eBay Drop-Off Franchise Chains: Popular, Profitable and Prolific

by Patricia Schaefer

One type of franchise rated by just about everyone as "hot" in 2005 is the eBay drop-off franchise chains. So far, 2006 shows no sign of waning; in fact, plans are now in the works for an explosion of new stores throughout each state of the nation.

If you're like many Americans, selling on eBay is not something you have the time or inclination to do: photographing items, listing, answering questions, packing, mailing, and collecting payments. Why not just "drop off" your items instead at one of the eBay consignment shops -- AuctionDrop, iSold It, and QuikDrop to name a few -- and simply sit back and wait for your check to come in the mail?

There is a price to pay for this luxury; typically a 20 to 40 percent commission (the higher the selling price, the lower the commission). It is evident, though, that individuals and businesses alike are finding these fairly substantial commissions well worth it in terms of time and efforts saved. This, coupled with the ability of these shops to perform the selling function in a professional and optimally profitable manner, has made eBay drop-off franchises an unequivocal success.

iSold It is the nation's leading eBay drop-off chain. Claiming only 6 U.S. franchises in 2004, iSold It burst onto the consignment scene and rose to 150 U.S. franchises in 2005; becoming America's highest volume eBay drop off store. Today they boast over 800 franchise stores under contract and are planning to grow to 3,000 stores in all 50 states. This month iSold It announced it will be opening stores in Europe, and that by 2010 it should have over 200 locations in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

iSold It's mission is "to provide an easy way for any person, business or fundraising organization to sell things online." In addition to serving individuals and businesses, iSold It offers a way for not-for-profits to raise funds for their organizations at a competitive commission structure, with 70 to 80% of proceeds raised going directly to the organization. Founder Elise Wetzel created the iSold It concept, in fact, as she was helping to fundraise for a new playground at her children's school. She recognized that eBay auctions of donated items could be a potent fundraising tool if there was a service that could help to make it easy.

Mitchell Allen is the Nassau County, NY, Area Developer for iSold It. Allen owns the one iSold It store in Nassau County today, but is already planning to open and own seven other Nassau stores as well. Allen has owned his store for about a month now and said, "Comments [from the community] have been incredible: 'I could not have lived without you guys. Where have you been? Unbelievable concept. You make my job much easier.'" People travel 20 miles plus on a regular basis to come to them, said Allen.

This is Allen's first franchise investment, and he took care and two years of his time to decide that iSold It would be his franchise of choice. In addition to being drawn to a chain with fundraising at the heart of its creation, Allen said: "I looked at several interesting opportunities. The choice was an easy one for me due to the staff at iSold It. The founders put together a very strong team of people with significant expertise in their fields, from franchise development to marketing to operations and technologies. There is a significant investment being made to grow this franchise and I want to ride that growth train.

"I like technology products. I feel that iSold it capitalizes on state-of-the-art technologies in a very changing and automated world. Ecommerce is growing at a pace well beyond the brick and mortar mentality, and this concept brings people who want to liquidate something to those who are looking for deals. Everyone wins."

For prospective franchisees out there, Allen had this to say about iSold It: "Franchisees must rely heavily on the franchisor for some time, especially when such technologies are in place that drive our business. iSold It Corporate has shown me in a very short time that they are willing and able to invest in my long-term investment. They are knowledgeable people with excellent experience."

Like a true entrepreneur, Allen prides himself as an individual willing to take a chance. "But," he asserts, "being careful and doing good research is just as important. It is always better to succeed slowly than to fail quickly."

Copyright 2006, Attard Communications, Inc.