Struck By Tragedy, How This Woman Turned Her Love of Selling into a Thriving Business

Katie Murray turned her life around with eBay after losing her husband and quitting her corporate job to take care of their toddler. One of the Up & Running grant beneficiaries, Murray received $10,000 in 2022 which allowed her to scale her business and go all out. In the platform’s blog, Murray shared her story and gave away some tips for fellow resellers who are looking to make it.

From loss to reselling 

Murray shared that her passion for reselling started as a kid, watching her grandparents who were expert resellers. She went to yard sales and flea markets with them. They held their own yard sales. As she got older, she sold items through her mom’s eBay shop for extra cash. Growing up, Murray settled for a corporate job. However, her life took a turn in 2018 when her husband unexpectedly passed away. At the time, her daughter was only two months old.

Grieving and still learning how to parent, Katie returned to her job as her maternity leave ended. She eventually got promoted which meant even longer hours at the office. She quit her job to be there with her daughter and decided to find alternative opportunities.

Murray became a full-time reseller on eBay in 2020 after watching numerous YouTube videos and crunching the numbers. She put down her notice at work and hasn’t looked back since. In 2022, Katie applied for eBay’s grant and was chosen as one of the 50 grantees. The $10,000 allowed her to get a safety net and the validation that she could indeed make it.

She soon established her store Legacy Sales VA through which she sells unique items. She often works as a treasure hunter looking for precious items across the marketplace “You get a dopamine hit when you find something great,” she says in the blog. She mentions that there is always a chance to pull out some vintage art or precious items like a manual for a Rolls Royce from the 1920s.

Three things Murray did with eBay’s $10,000 grant

Murray says that the first thing she did with the grant money was to purchase more inventory, especially higher-priced goods. It also allowed her to sit with her inventory for longer, waiting for the right buyer to make more profits.

The second thing she did was hire freelancers for photography and listing. “It’s been really helpful because as a mom, time is my scarcest resource. So being able to outsource some of the more time-consuming tasks is great,” she said in the blog post.

The last thing that Murray did was upgrade her storage systems for her inventory. She built more shelves and got more bins to hold a lot more inventory and utilize her garage space efficiently.

Murray’s advice for resellers

The first thing Murray recommends resellers do is apply for the Up & Running Grant. She says apart from the money, the winners also receive one-on-one advice from an eBay Growth Advisor which helps them grow. She also recommends sellers avoid spending all the grant money upfront and build a safety net instead to cushion the fluctuating sales.