Re-sell Green

Ways to be eco-friendly

Before the world of the Reserve Supply Chain, Retailers were often faced with losing money on inventory and throwing it away to a landfill or recycling the little they could. Now in a post-Reverse Supply Chain world, merchandise is resold to local, thriving businesses who find customers in need for a profit – and at a deep discount for the customer!

Resellers of liquidated merchandise can keep the ‘green’ movement going with these helpful tips:

ELIMINATE THE BOX: Think for a second of the last time you received a personal online order in the mail. Did you find yourself pulling boxes out of boxes like Russian stacking dolls? There was probably plenty of padding and fillers between the two containers too. This process of packaging perfectly good, sturdy boxes, happens way too often. So before putting a box inside of a box when shipping your next order, think first if you can simply add any needed fillers into the original container (as many are missing internal packaging) and wrap in Kraft paper.

Many products sourced on Liquidation.com come in their original box – the seller Sourced_from_Amazon_Liquidations is well known for this, and it is not uncommon to find items such as headphones, small household appliances like a coffee maker, blow dryers, video game controllers, etc. already packaged. Additionally, every once in a while, a lot may come with miscellaneous empty boxes. Saving these for future use is a good way to recycle goods as well!

So, if you find yourself uncovering items in their original package from your Liquidation.com lot, use your best judgement to determine if you can ship the product using only a single box and Kraft paper. Assess the condition of the original box, decide if the packaging is sturdy enough to hold up on its own during shipping and establish a threshold for the fragility of the products inside. If you think a second box is unnecessary, skip it! Not only will this save resources, it will reduce your time and money spent as well!

OFFER DISCOUNTS FOR MULTIPLE ITEMS BOUGHT: When it comes to online shopping, majority of end users are on the search for one specific item… but always have a shopping or wish list in their back of their mind. When shoppers are offered a discount for buying subsequent items, more than 30% of the time, they will do just that!

There are many benefits to offering a discount when shoppers buy more than one product at a time from you, which you can read more about here. Notably, the green initiative of being able to combine the resources that would have been spent on two or more sales, into one, can really make an impact. The more purchases you combined into one shipment, the greener you will be and the more green you will earn.

Similarly, consider consolidated shipping yourself, when purchasing your lots from Liquidation.com. Find out more here on how the process works and it can help you enhance your green efforts.

USE RECYCLED AND SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS: Packaging and shipping materials are a major component of your business, and if you wish to make a beneficial impact on the environment, seek out reducing the amount of fillers, and non-essential packaging by using sustainable and eco-friendly products, and reusing supplies when possible.

In addition, take a second look at your shipping practices. Are you adding just enough filler into your boxes, or are you shoving in extra “just to be safe”? You’ll make an impact just by taking the time to find the proper sized box for your items, as this will relieve the need for extraneous padding, and will also result in using smaller boxes. Smaller boxes = lighter, thus using less materials. When examining the specific products used, on the forefront we recommend avoiding Styrofoam, like packing peanuts, at all costs. Instead, consider air-bubble pockets. If you are sending out lighter and smaller items, try envelope mailers instead of boxes.

And don’t forget about ‘reuse.’ Ask your friends for any boxes and shipping materials they receive themselves; make use of the trash room and collect boxes neighbors throw out within apartment or condo buildings; managers of local stores and retailers can set aside containers, bubble paper, crumpled papers (for filler), etc. from their own shipments if you ask; and reuse any materials you receive yourself when sourcing merchandise. In today’s online shopping culture, meal delivery dependence, etc. there is never a shortage of second-hand boxes, and no true reason to buy new ones.

OFFER INCENTIVES FOR RETURNED PACKAGING: Do you have your own custom containers/packaging/bottling? If so, this process is great for marketing and creating your brand, although it can be quite expensive. What about offering a discount or incentive for having your customers return your packaging? Doing this will undercut the amount of product you need to order and use, and it will be a double green effort, saving resources and money. If you have a brick-and-mortar store, your customers can simply walk in and return these items, but if you do online-only selling, you can still make use of this practice by sending your customers a free shipping label and have them send back custom packaging products in exchange for a discount on their next order.

SELL ON LOCAL PLATFORMS: If you haven’t tried local platforms such as Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace or OfferUp as a means of selling your inventory, it might be time to give them shot! Selling locally will have a positive environmental impact as you completely eliminate the need of using packaging and shipping resources. These platforms are a great alternative to having a storefront and can offer similar benefits, as you can meet buyers personally and establish a relationship, while also taking advantage of showing off more of the inventory you have to sell. Maybe you sold someone an Air Fryer, but you have crock pots as well, which you can physically present to them in person – and you won’t have to ship either of these larger/heavy items.