It Didn't Work Out

A few months ago I decided to have a go at buying retro gaming goods and selling them online via eBay, under the name of RetroGemsUK, in order to explore the prospect of becoming self-employed doing a similar thing. Presently, I have decided that, with regards to my current employment situation, that it's not feasible for me to make any serious money out of online dealings and that it is better suited to being a side-project of my current hobby; that being retro gaming.

The problem was that items I didn't think would sell, sold, and items I was positive would sell, didn't. This unpredictability, added to the online competition and the small amount of profit actually made off any one item, means that I would have to buy larger quantities of goods to sell and have them constantly relisted on eBay to make anything of it.

In the end I sold about a quarter of the items I originally bought and made a little under half of what I originally spent; this shows that there is money to be made, but more time, patience and initial start up costs are required, and I really don't have money to play with at this moment in time.

My decision to end things now has resulted in myself being in the possession of many items I never intended to own. Some of these items I will keep for now an try and sell at a later date, but the majority I want to shift out of my room ASAP, therefore I've put them all on eBay at very low prices i.e. 99p-£2.99.

If you want to pick up a few bargains, then please check out the items I'm selling and hopefully you can take some of this stuff of my hands! I'll be keeping this blog up for now to let people know when I'm selling off the rest of the items I no longer want, so check back from time to time.

Thanks to all of you who bought items off me. The items that did sell were of good quality and I hope you enjoy them all.

New Items: PC Games

Welcome back to RetroGems, the development blog of my small-scale online shop selling all things retro gaming.

After a few weeks on eBay the ball has really started rolling, what with some successful sales, and some very happy customers. My new-user listing limit has been lifted and I can now add even more items to my eBay listings which will include some very good PC games, all of which are boxed and in excellent condition.

Already listed are the city building, simulation classics SimCity Classic and Sim City 2000 Special Edition; each on sale for £4.99 each.

Tomorrow I will be putting up The Curse of Monkey Island boxed with manual, Thief II: The Metal Age boxed with manual and the Pièce de résistance, Baldur's Gate. 

Released in 1998 and developed by legendary Western RPG crafters, BioWare, Baldur's Gate is a classic D&D based PC RPG and a must-have for any PC game collector. The copy that I will be selling also includes the expansion, Tales of the Sword Coast and comes with it's original big box, full instruction manual, quick-start guide, a map, and much more.

So expect to see all of these items up on eBay shortly. Thumbnails of the items mentioned can be seen below, click on them for a larger image. Please take the time to browse over my items and do not hesitate to contact me with any questions you may have.

RetroGemsUK: Online Seller of Retro Games

Welcome to RetroGemsUK. This blog is intended to chronicle the development of my business idea; that being a UK based, online, retro gaming shop.

During the middle January 2011, I attended a business course with The Prince's Trust, a UK based charity aimed at helping young individuals turn their lives around in various ways. Their excellent "Enterprise Program" is for young individuals interested in starting their own business. As I have been unemployed for quite some time now, I thought it a good time to take a chance and attempt a to bring my business idea to life.

I am an enthusiastic gamer, but devote a large proportion of my gaming time to the collection, restoration and playing of classic, "retro" games, accessories and consoles. My experience with buying retro gaming items online has taught me that many sellers either don't know what they're selling or try to make a quick few pounds by misleading customers with poor item descriptions and false promises.

With the help of The Prince's trust, I would like to have my own website where I can trade from as well as enhancing my stock with a wider selection of items as well as imports. I would like to offer customers items with fair prices, excellent descriptions, quick delivery, and safe postage. 

No squashed boxes from me.

However, as part of my business plan, I need to get a good idea of how fast items will sell, get some feedback, build a reputation and other things that eBay are very good at providing. So please, feel free to browse through my items on eBay and do not hesitate to contact me with any questions you may have.