We’re Teaming Up With TikTok in Las Vegas | Liquidation Motivation
We’re Teaming Up With TikTok in LAS VEGAS!
Liquidation Motivation is teaming up with TikTok in Las Vegas on August 24 at 7:00 PM, the night before ASD starts. We’re shooting for around 500 people at the meetup, and TikTok wants liquidation operators, resellers, live sellers, and people actually doing business in this industry in the room.
Guys, this is bigger than throwing a party in Vegas.
This is about relationships, inventory, selling channels, and getting yourself around people who can help you make money.
Why You Should Be in Vegas
I have always believed that you need to get out and meet people in this business.
You can sit behind a computer all day looking for loads, but some of the best opportunities happen because you know the right person. You meet a contract holder. You meet another buyer who can split trucks with you. You meet somebody with inventory you have never had access to before.
That is why I keep going to events like ASD.
TikTok reaching out to Liquidation Motivation to partner on this meetup makes it even more interesting because live selling is becoming another serious exit channel for liquidation inventory.
We are already running TikTok Live ourselves. We have two live auction setups and are adding a third.
If you are buying liquidation, you should at least understand how these channels work, even if you decide they are not right for your operation.
Inventory Is Flowing Again
The timing is also interesting because inventory has changed dramatically.
At the beginning of the year, we struggled to get product. Some suppliers were giving us one or two truckloads a month.
Now some of those same suppliers have around five loads a week.
That changes the buying environment.
We have Amazon FC out of Florida, LPN out of Georgia, electronics, Lowe’s, clothing, furniture, and other programs moving through the warehouse.
But more availability does not mean you start buying everything with wheels under it.
Lowe’s is a good example. When demand gets high and inventory gets tight, pallets can become smaller. When suppliers have plenty of loads and are actively trying to move them, the pallets can be stacked much heavier.
Buy the truck you are looking at today.
Do not buy based on what that program looked like last Christmas.
Your Bin Store Needs the Right Mix
Bin-store operators also need to stop believing one inventory source is going to solve everything.
Our stores use a mix.
Some inexpensive general merchandise can cost around 25 cents per unit. Amazon FC may cost us around $1 to $1.25 per unit. LPN can be around $2.50 per unit, while some electronics are under $3 per unit.
Each category has a job.
FC works well for lower-price days. Electronics and LPN help put better finds into the store. Cheaper 3PL, Dollar General, processed Home Depot, and other loads help create volume without making your cost per unit stupid.
Then we start our pricing cycle around $12 and lower it throughout the week.
Fill your freaking bins, but understand what you are putting into them and why.
The goal is not to make the bins look full. The goal is to create enough perceived value that customers come back every restock.
TikTok and Whatnot Are Tools, Not Magic
We are constantly testing merchandise for TikTok and Whatnot.
Some inventory works.
Some absolutely does not.
I tested a Zappos load that cost around $11 to $12 per unit. There were good shoes and name-brand clothing in it.
It looked like something that should work.
It did not.
I probably recovered around 80% of my money, but overall it was roughly a $10,000 mistake. I will not buy that load again for that channel.
That is how you have to evaluate live selling.
Do not ask only, “What can I sell this item for?”
Look at fees, labor, shipping, how quickly your hosts can move it, how much inventory sits afterward, and your actual recovery.
TikTok can be a powerful selling channel.
That does not make every load TikTok inventory.
Buying Power Still Wins
Inventory being plentiful creates another opportunity: controlling supply.
If your supplier has five good loads every week and you only buy two, another buyer can come in and offer to take all five.
Guess who becomes more valuable to that supplier?
The buyer taking everything.
If you cannot handle the entire program yourself, find partners. Split the inventory. Resell the trucks you cannot use.
The important thing is putting yourself in a position where you can say yes when a dependable opportunity appears.
That is one reason these industry events matter.
You might meet the partner who helps you buy three extra trucks every week.
Do Not Expand Just Because Business Feels Good
I am also looking at additional bin-store opportunities.
We operated an 86,000-square-foot temporary location for nine months, and now we found another temporary space around 110,000 square feet.
That kind of square footage gives us room for furniture programs like Wayfair and allows us to move serious volume.
But expansion only works if you can feed the building.
A huge empty store is still an empty store.
Before signing another lease, know where the merchandise is coming from, how consistently you can get it, and whether your current selling channels can move enough product.
Inventory supply should support expansion.
Expansion should not be your plan for finding inventory.
Come Meet the Industry in Vegas
That brings me back to August 24.
TikTok and Liquidation Motivation are putting people in the same room before ASD starts. Food, drinks, entertainment, live-selling conversations, liquidators, buyers, sellers, and hopefully a hell of a lot of business connections.
Do not just show up collecting business cards.
Talk to people. Ask what inventory they move. Ask what they need. Ask what markets they serve. Find out where you can work together.
Somebody in that room may have inventory you need.
You may have exactly what somebody else has been trying to find.
That is the point.
RSVP for the Liquidation Motivation x TikTok Las Vegas Meetup
