse and some additional help to be able to turn over enough items for one person to make a yearly living (and I'm not talking about a fancy living, either).

It got to the point where I made far more on the parts than I did on whole instruments, which is probably why you now see so many notable eBay sellers who deal solely in used parts. You can buy a used Ibanez RG for $150, sell the neck for $100, the body for $50, the tuners for $30, the bridge for $60, pickups for $30, etc., and make more than trying to turn over the complete guitar. Even if you stick with complete instruments, the margins are small when you're not a dealer, deals can be hard to find and there are always issues arising from shipping damage, buyer remorse, etc. that cut into your profit.

Not saying it can't be done, because I did it successfully, but be prepared to make very little $ per hour for the time you'll be putting in to do it.

 

[jon the art guy]

Re: Flipping guitars

I assume the best profit margin to be had is making cabs. Woodworking of the order of a high school senior shop class, more call for Pine than more expensive woods, and relatively easy to store, especially empty.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Flipping guitars

I bought and sold guitars and accessories for a few years online. Problem is, it takes a LOT of time, materials and space to run that kind of business and the returns are slow. You really need a mini-warehouse and some additional help to be able to turn over enough items for one person to make a yearly living (and I'm not talking about a fancy living, either).

+1. You have to buy a lot of inventory, and how much can you make per guitar? Some may take a while before they sell; how many thousands of dollars, or tens of thousands of dollars can you afford to have in inventory? In this anemic economy most people aren't throwing money around like they used to. They're constantly price-shopping online and can probably find all the good deals you can. It used to be more robust; now it's a pretty lean way to make money for most people. The closer the selling price is to your cost, the faster they'll sell, but can you survive on lean margins? That means a lot of buying and selling. It's not much 'fun' if you're tying up a lot of time and money and not doing much more than breaking even. Getting better margins means sales take longer, and you sit on guitars. What do you pay the bills with?

Your best bet is probably to get a low-stress day job you enjoy (or don't hate) & flip guitars and parts on the side and see if you can get anything going there.

 

[Jeff5]

Re: Flipping guitars

Agree with what everyone said. Buying used gear and selling it to fund other new gear purchases is about as close as I'd get this type of business!

 

[BloodRose]

Re: Flipping guitars

How to make a small fortune selling musical instruments:

Step 1. Start with a large fortune...

LMAO!!!! PERFECT!!!!!!!!!


Jethro, Being a dealer is about the only way to do it these days.. A few years back, before the market got so bad, you gain a little benefit by flipping. Wouldnt have Supported you, but given some play money. I amased the number I have by flipping and when I turned a small profit, Id buy something else.. Now, they sell so cheaply, I lose on about every sale. Sorry

 

[tubecrunch]

Re: Flipping guitars

I'll stick with drugs and prostitution. The client base is more reliable.

 

[Gibson 1964]

Re: Flipping guitars

Time travel back 5-10 years and this was doable. Also, not as much fun as you would think. It is a miserable lot of work to actually do it.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Flipping guitars

How to take something fun and make it not fun:

Step 1: Start doing it for a living.

 

[Jethro_Dull]

Re: Flipping guitars

When asked to comment on my job, basketball coach Bobby Knight said: "I think that if rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it."

 

[blueman335]

Re: Flipping guitars

Agree with what everyone said. Buying used gear and selling it to fund other new gear purchases is about as close as I'd get this type of business!

+1. Done that myself. But that was back before the economy collapsed. Now it's pretty tough to pull off. Lots of people are out there looking for super deals (and finding them) and manufacturers have taken a hit; many offer more models at lower prices; look at how many low end Gibsons (under $1,000) have been introduced in the last 5 years. They wouldn't keep doing that if people were buying the other ones like they used to. Gibson is selling these to compete with the used market and imports.

The questions to ask yourself are: How can you find cheap guitars to buy that most other people can't, and how can you find people to sell them to that will pay for your markup? There's so many good deals out there on used gear, available to everyone...why should they buy from you? In this economy, there's a lot of other people trying to make a few bucks doing the same thing, so there's competition willing to undercut your prices. Almost all of them are doing it on the side these days, as there's not much money in it unless you're a big player. You're looking at getting into this late in the game, when it's really tough.

 

[greekdude]

Re: Flipping guitars

How about, stick to innovative designs, materials, make some prototypes, then apply for patents, and eventually find a factory in china where they can manufacture this cheap and fast? IMHO people looking for retro stuff are a thing of the past... New kids want new sounds, new tech, new features, new designs.