> Did you really think arbitrage of used goods could be a business?
Yes. Some examples (depending on how loose you want to get with the term arbitrage. I'm using it as its used in this article) would include antiques/collectibles and used cars.
It's obviously much better to operate in areas where 1) value is unclear and/or 2) goods may take time to sell.
With those things, you can get an advantage by knowing the value and by being able to hold onto something until it sells for a proper value.
Indeed. What do you people think business is? Plenty of people operate perfectly reasonable used-goods businesses of the same nature at flea markets and the like. The question for Hacker News types is whether the business is scalable (depends on the local supplies of used goods, among other things) and whether there are more interesting businesses for you to be in.
Business needs to be demystified. Look at Princess Kate. Her family's business (worth millions, or billions, I forget) basically started with assembling party supplies into convenient boxes. If that's a business, anything can be a business.
Yes. Some examples (depending on how loose you want to get with the term arbitrage. I'm using it as its used in this article) would include antiques/collectibles and used cars.
It's obviously much better to operate in areas where 1) value is unclear and/or 2) goods may take time to sell.
With those things, you can get an advantage by knowing the value and by being able to hold onto something until it sells for a proper value.