How to Find Pallets for Sale

Have you been scouring the web for pallets for sale? If you’re interested in seeking these out, you’ve come to the right place. A pallet of goods can be of anything – home goods, appliances, grocery, apparel, consumer electronics, etc. At its most basic, a pallet is the wood structural foundation of a unit load for handling and storage. There are two common ways in which goods are packed and palletized– Gaylord and ‘Stacked and Wrapped.’

But we’re not just interested in the physical description of pallets. You want to know how to find these pallets for sale and at a good price. Well, luckily that’s where liquidation pallets come in. When companies need to offload customer returns, overstock, or even damaged inventory, they often liquidate it. Liquidation pallets become valuable because of the goods they contain, the condition those goods are in, and the fact that they are being sold or auctioned off for pennies on the dollar.

In this blog, we will cover:

• Why inventory gets liquidated
• Why you should buy liquidation pallets
• How to find pallets for sale: step-by-step

Why does inventory get liquidated by the pallet?

Before we get into what makes these pallets so valuable, let’s talk about why inventory gets liquidated in the first place. You would be surprised at the amount of reasons that inventory gets liquidated and sold off by the pallet.

Seasonality and shelf pulls, for starters. If inventory like health & beauty or even grocery items are reaching their ‘sell by’ date – they’re likely to get liquidated. Also, discontinued items and fluctuating consumer trends can lead to poor sales performance. As they say, out with the old, in with the new! Customer returns are also a huge reason retailers liquidate this inventory..

Why buy liquidation pallets?

If you’re starting a resale business, want to earn some extra money, or are just looking to increase inventory, finding pallets for sale is a good way to do it. Everyone knows that when you buy in bulk, you get more inventory for less money. Think of it like shopping at Costco – the higher you go in pounds of chicken, the more the price per pound drops. So while you spend more money, you’re also getting a bigger bang for your buck. The same could be said for buying liquidation pallets! Instead of individually sourcing items to resell one by one, you can get more inventory at once and at a lower cost per unit.

One great way to find pallets for sale is by searching for liquidation pallets. These types of pallets in particular are a unique opportunity because retailers and manufacturers are usually trying to offload this inventory quickly. Either because the inventory didn’t sell in stores, is discontinued, got returned or damaged to some degree, or would otherwise take up warehouse space. This makes liquidation a worthwhile solution for businesses that have excess and customer-returned inventory they want to sell off in bulk.

For business buyers, this means that you have the opportunity to get quality – and more importantly – resellable inventory for relatively cheap.

How To Find Pallets For Sale: Step-by-step

So, liquidation is a big deal. But where do you find pallets for sale? We’ll go step-by-step below!

1. Start your research

Research is key. And finding a niche like apparel, home & garden, or consumer electronics is a good place to start. By having a more specific idea in mind, you can narrow your focus and really get a feel for what you’re investing in. Without doing this step, you could end up throwing money around with no real knowledge of the category. Do a few quick Google searches to get started. And while you’re doing market research, see what the going rate is for new and used inventory. That way you can calculate your potential profits. You can also check out YouTube for unboxing videos, inventory-sourcing ideas, and reviews.

Compile your research into a spreadsheet and keep it up to date as you start placing small, test orders. This is a good way to test the waters before committing to a bigger bulk order. Your spreadsheet will also come in handy for when you begin to receive pallets and need to track your inventory and shipments.

2. Understand condition codes

When you’re purchasing liquidation pallets, it’s important to have a deep understanding of condition codes. For example, there are different types of customer returns (in-person or Dotcom) as well as different degrees of damaged inventory. There’s ‘Good/Fair’ or even
‘Salvage’ which isn’t functional and usually only sold for parts.

Let’s break some down:

• New – This merchandise is unopened with original wrappings intact. You’re likely to pay more for this type of inventory given that it should all be fully functional. The good news is that you can yield a higher return since inventory can be sold closer to retail price.
• Customer returns – Customer returns, as the name suggests, have been previously purchased and brought back to stores for various reasons. Oftentimes you can get lucky and have pretty good returns. However, keep in mind that inventory may have been handled/used/worn; it may also have been damaged in transit. While some items will appear like new, typically, you can expect signs of use, ranging from light to heavy.
• Dotcom returns – Dotcom returns are typically in better condition than in-store returns: often the original packaging is intact or it may be brand new/unopened. There are a few reasons for this including the likelihood of a consumer to order two or three styles of the same thing and send back the ones that don’t work or the item may have been shipped incorrectly/undelivered.
• Overstock – Overstock inventory is inventory that was not able to sell within an efficient amount of time at the retail locations. These items have never been purchased by a customer, and therefore, are not returns and should not be defective.

3. Set a budget

Your budget will depend on the type of inventory you’re after. Liquidation pallets are a good deal because inventory is already deeply discounted. Retailers and manufacturers are trying to move the inventory as quickly as possible. In order to recover some of their losses (and free up warehouse space), they will need to sell it to the highest bidder. We’ll touch on that later.

Many resellers get started with savings of their own. You really only need anywhere from a few hundred bucks to a couple thousand dollars to win your first auction depending on the auction size and category you’re in! There are also a couple of financing options you can look into such as Behalf, Fundera, and Kabbage. If you want to find other funding options for your small business, check out sba.gov/funding-programs.

4. Choose your sourcing method

Now that you know what kind of inventory, product condition, and budget you have in mind, you can decide where you will make your purchase. These are some common places you can find pallets for sale:

• Factory direct

Buy merchandise directly from a manufacturer online. Purchasing pallets of factory direct merchandise requires you to order a large quantity if you want to get the best discount.

• White labeling

Another option that some business owners like is to have third-party manufacturers label products branded in your company’s name. White label products are manufactured in mass quantities but then offered to many different sellers to add their own branding. This method takes the hassle out of manufacturing your own products, but will also require you to fork over the capital to get things in motion.

• Distributor

You will definitely want to shop around for sites with decent reviews. Think of distributors as go-betweens who purchase the huge quantities required by manufacturers, then sell at a mark-up to retailers.

• Wholesale

Wholesale usually means you’re ordering large quantities of new, and more expensive inventory. As we said earlier, bulk buying is definitely worth your while. That’s still true. However, you will be pigeonholed into pricier inventory that may not be what you’re after. Not to mention, wholesalers are the middlemen – so there will be significant markups. Wholesale is also not immediately accessible, you need to get your wholesale license and connect with reliable distributors.

• Online auction sites

You can search for reputable liquidation marketplaces or online auction sites, like B-Stock. Inventory comes directly from retailers and with the auction model, the highest bidder wins! Most online liquidation marketplaces require you to register to become an authorized buyer. With your resale certificate in hand, this is no problem. By setting your own price, you never spend more than what’s in your budget.

• Public marketplace sites

Check marketplaces for local items on Facebook Marketplace and eBay products online. There are two cons here. On Facebook Marketplace, your search is limited by physical location radius. And on a huge platform like eBay, your search is spread far too thin.

If connecting with trustworthy distributors and wholesalers sounds like a lot of work, that’s because it is. And if you don’t have the storage for bulk ordering that is required with the white labeling and factory direct options, then liquidation pallets are still a good bet for you!

5. Browse auctions online

When you look at auctions online, you should consider the following; do you want to buy liquidation pallets from a specific store? What auction size are you looking for? These two questions to start will help narrow your search and not overwhelm you with options.

Next, ask yourself if this is the product condition you want? Are you okay with mixed inventory? Do you want to find pallets for sale within the same category? Finally, have a price in mind for the highest you’re willing to pay for that inventory and what others are bidding. Factor in shipping costs to avoid any surprises later!

6. Compare pricing & buy!

Always compare the pricing to what other resellers are listing the same inventory for. That way, you can see what you’re up against and if it would be profitable for you.

Some buyers with larger operations go for quantity. Think of it this way – if you spend $1,000 on a pallet with 750 individual units of goods – you’re paying $1.33 per unit. That doesn’t tell the full story though. Once you break up the inventory and resell it, depending on the contents, your profits could be nominal. The cost of shipping, buyer’s premium fees, and listing fees are costs that add onto the price of one individual unit. So always calculate your profits beforehand and shop around. Consider category, condition, MSRP, delivery fees, and of course, potential profits.

7. Shipping logistics

Shipping and delivery are two crucial parts of purchasing liquidation pallets. If you live close to a distribution center that allows you to pick up pallets for sale this could be a fantastic way to save money. With your own truck and loading equipment, you can save a good chunk of change this way rather than shipping pallets to you — your budget will thank you!

Keep the shipping method in mind. How do they ship? Shipping can be fixed, free, buyer-arranged, or most commonly, binding shipping. With binding shipping, the cost will vary depending on different variables including zip code, weight, density, number of pallets, how many pallet spaces will be used during transport, and a few other factors. Generally though, the further it is, the more it will cost. You can often filter for auctions closer to you in order to avoid that headache!

How to Find Pallets for Sale on B-Stock

B-Stock helps qualified business buyers find and secure the right inventory for your business’s needs. Whether you’ve just started your reseller journey or are looking to ramp up your inventory sourcing, we can help. There are three main channels to shop liquidation inventory on B-Stock.

This is how to find pallets for sale on B-Stock:

• B-Stock Auctions – Search across all B-Stock liquidation marketplaces by category, region, retailer, or even specific products.
• B-Stock Supply – Supply sellers range from Fortune 500 companies to small or medium-sized businesses. It’s a good starting point for buying smaller quantities if you’re not quite ready to dive into a full pallet, LTL (less than truckload), or FTL (full truckload) of merchandise.
• B-Stock Private Marketplaces – 65+ private marketplaces for today’s largest retailers and manufacturers including Amazon, Target, Walmart, Home Depot, Best Buy, Unilever, Ashley HomeStore, AT&T, and more.

Finding liquidation pallets for sale is one of the best ways to get inventory from brands your customers love and at a good price. Luckily, with B-Stock, it’s a breeze!