What: Ruby Lane is a site to sell antiques, collectibles, dolls, fine art, furniture, lighting, glass, jewelry, porcelain and pottery, silver, vintage fashion.
Expected pay: NA
Husl$core: $$$
Commissions & Fees: $100 set-up fee; $69 monthly maintenance fee, plus a per item charge of 1 – 30 cents if you list more than 80 items.
Where: Nationwide
Requirements: At least 10 items to sell in your online shop
Review:
If you have a high-end antiques or collectible store and want to start selling online, Ruby Lane may be worth a look. By specializing in a limited number of unique and vintage products, it attracts very specific buyers, who may be more likely to pay premium prices.
Moreover, Ruby Lane’s flat-fee structure suits those selling expensive goods better than sites like Etsy and eBay that take a percentage of your revenue. If, for example, you sold a $7,000 painting on eBay, you’d pay a $700 fee. With Ruby Lane, you pay no specific fee, but you would pay at least $169 to set up your shop and sell through it.
That said, where eBay basically only charges you when you sell something, Ruby Lane’s fees are a sure thing — even though your sales are not. Thus setting up a store here is a bit of a gamble.
You may also want to consider Etsy.
What their users say:
eCommerceBytes does an annual survey of online sales sites and ranks Ruby Lane fourth out of 10. Notably, the comments included in this Ruby Lane review indicate that sellers were better satisfied in previous years, when Ruby Lane appeared to be doing more advertising.