Issue #70

I swear some items just fall directly into my lap. I’m not digging, I’m not even looking, you walk down the stairs of a thrift store and see a $200 item or you open Facebook Marketplace and right smack bang in front of your face is something you’ve talked about all week. I’m not kidding, Facebook must be listening to my conversations. Once you read this weeks Issue you’ll know what I’m talking about.

I’ve got some killer tips for you this week, a new category that has a better return than video games, a sale that literally hundreds of people told me wasn’t worth what I was asking, results from if you would thrift if there was no money involved plus a lot more.

Remember, if you’re too lazy to read, listen to the podcast here. It’s a hell of a lot looser and cooked than the newsletter.

In This Issue

• What I Bought

• What I Sold

• Secondhand Opinions

• Win a Free $200 Mystery Box

• Podcast

• Social Media

• 100% Free Resources to Help You

What I Bought

I don’t believe in manifestation, but I really can’t explain how the universe worked to put this item in my possession. It was only Thursday afternoon I was visiting my family and the topic of Mr Squiggle came up. Mr Squiggle was one of the longest running shows in Australian television history running from 1959-1999. The premise was simple: kids would send in their “squiggle“ drawings and Mr Squiggle, a marionette clown looking fellow with a pencil for a nose would connect the lines and turn them into recognisable drawings.

Despite the show running for so long, very few bits and pieces of merchandise or toys exist. If you look on eBay for Mr Squiggle the only official items you’ll find are commemorative coins released in 2019 to celebrate the 60th anniversary. Unofficially, people have created their own knitted versions of the iconic character and are attempting to sell them. I mentioned this to my mum and after a bit of back and forth we considered buying the patterns to make the character as a present. I got so far as adding the book to my cart.

However, on Sunday I opened up Facebook Marketplace instinctively and saw a listing that immediately caught my attention.

Posted just 18 minutes ago I knew I had to have him. I immediately messaged the Buyer with a “Sold please, can I come and pick it up now?“. The buyer sent me through the address and I told her that it was around 30 minutes from me so I can be there in about an hour after getting ready and heading out.

This was when I got a bit bummed out. The Buyer had seen my message, marked the listing as Sold but didn’t reply to 2 of my questions. The 1st being “Is me getting there in about an hour okay?“ and “Would you prefer cash or is transferring okay?“. With the listing marked Sold and the Buyer disappearing for an hour I thought I lost it.

But then the Buyer replied! “Prefer cash“. Awesome, I’m in! I went to 7/11 to withdraw some cash and trekked 30 minutes North to secure the most unlikely purchase on a Sunday.

When I arrived I couldn’t believe just how good a condition this plush was in, especially for something made easily over 30 years ago. The Buyer had told me she couldn’t believe how fast he sold and just how many messages she received. I can though, it was listed at $35 and when these do come up on eBay, they sell quickly and they sell for a lot of money.

As we’ll be the only Active Listing for an official Mr Squiggle plush toy I’m going to price it up at $199.95. This will guarantee me approximately $130 in profit and will allow me to buy the knitting book and wool for my mum to knit some of those classic ABC characters. From talking about it on Thursday to finding one on Sunday… who could believe it.

You got to love the “DO NOT OPEN“ stickers Vinnie uses. These items are out on the floor for the public to handle and I don’t think I’ve ever seen one that hasn’t been ripped apart. I came across this Iron Man 2 box in the toy section with a $25 price tag and had a feeling I struck gold. Anytime you see an action figure, toy or model that has a scale on it (for example 1/24 replica) you should get excited because the odds of it being an expensive item just went up astronomically.

Why? Scale replicas require attention to detail. More time spent manufacturing an item leads to, in theory, a better quality item which means a higher sale price. This particular item is a 1/6 scale replica of the character War Machine from the 2010 superhero movie Iron Man 2 played by Don Cheadle.

The figure is highly detailed, some of it is hand painted and collectors love this type of thing… providing of course it’s complete. I picked it up for $25 and took it home, not before breaking the law and taking a look inside to see if it was indeed complete.

Unfortunately we’re missing the bullets that attach to the gun but we should still be able to get some good money for this.

I decided to list up for a quick sale with a buy it now of $200.00 + the buyer pays postage. I’m guessing the thrift store assumed this was just another Marvel / Iron Man action figure that comes into the store, you know the ones, cheap plastic knock off quality that you’d never be able to sell in a million years.

Next, we completely lucked out on this Lifeline find.

This is a brand new, sealed Jurassic World playset made by Mattel in 2023. Jurassic World is of course the predecessor to the classic Jurassic Park movie made by Spielberg back in the early 90’s. The new movies don’t even come close to just how good the original is and if you haven’t read the book it’s based on, give it a go. The playset is apart of the “Legacy Collection“ which was only available in Target and it paid homage to the original films.

The line was a success but of course due to the exclusivity arragement with Target made these toys hard to get back in 2023 and even harder now in 2025. The sell through rate for this pack is currently sitting at 375% meaning it’s in high demand and will sell.

But for how much?

We’re going to get at least $100 out of this playset and it’s a testament to the popularity to both the franchise and dinosaurs in general. My tip to you is if you find a big lot of dinosaur figures at a garage sale, check for markings and if you spot Jurassic World (or even better Jurassic Park) pick them if you can get a good deal, it’s a nice little category.

What I Sold

Thrift stores are always overvaluing and overpricing comic books but you can get lucky with graphic novels. If you’re fortunate, you’ll find them in the book section and priced just like a regular book. Here’s how to spot a graphic novel worth picking up:

• As all pages have coloring (either black and white or colored) the top text block of the book looks different than a book that just has plain text. I explain this in more detail in past issues of Flip Weekly and in this weeks podcast episode.

• The most valuable graphic novels contain multiple stories, volumes or issues. That means you’ll see words like omnibus and compendium.

• The graphic novel will usually have highly detailed illustrations on both the front and back cover, and of course inside.

• It will be targeted towards adults. In my experience the more violet or graphic the book is, the more it’s worth. Yes, you can easily find graphic novels like “Enter the Roo: Kung Fu Roo 1” by Anh Do in the thrift but these are for young kids.

• Obscure is usually best. The Walking Dead is extremely popular therefore more copies of the graphic novel will be manufactured. More supply means less demand.

• The last tip is that graphic novels are another version of books that you can look for signatures. Artists sell their graphic novels at comic conventions and if it’s highly sought after with a signature you can get even more money.

The King of Signed Books returns with another sale. Alright, calm down Mat. Last week I told you about the sale of Magda Szubanski’s signed autobiography and I mentioned that sales go up when the author is in the news or hosting an event. This weeks sale of The Disaster Artist (signed by Greg Sestero) I’m attributing to Greg’s upcoming special screening of The Room in Sydney next month. Apparently this theatre named The Orpheum has screened this movie every month for the past 12 years so having Greg show up is a big deal.

Finding signed books is one of the easiest ways to turn what would normally be a $10 book into $50+. I paid just $2 and its sold for $50… it would be more if the other star of the film signed the book, but alas, we’re not that lucky.

You should remember this next item…

I could never forget about this Garfield cinema exclusive tumbler. I found him in Issue #26 for $2 and showed you the comps at the time ranging from $105 to $200. I didn’t think twice about it until hundreds of trolls flooded the listing. Not just 1 or 2 either, the listing on Marketplace received over 20,000 views! Why?

Somehow the listing was picked up a bunch of trolls, either on a messaging board, forum or something similar. In back and forth messages, I discovered that they thought the listed price of $80 on Marketplace was outrageous so they decided to flood the listing with messages… mostly asking dumb questions about whether or not the tumbler can be their first sexual partner. I have a ton of screenshots back in Issue #38 you should check it out. Anyway, it’s sold this week on eBay for $100. Dumb kids.

A Bathing Ape is a really good Japanese brand to keep an eye out for! Most t-shirts are selling for upwards of $100 and if you take a look at Sold Listings on eBay it’s not unusual to see shorts selling for $300 and hoodies upwards of $1,000.

I had my t-shirt listed up for $149.95 and it did have hundreds of views and a lot of people watching but when an offer came in for $100 and it was going overseas I decided to take it. Pretty hard to say no to $100 for a t-shirt you paid $12 for.

Secondhand Opinions

The concept is simple, we’ll throw up a controversial, or at least spicy reselling topic, I’ll present my argument whether it’s poorly thought out or not and you’ll provide your own.

Last week I asked you “Would You Still Thrift If There Was No Money in It?” and here are the results:

Appears that you would thrift whether or not you made any money doing it. The answer to this question I’m sure would be more nuanced than a simple yes or no, maybe you would do it out of convenience, maybe to save money, it’s a bit hard to tell with just a poll. That said, 25% would say goodbye to op shops forever - if you can’t make money, no point in visiting. I can respect that.

This weeks topic is: Are Thrifted Gifts Thoughtful or Tacky?

I’ve given this some thought and shared my take on the podcast but here’s where I’ve landed… Any gift, by nature, is thoughtful. I don’t think a gift can be tacky if it’s given with genuine care. In fact, I’d argue that thrifted gifts might be more thoughtful than regular ones.

When you're shopping at a mall during Christmas, you’re in full-on buying mode, surrounded by endless retail options. You're actively searching for the perfect gift, hoping it’ll hit the mark.

But when you're at an op shop, the mindset is totally different. You're not usually there to find gifts so when you do spot something that makes you think of someone, it feels more meaningful. It wasn’t your main goal, it was a spontaneous, thoughtful moment.

What do you think?

You can vote, you can email in, submit a form on the website or even get in touch via social media with your own thoughts.

Win a Free $200 Mystery Box

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Flip Weekly Podcast

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100% Free Resources to Help You

Flip Weekly have created the following resources to help you become a better reseller.

• Ultimate List of YouTube Reseller Channels

• Google Sheets Reseller Spreadsheet

• Memorize Video Game Prices with Flip Vidya

• eBay Sell Through Rate Calculator