So I did it! I opened an Ebay store

[flipfloplady]

At my show this weekend, so many people asked me if I had a boutique or a store. I told them a lot of my flip-flops are sold in boutiques but I do not have my own. Then the next question was if I had a website.

So yesterday I opened a Basic Ebay store. eBay Store - Bows On My Toes:

So how do you keep your listing costs down?

You have to pay the $15 a month for the store and then $1.20 or so for each listing? And the listing only last 7 days?

[princessfancypants]

I stay away from "feebay" Your best bet would be to start a website! I cant stand how much ebay charges

[flipfloplady]

I don't thnk I have the funds for a website right now

I know hosting is cheap but isn't it pretty expensive to design it and then turn it into e-commerce with a shopping cart and all?

[davang1027]

Originally Posted by flipfloplady

I don't thnk I have the funds for a website right now

I know hosting is cheap but isn't it pretty expensive to design it and then turn it into e-commerce with a shopping cart and all?

I'm in pretty much the same boat. I have a domain name and hoast but have been trying to get it up without spending major money for about 8 months now! In the meantime, I've very recently started an Etsy store and I don't think the fees are as bad...I know there are a lot more Etsy experts on here that know for sure.

[princessfancypants]

Originally Posted by flipfloplady

I don't thnk I have the funds for a website right now

I know hosting is cheap but isn't it pretty expensive to design it and then turn it into e-commerce with a shopping cart and all?

I am in the process of redoing my site, I went with shoppepro and it has mals cart with it. I think for everything i needed hosting a template etc it was about 225 for the year still way cheaper then ebay, if you figure you list 1000 items on your site, and they will beup until they sell out it is WELL worth the investment!

[mysweetbowtique]

Yes ebay is crazy way to much i stopped selling on there because of how much my fees were! Shoppe Pro Web Hosting - Simple Shopping Cart for the WAHM! is awsome just $9.95 a month and has a great shopping cart adn awsome customer service also they have a list of template designers to help make it look pretty i paid $50 for mine, and you need a domain name is just $15 a year Browser Update Page so really you pay less than you a month than you would on ebay and no fees the only "big" fee would be you template but that is a 1 time fee and they come in all different price points so you can find one that works for you, good luck you can check out my site to see what it is like or feel free to ask me any questions!

Shanna

[littlepiggies]

I got my domain and hosting through Pappashop. It is $10.95 per year for a domain name and $19.95 per month for hosting. They have a lot of templates that you can use, however, I used Boutiquemama.com for my template. She offers cute templates for as low as $14.99.

Now that my site is set up, my only monthly cost is for the hosting, $19.95 and I can have as many items as I want listed.

[poshbabycouture]

I agree that using PappaShoppe and getting a cheap design tempelate is the way to go. It's really easy to maintain and the start-up cost are very inexpensive. I would def suggest etsy over ebay. Even talking to clients I find that people think of ebay as more of a bargin shopping network vs esty as a place to find amazing hand-made items. Just my 2-cents. Had I known about etsy first I would have waited to get my website

Your flip flops are amazing by the way! I'm hosting a flip flop party in 2weeks I'm excited and nervous all at the same time..

Good luck, and if you ever need any techie advice let me know

Chandra

[lalaarnold]

Wow! I had no idea how much it cost to have a store on Ebay. I guess these days you are paying for the name (which hopefully brings a lot of traffic with it)!

I hate that so many people are moving away from Ebay because I love shopping there.

Thanks to everyone for sharing all the info on setting up your own site.

[brookesgrandma]

I also checked out ebay but the cost was just horrible. A fee for everything. I am looking for web hosting that is very inexpensive.