Possibly some more rain… and cool and damp to start. There were patches of blue sky at dusk so I’m hoping for some clearing today. It rained a bit yesterday, but was mostly just threatening, after raining overnight. Actually storming overnight would be a more accurate description, with power loss for some time too.
Did a couple of pickups. No drop offs this week. Had a chat with a couple of my auctioneers. New guy is actually from the next biggest town to my BOL, the nearest town with a Lowes. He took the job down here to “get out of the sticks.” I bought the BOL to get out of the city. Every successful transaction has two parties who each think they’re doing the right thing… life is like that too.
The other guy I chatted with we were talking about the future of the reseller industry. I think we’re at peak mom and pop, like house flipping when all the people with no experience or applicable skills got involved. I think there will be consolidation on the seller side, with more bigger players. There will probably still be a place for the mom and pops but it will likely be more focused. I could be wrong. The demand for low cost stuff should rise as the economy worsens, but balancing that, the really big guys, the sources, will likely be feeling the pinch and may want to limit the returns, and maybe even recapture some of that revenue- more than they currently do by wholesaling the items to resellers.
It’s a bit like thrifting. Thrifting as sourcing depends on people being willing to give away valuable stuff. That doesn’t happen in poor countries. If amazon or other big retailers limit returns, or if they want too much for all the middlemen involved in reselling to make money, supply may dry up. Then I’ll have to find something else to do, I guess. Several new players have entered the game, and several that I’ve been watching or buying from have exited lately. Change is the only constant.
Headed to the BOL today. Wife has a GS thing up that way, and will join us later. Kids and I will go up first. I hope to meet with a tree service guy and get the pruning and removal underway. I’ll ask him if there are cost savings if I cut it up myself. And I’ll see what he wants to do with the smaller stuff or the rotten stuff. If the difference isn’t dramatic, I’ll have him do it. I’ve got enough to do just stacking it.
Last week I got some seed potatoes in the ground at the BOL. We’ll see if they got dug up and eaten. I hope not, and I’ll put some wire mesh in place this visit. Some other gardening activity may take place, depending on weather and motivation. More storage cleanup and organization will definitely take place. Gotta shift out of the ‘construction’ mode and into the ‘we’re using the place’ mode. All while continuing with improvements, repairs, remodel, and stacking…
Kinda like everyone everywhere, just more so. Stack it up.
nick