10 Mistakes to Avoid Flipping Items from eBay to Amazon in Your First 90 Days

Hey, what’s going on everybody?

Steve here from Raiken Profit.

In this post, I want to break down the biggest mistakes to avoid when flipping items from eBay to Amazon in your first 90 days.

This is especially important if you’re brand new, or if you’re in your first month, second month, or even your first 3–6 months of this business.

I’ve been selling on Amazon for over 10 years, and I started buying items from eBay and flipping them on Amazon about five and a half years ago.

Since then, I’ve sold over 30,000 products from eBay to Amazon for more than $3 million in sales.

eBay to Amazon has made me a lot of money.

But I’ve also seen a lot of new sellers lose money, waste time, or even quit altogether because they make the same mistakes early on.

So in this post, I want to walk you through 10 mistakes to avoid in your first 90 days, and more importantly, what to focus on instead.

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Mistake #1: Spending a Ton of Money Getting Ungated Right Away

One of the biggest mistakes I see new sellers make is spending a ton of money getting ungated in brands right out of the gate.

It’s very tempting.

You start learning about Amazon and suddenly you hear about getting ungated in Hasbro, Lego, Disney, Milwaukee tools, and all these other brands that can make a lot of money.

Here’s the problem.

In the beginning, you don’t even know if this business is for you yet.

You might hate eBay to Amazon. You might decide it’s not something you want to stick with.

And if that happens, spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars getting ungated early on is a complete waste of money.

My recommendation is simple:

Start by selling what you can already sell.

If all you can sell right now are books, sell books.

If you’re ungated in a few random brands, focus on those.

You can make very good money with just a handful of brands.

The goal in the beginning isn’t to sell everything. The goal is to prove to yourself that:

This business works
You enjoy it
You want to continue investing time and money into it

Once you’ve built confidence and consistency, then you can start getting ungated strategically.

Mistake #2: Buying Long-Tail Items That Take Forever to Sell

Another huge mistake in the first 90 days is buying long-tail items that take months to sell.

Yes, there are items you can buy on eBay for $10 and eventually sell on Amazon for $50 or more.

But if it takes 6, 8, or 10 months to sell, that can absolutely destroy your cash flow early on.

When you’re new, cash flow and momentum matter more than anything.

In my business, most of the items I buy sell within 30 to 45 days.

I’m usually aiming for 50% to 100% ROI, not massive long-term home runs.

When you’re starting out, you want:

Items that turn quickly
Frequent sales
Proof that this business actually works

If you spend your first $2,000 on items that won’t sell for 4–6 months, you’re going to feel stuck, frustrated, and unsure if this model even works.

Confidence comes from sales.

Focus on items that flip quickly, even if the profit per item is smaller.

Mistake #3: Scaling Too Fast

This mistake applies to all Amazon sellers, not just eBay to Amazon.

When you first discover eBay to Amazon, especially if you’re using software that helps you find deals quickly, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by how many opportunities exist.

But scaling too fast is dangerous, especially with a new Amazon account.

If you go from:

$100 in sales one month
To $20,000 the next month

That can raise red flags with Amazon.

Scaling too fast can trigger:

Account reviews
Requests for invoices
Section 3 suspensions

Instead, scale gradually:

$1,000 per month
Then $3,000
Then $8,000
Then $15,000

This gives you time to learn, make mistakes on a smaller scale, and keep your account safe.

Mistake #4: Trusting Inflated Buy Box Prices

This is one of the most common mistakes I see.

A new seller sees an item with a $50 Buy Box and thinks:

“I can buy this for $20 and flip it for $50. Easy money.”

But just because an item is priced at $50 doesn’t mean it’s actually selling for $50 consistently.

You need to understand:

Buy Box history
Price fluctuations
Seller count changes
Seasonality

This is why learning Keepa is so important.

When you’re new, be conservative. If an item sells between $40 and $50, assume you’ll sell it for $40.

This forces you to:

Pay less
Build margin
Protect yourself if prices drop

If it sells for more, great. But never base your numbers on best-case scenarios.

Mistake #5: Not Focusing on Replens

If you’ve sold on Amazon before, even through thrifting or garage sales, this is a massive advantage.

A replen is simply an item you’ve sold before.

If you sold a DVD for $70 last month that you bought at a thrift store for $2, go check eBay.

If you can buy that same item for $30 or $35, you already have proof that it sells.

You know:

How long it took to sell
How the Buy Box behaves
What the demand looks like

That data is incredibly valuable.

In the beginning, replens give you confidence and reduce risk.

Checkout Replen Catcher to start sourcing deals from eBay to flip on Amazon for a profit.