Let’s talk about how to make money while on vacation. This is close to my heart because I love traveling. I love going on vacations. But what is more fun than going on vacation? Actually making money while you’re on vacation. Going on vacation is what motivates me to work. It’s something we love doing with the kids too. Summer is coming up and we’re getting ready to go on one of our summer road trips. We can’t wait to get on the road and find amazing deals that make us money when traveling.
How We Started Sourcing While Traveling
We first started this in 2017 or 2018 with the 127 Yard Sale which is a long yard sale from Georgia to Michigan. We did it a couple of years in a row, but that was the first time we made it a road trip to find stuff to flip. It was fun and we recorded it. Then in 2020, our brother-in-law passed away from brain cancer. In the spring of 2020 we packed up my sister, our four nieces, and our three kids. I bought a 15-passenger van and we hit the road. We pulled an enclosed trailer, not thinking about buying or selling, but used it as a place to put our luggage. Our goal was to visit national parks and see the country. A week or two into the trip, I’m like, “Well, we have all this extra room in the trailer because all we have is our luggage in there, so I probably could buy a couple things.” And then I started looking. I started looking on Facebook Marketplace, and we started finding some really cool deals.
What We Sourced On Vacation
That first year we bought seven items. We brought them back and that’s when we got the idea that we could do this every year to make money. The second year we hit some other national parks and it became a bit of a tradition. We didn’t do it the last two years but we’re excited to get back out there. In 2020 we bought seven items, paid $1,235 and sold them when we got back for $22,175. In 2021, we bought 14 items for $870 and sold them for $17,000. In 2022, we bought 17 items for $1,455, and sold them for $25,250. In 2023, we bought eight items for $1,100 and sold them for $21,350. We averaged over $20,000 in profits per trip with just $1,000 invested. To take $1,000 to $1,500 and turn that into $20,000, traveling around the U.S., having fun with our family, is an amazing, amazing thing to be able to do. We absolutely love it. We also spend less than $20,000 on these trips so we are paying for our road trip, bringing back items, and creating income while we’re out there having fun. We’re not qualified to give you tax advice, but it also can possibly be qualified as a write-off for the parts of it that you are sourcing for your side hustle or your full-time flipping business. We definitely take advantage of that.
How To Source On Vacation
We generally have a plan of where we’re going the night before and I will look at the apps and try to set up meetups for the next day. We generally don’t go too far off our planned route either. We use a trailer. We also bring tools, straps, blankets, and things to keep items from moving around in transit. We also don’t book the entire trip in advance. We go wherever we can make it to and then Melissa books us a hotel for the night. That works better for us because if something happens, we’re not locked into staying in an area for days at a time. If you live in a rural area and think you can’t source well in your area, maybe this is the time to take a three-day road trip or a weekend away. Go an hour or two away into a bigger area to where you can jump in and find some cool stuff to bring back with you!
Show Notes
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FURTHER RESOURCES
FREE Workshop How To Turn Your Passion of Flipping Items Into A Profitable Reselling Business
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