Seeking advice on dealing locally

[fourninesfine]

Hello!

I'm hoping to start Buying and Selling PMs locally without a brick and mortar storefront; But i need help and information to get started!

I'm hoping to get some advice from you, or for someone to link me to trusted resources of the best ways to buy sell PMs and promote your dealings.

Thanks in advance for any help you can throw my way!

 

[pmbug]

Hi fnf, welcome to the forum. :wave:

I think there is a whole cottage industry of people (and pawn shops) that buy and sell PMs on ebay.

I'm not sure what hoops you need to jump through to gain status as a retailer/dealer in order to buy stock wholesale. You might try contacting some Mints (Sunshine, US, etc.) and ask them.

I must say though that I'm a little confused by your stated business model. Most folks like to buy locally (in person) at coin shops in order to pay cash and receive product immediately. Without a brick and mortar, it seems to me, you aren't able to provide the primary benefit people are looking for when buying local.

 

[fourninesfine]

Thanks for the reply PMBug.

I'm glad you asked about my business model because i'd like to share it with you for more feedback.

Currently I have a fulltime job that pays the bills, which would allow me to start working in the metals space in more of a casual low risk way to start out.

-I would avoid the entire numismatic and scrap jewellery area and just focus on flipping bullion. This lets me deal only with customers who are interested in bullion (like minded individuals). Also i can take the refinery out of my plan completely to simplify the business plan, cutting out the third party.

-Not have a brick and mortar but still deal in person only. Either meeting buyers/sellers downtown or driving to them, or perhaps a weekly market table also.

Attract customers by offering the best value: They can sell to me and get more than at the LCS, they can buy from me for less than they would pay at the LCS.

I'd start out being able to cover my gas and maybe my time, but i think as relationships with bullion lovers grew, so would buisness over time.

Heres an example buy/sell plan: (i would probably fill in real-time prices if i posted on craigslist or went to a market or something as it looks more enticing) Hopefully people would recognize the value in being able to sell for more money than a LCS would pay, and buy cheaper than an LCS would sell.

Silver

1oz generic round/wafer:

Buying at Spot

Selling at Spot + 8%
Profit: 8% of spot

Austrian Philharmonic, Canadian Maple Leaf, American Eagle 1oz silver coins:
Buying at Spot + 5%

Selling at Spot + 13%
Profit: 8% of spot

10z bar:
buying at spot
selling at spot + 6%
Profit: 6% of spot x10

100oz bar:
buying at spot
selling at spot + 4%
Profit: 4% of spot x100

Gold

1g:
Buying at Spot + 15%

Selling at Spot + 25%
Profit: 10% of spot divided by 31.1

10g:
Buying at Spot + 1.5%

Selling at Spot + 6.5%

1/2oz:
Buying at spot + 1%
Selling at spot + 4%

1oz:
Buying at Spot + 0.5%
Selling at Spot + 2.5%

Austrian Philharmonic, South African Krugerrand, Canadian Maple Leaf, American Eagle 1oz gold coins:
Buying at spot + 1%
Selling at Spot + 3%

Thoughts?

 

[Chrissilver]

Hi,

I guess your located in the US?

Sorry to throw some negatives at you; don't Apmex buy at spot? And will you be able to beat Apmex's prices? They often have generic rounds for ridiculously good value. Also there is a possibility of loss if spot price decrease significantly quickly if you don't shift your stock quick enough (although as long as you can rebuy the same quantity as you sold but at a cheaper price then it's fine - that's how bullion companies work, selling stock at below the price they paid but restocking at a lower price)

Some positives though, your in the US (I presume) so no tax on silver, so your on an even foot with the big boys compared to if you tried to start in the UK you would have to charge VAT and most people would just buy from dealers in Germany who currently can sell at a lower price using the margin scheme. The US also has a lot larger market.

I think it's hard to make serious money, you need huge volumes. It may be worth specialising in specific numismatics, becoming a specialist in a certain area and there may be more profits to be made. Just a thought.

Anyhow, I will you luck in your adventure.

 

[Penn]

look for coins shows, they sometimes are in with gun shows.

do you live in a city?

you could set up a table at a flea market.

 

[fourninesfine]

Thanks so much for the replies!

I'm in Canada so there is no tax for bullion! Also, Apmex requires you to ship your metals down (at your own cost) when you sell, so I would think that would be incentive to sell to someone local and not have to pay shipping or wait for a check in the mail.

I'm getting excited at the prospect of finding appropriate flea markets/coin shows.

Would i be missing out on a lot of profit not buying and selling scrap gold/silver and selling to the refinery?

 

[MarcLacroix]

Hello!

I'm hoping to start Buying and Selling PMs locally without a brick and mortar storefront; But i need help and information to get started!

I'm hoping to get some advice from you, or for someone to link me to trusted resources of the best ways to buy sell PMs and promote your dealings.

Thanks in advance for any help you can throw my way!

A NeighbourHoodBullionFlipper is something to be...

Before embarking on such an endeavor I'd do a market study.
Is it something the neighborhood wants/needs and etc.
How do I compete with and beat the other BullionFlippers?
What do I have that the others don't? Gotta' find an edge
or be a sole source for a product people are willing to pay for.
The world is CutThroatCompetitive so I better do my homework first.
Just Thinking :rotflmbo:

Marc

 

[fourninesfine]

Thanks marc!

 

[fourninesfine]

I made a bit of a craigslist presence and bought 30oz off somebody today. Lets see how this goes.. Heres a copy of my advertisement at: https://vicgoldsilver.wordpress.com/

 

[11C1P]

Your chart shows you buying maples at $21.85, right now I can buy them for $19.96 on silver.com. I could foresee some problems if someone with a nice size stack decided to make a quick buck. Sell you say 2 monster boxes, then ordering 2 for ~$2 less per coin and make a quick $2,000.

 

[fourninesfine]

Thank you for bringing that up 11C1P!
I think i left something out of the information when i shared that with you guys!

I probably should have mentioned my prices are Canadian dollar (CAD). (i'm only dealing locally so hopefully no problems there)

Right now 19.96USD is 23.85CAD

And at this spot price my buy on those maples is $18.57USD or $22.19CAD

 

[11C1P]

I see, that definitely makes a difference. I try never to buy anything directly from canada anyway, the few times I have it usually takes months for it to get shipped here, and I'm not even somewhere like hawaii or something either.