What Shipping Supplies You Need (and Which Ones You Can Get for Free)
Running a successful resale business requires you to have the right shipping supplies on hand at all times so that you can get your items out the door in a timely manner. But just like inventory, shipping supplies take up space - and they cost money. In this post I will share all of my best tips for stress-free shipping, including:
My secrets for gathering and storing shipping supplies in my small home
What supplies I keep on hand
Stocking supplies at as little cost as possible
What shipping supplies will you need?
Imagine this: that vintage platter you picked up at Goodwill for $3 just sold for $75! You have two business days to get it in the mail. You check your inventory of shipping supplies and find the right size box. Great! But you’ll need to wrap these plates and include lots of padding to ensure they don’t break. You don’t have any bubble wrap (oh no!), and if you buy some online, it won’t arrive in time.
Or you sell a pair of designer sunglasses from your own closet for $95. Awesome! But what is the best container to ship them in? All of your boxes seem too big for such a small item …
I have faced both of these scenarios and more. The type of packaging materials you will need depends on what you choose to sell. If you specialize in one type of item, you will not need a big variety of containers. For example, if you sell small items like jewelry or t-shirts, you may be able to get away with padded mailers only. Or if you specialize in video games or electronics, you can likely get away with keeping just a couple of standard sized boxes on hand.
In my case, I sell a bit of everything, so each packing and shipping experience is unique, depending on the item. I have found that the best way to be prepared is to keep a wide variety of boxes and envelopes, plus packing materials, on hand at all times.
Here is what I currently have in my inventory:
Boxes: 25-30 boxes ranging in size from small (7.5”x7”x4” ) to extra large (35.5”x21.5”x13”)
Envelopes: 8-10 paper envelopes and plastic padded mailers in different sizes
Packing materials: A range of packing supplies including styrofoam sheets, cardboard padding, old newspapers, the odd bit of bubble wrap, and lots and lots of brown paper sheets.
Tape: I use two sizes of packaging tape - 2” wide tape for sealing boxes and 1” wide tape for adhering labels (the clerk at my local post office very helpfully informed me that Scotch tape is not acceptable for adhering labels).
I use a lot of brown paper sheets for packing. Since I re-use materials whenever possible, they can get unruly and need to be contained. I store them in a slim hamper (like this one), which can be easily stored in the linen closet. And I store other packing materials in a suitcase, kept in my bedroom closet. We small space dwellers really have to get creative! One thing that has helped me is to remember that I do not need to worry about what other people think when they come over. My home is my own, and I get to organize it in the way that works for me and my life. And anyway, anyone I invite into my home needs to be a judgement free sort of person anyway!
You’ll also want to keep your other supplies, like tape and scissors, in one place. I keep everything in a drawer of my desk, including:
Scissors
Carpet shears (I explain why you’ll need these below.)
Packaging tape
Measuring tape
Digital postal scale
Go ahead and invest in a dedicated set of scissors, measuring tape, and whatever else specifically for your business. You won’t want to be running around your home looking for them when you need them.
How I keep my costs as low as possible!
While resellers who live in large, single family houses generally have an advantage over us small space dwellers when it comes to storage space - with their basements and garages and extra bedrooms - there is one advantage we have over them (if you live in a multifamily building): a readily available supply of free boxes! If you live in a condo or apartment building, do not be afraid to raid the recycling bins for boxes and other shipping supplies.
That’s what I do, and I have not had to purchase a single box or envelope yet. We live in an age of online shopping, and that means your neighbors are having lots of stuff delivered, and disposing of the packaging, which is typically in very good condition. I live in a small condo building that has six recycling bins. I peruse them 1-2 times per week, gathering boxes, padded mailers, and brown paper packing sheets.
It’s perfectly okay to reuse boxes and envelopes, even if they have logos on them. Just make sure they are in good condition.
I collect a variety of packing materials to reuse as needed.
If you don’t live in a multi-family unit building, you may need to purchase boxes and envelopes. In that case, you will want to select several sizes to meet your needs and buy them in the most cost effective way possible. There are lots of other resellers who offer advice on that front. Cosmic Deal Heather offers some solid advice in this video.
I use a lot of brown paper for packing, and so I have had to purchase a box of it to supplement what I am able to gather from my neighbors. Here’s what I bought, and I’ve been happy with it.
I have also bought packaging tape in bulk so that I don’t run out. I use 2” tape for sealing boxes (I bought this) and 1” tape for adhering labels (I bought this). I’ve seen other resellers say that they can’t live without their tape guns, but I have found that I don’t need one. Maybe that will become a need one day when I grow and need to ship 10 packages every day!
You will also absolutely need a small digital postal scale to weigh your packages. I have this one.
One other thing I do to save on supplies is to print the mailing label and packing slip on one piece of paper. I just print the mailing label, then flip the paper over and print the packing slip on the other side. Again, this is something that might become to burdensome as my business grows, but for now I feel good about saving all that paper!
Bonus: My most valued tool used for shipping
I covered all of the basics above. But the one thing I would never want to be without, my MVP of shipping if you will, is my set of carpet shears. I bought these when I moved into my condo, for the purpose of trimming carpet pads. I never imagined the myriad ways I would end up using them.
My MVP of shipping tools!
I keep them close at hand, stored along with my other packing supplies. I use them to cut sheets of styrofoam and cardboard packing materials to size, and when I flip boxes inside out to hide the logos (see this video from Prime Time Treasure Hunter to learn how).
I tried a box cutter, but it was not nearly as effective. I highly recommend that you get a pair of these babies (I have these ones). You will thank me later.
Final Thoughts
There’s a lot that goes into reselling, but with all of these tips and tricks, you will always have what you need on hand to ship your items. Don’t feel that you need to buy everything you’ll ever need right now - that would be expensive, and you don’t want to get stuck with boxes you never end up using. Just like with your store inventory, you can build slowly as you go. Good luck!
