Okay, so, I’ve been messing around with this whole “merchant jewelry” thing, and I gotta say, it’s been a wild ride. Started off pretty clueless, just like anyone else probably. I mean, where do you even begin, right?

First thing I did was hit up the internet, because that’s where you find everything these days. I typed in “how to sell jewelry” and “best places to sell jewelry” into the search bar, which is really basic, and I got a ton of results. Most of them were pushing me towards eBay and Etsy, especially for the older, vintage type stuff. Made sense, so I made accounts on both.
- Set up shop on eBay and Etsy: Took a while to get everything looking decent, taking pictures, writing descriptions, the whole nine yards.
- Figured out pricing: This was tough. I didn’t want to rip anyone off, but I also didn’t want to sell myself short. I looked at what similar items were going for and tried to stay in that ballpark.
Then I thought, “Why not try local?” I looked up some jewelry stores and pawn shops in my area. Jewelry stores seemed like a long shot because they are picky, but they might give you a better price if they like your stuff. Pawn shops, on the other hand, seemed like the way to go if you needed cash fast, even if it meant taking a bit less money.
- Visited local jewelry stores: They weren’t really interested, just like I figured. Said my stuff was too niche.
- Checked out a few pawn shops: Got a few offers, not great, but not terrible either. It was definitely faster, I’ll give them that.
I also started digging into those online business-to-business (B2B) jewelry places. There are tons of them, and they’re full of stuff for people who sell in bulk, like wholesalers and retailers. I didn’t really fit into that category since I was just selling individual pieces, but it was good to know they were there.
- Explored B2B jewelry websites: This was more for research. I realized I wasn’t cut out for the wholesale game, but I learned a lot about the market.
After all that, I decided to focus on eBay and Etsy. I put more effort into my listings, tried to make the pictures look better, and really worked on my descriptions. I even started a little blog to talk about my jewelry and the whole selling process, sharing tips and stuff.
- Improved online listings: Rewrote descriptions, retook some photos, and made sure everything was as clear and appealing as possible.
- Started a blog: Wrote about my experiences, shared tips, and just generally tried to be helpful to other people trying to do the same thing.
The Results?
It’s been a slow process, but I’ve actually sold a few pieces! It’s not making me rich or anything, but it’s been a fun learning experience. I’m still figuring things out, but I feel like I’m getting the hang of it. It takes a lot of patience and work, but it’s cool to see something you made or collected end up with someone who really appreciates it.

So, yeah, that’s my “merchant jewelry” journey so far. It’s not super glamorous, but it’s real, and it’s mine. I hope maybe sharing this helps someone else out there who’s thinking about doing the same thing.