Buying QVC Returns: What You Need to Know

QVC combines the best of retail, media, and social to create the world’s most engaging shopping experiences. Founded in 1986, QVC is a leader in video and e-commerce retailing, reaching 96 million U.S. households daily. Their international headquarters and domestic broadcast center is based at Studio Park in West Chester, PA.

For such a well-known brand carrying a range of merchandise like beauty, apparel, cosmetics, footwear, home decor, housewares, and general merchandise, it makes sense that there would be liquidation inventory in various conditions. This inventory gets put up for auction on online liquidation sites like the ones B-Stock operates. Whether your resale business specializes in apparel or home goods, you can find the inventory you’re looking for (or didn’t know you needed) on QVC Liquidation Auctions.

In this article, we go over the QVC marketplace from top to bottom:

• Overview of the QVC marketplace
• What makes QVC inventory valuable
• How to start buying QVC returns pallets
• Reselling QVC returns

QVC Liquidation Auctions: An Overview

QVC Liquidation Auctions is the official B2B marketplace for QVC’s liquidation of apparel, home décor, kitchenware, shoes, seasonal, and more. Overstock and customer returns auctions are offered in bulk quantity in conditions including new, Grade A/B, Grade C, salvage, or presentation samples. The variety of inventory categories, notable brands, and auction lot sizes—ranging from a pallet up to a truckload—are what make this marketplace so appealing!

Types of inventory

On the QVC marketplace, you can find the following types of inventory:

Registered buyers can purchase QVC liquidation pallets of the inventory listed above (and more!) on the QVC Liquidation Auctions marketplace.

View Live Auctions

What makes QVC liquidation pallets so valuable?

Breadth of inventory

QVC features a breadth of inventory in home decor, kitchen goods, apparel, footwear, accessories, and general merchandise. If variety is your thing, QVC liquidation pallets will be worth your while. With access to several different kinds of inventory, you can find the category that suits your customer base.

Brand recognition

If you’ve got it, flaunt it. Delabeling is not required on the QVC marketplace. Many major retailers require the removal or damage of labels, tags, or UPC codes on their merchandise to make apparent which overstock goods are being sold on the secondary market. Since this isn’t required for QVC, resellers aren’t limited in their profit-making potential as they can advertise the brand’s products accordingly.

How to purchase QVC returns and overstock:

QVC Liquidation Auctions is a U.S. Buyers only site. International buyers are unable to register and participate at this time. There are a few other things to note about QVC auctions:

Learn how items are listed

Buyers can browse QVC auctions that interest them and place bids based on the retail value of the goods. The most important auction details will be listed in the auction title, for example, “2 Pallets of Footwear by Skechers & More, 186 Pairs, Grade C (Lot 3_9594), Ext. Retail $16,169, Ontario, CA, USA” tells you the shipment type, inventory type, quantity, condition, estimated retail, and where it’s coming from.

For more information on how to read and understand an auction listing, check out The Anatomy of Liquidation Auctions.

Set your filters to the inventory you want

Filters allow you to sort through auctions that meet your criteria. You can search by Current High Bids, Condition, US States, Shipment Type, and Inventory Type. We’ll break down the importance of a few of these filters below.

Find the warehouse closest to you

A huge benefit of shopping on the QVC marketplace is that they have facilities across the country. This allows buyers to shop closer to home and save money on shipping costs. The amount of miles your lot has to travel to get to you directly impacts the cost of shipping. You can currently find QVC liquidation auctions listed out of the following locations:

• California
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• North Carolina

Browse manifests and photos

Remember, customer returns can come in all shapes and sizes. Buyers should do their due diligence by reading through the manifest to see all items and their descriptions in the auction lot. Also, be mindful of stock photography versus actual photos of inventory. Please see stock photography examples below.

Familiarize yourself with product conditions

Buyers appreciate consistency in quality and accurate product conditions. In order to secure the presentation samples, consumer returns, and excess QVC inventory that’s right for your business, you will want to carefully review the QVC conditions page. This is where you will find condition descriptions and examples for handbags, apparel, and shoes.

Also important to note are packaging conditions.

Understand shipment sizes

Lot sizes on the QVC Liquidation Auctions include parcels, but also LTLs (less than truckloads), and truckloads. This is a good marketplace for buyers looking to work with smaller lots and then work up to larger orders.

The standard pallet size is 48” x 40”. A truckload is generally up to 24 pallets and an LTL can be anywhere from one to 10 or 12. Consider that certain products may be bulkier than others, requiring more space. So choose your auctions wisely!

Register on the QVC marketplace

Register for the QVC Liquidation Auctions site in order to start bidding and buying bulk lots of excess inventory, presentation samples, and customer returns! You can browse hundreds of auctions across apparel, home decor, kitchenware, shoes, seasonal, and more.

To register, you will need to have a reseller certificate form to submit with your application. Once approved, you can immediately bid to win QVC liquidation pallets.

Calculate your costs

Make sure you get your formula down for how much you’re willing to bid for QVC returns and other liquidation inventory. With the help of the manifest, interested buyers can sort directly on the manifest page to see the most valuable items. Alternatively, you can download the manifest and work directly in an Excel file to do your calculations. You should take into account the number of units, MSRP, and shipping costs. Fees for liftgates and residential addresses may also apply.

What to know when selling QVC returns and overstock:

Conditions matter

Let’s be honest, newer condition is usually more favorable. An added bonus? If you can resell an item in its original packaging! It’s always more beneficial to the end-user.

Inventory can be seasonal

When you purchase later in the season or out-of-season liquidation inventory, consider when you will be able to fetch the highest selling price! For example, if you win an auction lot of customer returned patio furniture, you can stock up and save that for summer. If you purchase a bulk order of overcoats and sweaters, you can get a jump on winter apparel sales. Not many customers are looking for coats in the summer, that’s why selling seasonal merchandise at peak times is important.

Good quality photos make a difference

When it comes to selling apparel, the more images, the more sales! And showing clothing or brands on models or mannequins…those do even better! Feel free to mix stock images with actual images, but if any of the items are damaged—show that too. You’ve got to be honest in showing the good with the bad.

Start buying QVC returns and overstock today!

From apparel buyers to home and garden buyers, there’s something for everyone on the QVC marketplace. When you start searching through QVC liquidation auctions, you’re sure to find the inventory that’s right for your resale business—and at a great discount, too! Simply submit a valid resale certificate and register on the QVC Liquidation Auctions marketplace today!