Sidequest Loot Pricing: A magician will, on occasion, reveal his tricks

Part of the idea of Sidequest Loot was based on a couple hundred successful sales on Facebook Marketplace, with just a pinch of Kijiji.

It started with the sale of some of my childhood items: Transformers and Video Games.  I was able to find other name brand items through online auctions, estate sales and visits to Antique Malls (the architecture previously known as Flea Markets).

I would need to pickup items from Burlington to Waterloo to London to Niagara Falls.  To be a little more efficient, I would always make sure to try to stop at local thrift stores.  Sometimes, I would find some modest gems.  More efficiencies were found when we were able to locate Facebook Marketplace listings in the same area.  A sidetrip became a Sidequest - every time we hit the road.  We have merged deliveries, pickups and scouting expeditions, finding some new favourite spots along the way.  We love finding packaged goods, unique collectibles, stuff I remember from my youth, several oddities and things that we can research quickly that might have value to new or existing clients.  You wouldn't expect to find First Edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons at a pawn shop but let me tell you, it is worth checking out and has paid off.  To be fair, some of this is dumb luck.  Our dumb luck has become more and more consistent.

My personal Facebook Marketplace set of listings has been quite an odd blend: car parts (I'm in the process of listing a SECOND alternator), copier toners (my first "big score"), vinyl records, art prints & lithographs, vintage toys, A HAIR CURLER (don't get me started on that one), brand new size 7 safety boots, toys, games, an exhaust part, a plastic cosplay sword... I don't expect you to notice the pattern because there isn't one that's apparent.  If the item was in good condition and could be acquired cheaply (as low as a buck, on some rare finds), it was in my sights.

The acquisition price allows us to be more aggressive in our pricing.  We want to come in at the lower end of pricing, compared to Amazon and Ebay.  Sometimes, it's much lower than that.  As such, the inventory flips fairly quickly and reliably.  Every 3 months, it is rare to find a particular item that has not been sold - that's the goal.  

We try to leave a little space if resellers want to buy but we don't have a bargain bin.  We are not a garage sale.  We are not a thrift store.

Our pricing still needs to cover our time, our mileage, the website and provide us a good ability to acquire some great "eyecatchers" that might be a more collectible item.  There's only so much luck we can get when finding stuff from the 80s.  Vintage Collectibles will tend to be priced within market rates that we are observing but we want to make these accessible and get them to the hands that will appreciate them the most.

This is only how Sidequest Loot begins.  We can only grow so much using this business model.  We intended out of the gate to enthusiastically move into the distribution of Turnabout - which provides amazing value for the price and has a very exciting future because of the retro spin that it puts back into boardgame play.  We have a huge pool of creative thinkers and a treasure trove of concepts that we are developing for merchandise (ACTUAL SIDEQUEST LOOT LOOT!).  We have found some unexpected early success with brokering deals.  Not especially lucrative on its own but we can see this becoming an important part of our business.

The partnerships and new Sidequest Companions that we have met seem to be the biggest avenue for our ongoing growth and development.  These are all experts in their own fields and we hope to be a catalyst to bring them to new clients and new markets.  None of the partners that have met so far have paid a dime - yet we feel they will be the ones who help us stand out.  They are as carefully selected and approached as any of our other finds.  This is quite deliberate.

We don't mind telling you some of our secrets.  We hope that it inspires some of you to venture out on your own or partner with us on our next Sidequest Adventure!

We would love to share your Sidequest Story! If you have started a business or side hustle, if you're thinking of doing it or if you have no idea whatsoever of what you want to do, we would love to share your story.  We find that when the buyer knows you better, they are more likely to buy.  We don't mind if you mix in some advertisement, sales pitch (ugh!) or simply supportive thoughts for other Sidequesters going through the same thing.

Email: mysidequest@sidequester.ca and let us know what you want to do!  There is no charge for posting but we will give a final editorial review and might provide some suggestions.  You will be provided with a final draft before we publish.  All submissions will become the property of Sidequest Loot but will not be used without your consent.  We like to provide an author name but can limit this to first name or name of your business, if you wish.