Closing Bricklink store to be a builder. Am I crazy?

[murtaughf3]

Short summary, I started a bricklink store to make some extra cash and I did, not a lot but some and looking back I doubt I broke even. I currently have about 40k pieces listed with about 60k more waiting to be parted out. 

Due to a car accident and excelling at my job I’m in a much better financial situation and don’t need the extra cash from the store. And I can actually have a monthly LEGO budget for new stuff. 

I’m contemplating closing the store in favor of becoming a builder. I know my girls are in favor because, well what kid wouldn’t want an extra 100k bricks in their collection. 

So here’s my questions. 

Since im mostly interested in Friends( I have 2 girls), Technic and Space related series( Classic, MTron, both Blacktron), do I pull parts and colors related to these and keep the rest in the store to sell eventually ? 

I realize this won’t leave much in the store but if I’m likely not to use it, I rather have it sit in the store and maybe someone will buy it eventually. Plus items will be gradually added back and if I sell a few times a year great. 

Last question, should I add back log to bricklink and have it in stock room status in case I sell some later it’s already added, vs adding parts back piece by piece later ? 

Am I crazy ? 

 

[Mylenium]

At least from my own experience it's always the parts that I think I would never need that become the stone on the road for my own projects. So it seems to me an "all or nothing approach" might in the end work better, even if it leaves you with a lot of dead weight of unsold parts. Can't tell you specifics on BL, since I'm only a buyer, but if you really want to part with larger quantities it's usually better to just sell bulk boxes/ bags on eBay at flatrate prices. Due to the recent legal issues with some German stores getting ugly mail a lot of them are still trying to close down, yet they can't seem to get rid of their supplies for good and have to drag on for even longer, risking more legal action. Perhaps therefore a quick and painless cut is better, though of course in the US you may not face any such issues.

Mylenium

[splatman]

If you will be buying sets for yourself just for the bricks, you will end up with pieces you won't want to keep. So closing your store for good might not be the smartest thing.

If you wish not to do the eBay thing, lump your inventory into bulk lots and price them to move. e.g. all 1xn bricks in one color in one lot, all trees in a lot, all other plants in a lot, etc. Advertise the daylights out of it.

Whatever does not sell in the end, move to stockroom, close your store, and when you have a new pile of pieces, list and reopen.

If you do sell everything and delete your account, you can always start a new one and open a new store if/when the time comes.

[ShaydDeGrai]

If it were me, I'd just keep everything, you never know what you'll need when (if I have to guess, I'd say I've got around a million pieces in inventory (and yes, I'm just a consumer, not a vendor) and I still run up against the "wrong color" and "if I only had one more of..." beasts on a regular basis).  If you really want to sell though, consider selling out in bulk to another Bricklink store or a high volume customer with whom you have history. If the parts are organized and cataloged, you'll likely get a better price from someone who see this as added value over dumping everything in a shoebox on eBay for quick liquidation. 

I negotiated such a buy-out (for my personal consumption) at a BrickFair show a few years ago and have since met several bricklink vendors in person that have swallowed up inventory from former Bricklink vendors who'd either shut down or were planning on getting out of the business for various reasons (often new children or college, but occasionally estate sales).  It's more work to find the right target audience for such a sale, but you might get more of your original investment back if you're not pressed for a quick cash-out.