FREE for Private Sellers to Sell Pre-Loved Clothing Items on .co.uk as of Today! *08/04

[bits_n_bobs_heaven]

Hi folks,

As from today, it's now FREE for private sellers to sell any pre-loved clothing item listed from today or those pre-loved clothing items already listed which sell from today (8th April) will not be charged any basic listing fee's or FVF's. Optional extras fee's still apply.

Obvious items excluded: - Accessories: hats, footware, watches, bags, jewellery ect.............

https://pages.ebay.co.uk/fashion-selling/#

Happy selling! 😊

[brindsey]

So eBay are going to lose listing fees and FVF's from 'private' sellers.  How are they going to recoup their losses ? They can't afford to just let people list and sell for nothing, and they're going to lose business second hand clothing sellers in droves.

Are they going to introduce a buyer's premium (like Vinted's 'Seller Protection' fee?

Are they going to go the Vinted route and separate the marketplaces - eBay and eBay pro? In January 2025 are they going to shuttle those sellers well in excess of the HMRC's limits for self assessment over to eBay Pro?

They've got to recover the defecit from somewhere and right now I feel I'm missing something.

I use eBay as a top up to my pension, and my heart goes out to you guys who rely on it as a living. I am so so sorry. 

[technthread]

The Regulatory Operating Fee of 0.35% that has now come into effect across the board will help them cover their lost fees from private sellers. They will think that the returning private sellers that they can get back from Vinted will then buy and sell again on eBay in other categories and eBay will benefit from the fees on those.

[vinylscot]

I too think you are over-reacting, throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

You had sales totalling over £1000 over two days of the weekend. Yes, that includes postage, but I'm sure there must be a healthy profit in there for you. It is too soon to know how much you will be affected.

You will have repeat buyers; you have great feedback (the one recent negative wasn't really justified), and you are trading legally and ethically. All of these things DO matter.

Give it a month or two, and see if you really are affected. The example you give about the jackets is a little simplistic; again you're assuming the worst. You may need to look at your overheads, or adjusting your promotions etc, but eBay hasn't been easy for a number of years now. We're all constantly juggling things around, trying to hit on the right mix.

Throwing your toys out of the pram isn't going to help. At least try, before giving up.

[shoedons]

I do agree with you. Seeing as we sell similar products, I am sure my list of 'private' accounts which I provided to Ebay is similar to yours. 

One particular Nike / Sportswear seller, has about 10 accounts he alternates on (uses same home-made photos, same location, lot's of other identifiers that it is the same person), and it's a nightmare to compete with. Of course, he has been doing this freely for atleast 18 months.

However, he and most other private sellers do not accept returns and I do believe this to be important factor in this category. Personally, I would spend extra 10%-15% knowing I can return an item. Whilst sellers like this most certainly do take an unfair chunk of custom which should go to business sellers, I think all we can do is monitor how it pans out and adjust business accordingly, I will be.

Overall, you would like to think this move into a fee-less category for 'casuals' would prompt Ebay into actually sorting these 'private' sellers. Eh. 

[kempseykate]

It doesn't really matter what category you sell in as a business seller - ebay will find a way to stop you in your tracks.

Some years back I had a nice little business on here selling second hand books. I knew the area I sold in pretty well, but was always learning. I was doing really well, and my plan was to carry it on in my retirement to boost my pension. But then along came the book megalisters - no doubt paying way less fees than I did, getting away with stock photos and generic 'good' description, plus their favourable postage rates meant they could list books for less in total than it cost me to post them. So re-think time.

I adapted the way I sold and what I sold. I also added a new new category - knitting patterns. Again, going great guns for a while. But then ebay allowed all the non-registered business sellers to sell illegal photocopies, so the patterns that used to sell really well suddenly became worthless. I struggled on for a while, but gave up the business when I finally (WASPI here!) got my pension.

The only thing you can do is make hay while the sun shines. Ebay don't care about you, they don't care if your investment (time and money) are lost, they don't care if others are breaking ebay rules, they don't even care if people are breaking the law. This is ebay, everything is working as designed, there are no glitches, there are no users breaking the rules/law. Everything is perfect 😞

I feel the pain of the properly registered clothes business sellers. But my advise would be try and adapt, make yourself as good as you can be - not everyone wants the cheapest. I found that out with the patterns I sold, there were still people who would pay a fair bit extra knowing they were getting an original pattern, sent quickly, in the condition described, in decent packaging. Use ebay to your advantage. They won't care if you walk away, they won't even notice. 

[pg_kicks]

The thing is you and I only buy from sellers who accept returns as we are on this site every day so know the rules, my mam, brother, mates who just buy 1 jacket a year or a pair of trainers if they cant get them in JD Sports dont, they just look for the cheapest one and buy it, otherwise they private sellers who have hundreds of items wouldnt ever make sales, they only undercut us by 5/10% but thats the profit in it for us as we have to pay around 12% in fees plus any promo.

If everyone know the rules and laws then it would be fine as very few would buy from the illegal traders but sadly its only the people who either sell on here or are here buying a lot that actually know the deal with private accounts.

It would be great if eBay did try and sort ti out, like I said the person selling 20 pairs a year is annoying and should be stopped but the ones selling thousands is just a joke, its easily stopped by putting real limits and having a reporting system thats fit for purpose but that looks like its a pipe dream, the RoadShow shall be fun as I'm going to bring it up with every single eBay management there, probably get kicked out for repeating myself 10 times.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

I have great sympathy for business sellers but i was just pointing out that no fees will not necessarily be good for others.  If there is an influx of sellers then there will be less buyers to go around.  Obviously lower fees would be better but i am still selling even with them as they are.  If they were balanced out in favour of everyone then that would be better and cause less tension between business and private sellers.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

the problem with that is the e bay search engine, quite honestly as a buyer i get fed up of looking for say a blue M & S dress is size 16 only to be shown every other colour or size!  Its a joke now and because of that i rarely buy from here now.  Same happened with a book i was looking for, put in title and author and all sorts came up before i finally found one!

[ile136yz]

You can set up Private eBay Accounts but I've read you have to sell different items (this will depend how you interpret the meaning).  Maybe New items on Business Account and your used/pre-loved items from your wardrobes on the Private Account

[kath3735_wxmjn]

one thing that being a seller (private) and this forum taught me is that as a buyer i do not just buy the cheapest item.  I look at feedback, other items for sale etc and believe me if someone is so obviously a private seller with lots of the same type of photos, items on sale i never purchase from them.  Just like on a car boot, i walk past all those semi professional sellers who have loads of the same tat, i prefer real car boot tat!   I sell a lot of stuff that is from my family because they do not have the time or inclination, same with car booting, its my pastime (I know i lead a sad life!).  The secondhand clothing market is getting worse through every medium because so many are doing it rather than giving it away.  On our car boots you rarely sell clothes for more than a couple of pounds, those that charge more do not get many sales.    Maybe most of my clothes items will end up there soon! 

[ile136yz]

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@ereiam-jh wrote

Also, how are they going to deal with the inevitable flood of non-clothing items being listed in clothing categories?

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eBay could charge an incorrect category listing fee, removed the advert & put a limit on how many times this happens.

[*devils.advocate*]

Basic flat fees for everyone would go some way to restoring some form of balance between private, “private” and business - and then you pay more for any extra services you want/need.

Or, what’s of some interest (well, at least to me) is that this follows so quickly after some private sellers recent/current offer of nil fees until mid-April.

Selectively testing to see the overall effect before expanding on the idea?

After all, other sites have no seller fees no matter what is being offered for sale.

And I presume their stance on delaying payment to new sellers’ bank accounts will now have to change?

[sarahq1962]

I suppose what I would like to ask Ebay is - what benefits do you get being
a Business Seller now?

[tommystrezures]

That could be a good one for the weekly chat tomorrow.... as I am struggling to see what they are as of right now.

[*devils.advocate*]

There's a wide set of opinions on what benefits there has been and what there is at the moment as a Business Seller - depending on individual positioning etc.

Maybe they're thinking of an eBay Pro with benefits over others?

But we know what a hash they made by splitting it previously.

[555njp]

None! Simple as that.

HMRC will rid the site of unregistered business sellers on private accounts next year, but it'll only be those not declaring their tax.

If you are breaking eBays rules by operating a business on a private account (biggest problem on here by far!) but offer returns and fill in a SA to HMRC then HMRC won't care, eBay don't care, buyers don't care so the only rules being broken are DSRs and trading standards (not showing name, address of business etc. or making it clear to buyers that you are trading) which, in the grand scheme of things is a technicality which no one is policing.

eBay won't shut you down because they are desperate for sellers to stay. The only chance is if Trading Standards go after eBay for allowing businesses to hide behind private accounts, that might have some mileage but would require a lot of savvy buyers to report these sellers but they rarely if ever do anything about it. Their usual line is 'buyer beware!'

The only hope with this for second hand clothing sellers is, chances are you are already competing with illegal businesses that are getting free listings and 80% off FVFs.

So, if your business works now, the small increase in benefit by moving from 80% off to free fees may not make much difference to your sales?
If it does then open a private account and migrate everything over to compete.

[sarahq1962]

Hi, just wondering is there an easy way to move your listings from business
to private account - I think not? I sell individual items so if not easy way
I would have to rephoto each item etc so this would take way too long...any
thoughts. I think we should be asking what we get being a business now from
Ebay ( not what might happen in the future ) when they might split into Pro
and not pro.

[vintage-emporium-jedburgh]

if all the hoo ha about tax and private accounts is true 

 HRMC will need to start emplying now

[pg_kicks]

Theres no simple way, you'd just have to basically start a new account and relist everything, I have an external memory drive which is full of pictures, if they were to bring it into the sneakers category I'll be very tempted to do just that. As much as I hate the sellers who do such a thing I paid eBay around the average wage of the uk last year in fees, if somebody could do the exact same as me but get a full salary my moral compass would be questioned, plus with that extra funding I could buy more stock and make even more. This move has probably effected 10% of my listings so its annoying but I can carry on, if it was 100% I honestly think I'd be looking differently.

If eBay did split to a eBay and eBay Pro theyd transfer your listings, 100% guarantee theyd make mistakes though, I could see how that works, charge businesses a smaller fee but we get a good customer experience and they enforce rules, without enforcing rules everyone would just make multiple accounts (different ISP but thats not really needed) and play stupid and have a private account.

[litp*records]

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@shoedons wrote:

I do agree with you. Seeing as we sell similar products, I am sure my list of 'private' accounts which I provided to Ebay is similar to yours. 

One particular Nike / Sportswear seller, has about 10 accounts he alternates on (uses same home-made photos, same location, lot's of other identifiers that it is the same person), and it's a nightmare to compete with. Of course, he has been doing this freely for atleast 18 months.

However, he and most other private sellers do not accept returns and I do believe this to be important factor in this category. Personally, I would spend extra 10%-15% knowing I can return an item. Whilst sellers like this most certainly do take an unfair chunk of custom which should go to business sellers, I think all we can do is monitor how it pans out and adjust business accordingly, I will be.

Overall, you would like to think this move into a fee-less category for 'casuals' would prompt Ebay into actually sorting these 'private' sellers. Eh. 

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@shoedons wrote:

I do agree with you. Seeing as we sell similar products, I am sure my list of 'private' accounts which I provided to Ebay is similar to yours. 

One particular Nike / Sportswear seller, has about 10 accounts he alternates on (uses same home-made photos, same location, lot's of other identifiers that it is the same person), and it's a nightmare to compete with. Of course, he has been doing this freely for atleast 18 months.

However, he and most other private sellers do not accept returns and I do believe this to be important factor in this category. Personally, I would spend extra 10%-15% knowing I can return an item. Whilst sellers like this most certainly do take an unfair chunk of custom which should go to business sellers, I think all we can do is monitor how it pans out and adjust business accordingly, I will be.

Overall, you would like to think this move into a fee-less category for 'casuals' would prompt Ebay into actually sorting these 'private' sellers. Eh. 

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"No returns" really is meaningless as you can often force returns against a private seller even if they don't allow it, Ebay overrides them as they side with the buyer most of the time.  A savvy buyer will know what reason to select to get a return started