Electronic manufacturing and distribution is a cyclical business. Regular factors like the summer doldrums and the Christmas build, the holiday lull and the January hangover, all factor into the pulse of the industry at any given time.

Add into the mix trade wars, market instability, and the trepidation of larger publicly traded OEMs to take huge risks and you have a recipe for wild swings between shortage markets and excess markets.

2018 was a huge shortage market started with Flash memory shortages and then further stresses by the MLCC shortage. That shortage market came to a screeching halt in 2019. So much so that we skipped right past a normal market and into an excess market.

With so many EMS and OEMs coming to the market simultaneously it’s more important than ever to avoid these pitfalls when looking to remonetize your excess electronics inventory.

The Three Common Mistakes:

1. Sitting on it. The older your components get, the less they are worth. Most larger OEMs have ISO requirements that compel them to procure parts that are within a 2 year date code. On the auction side we typically see a 25-50% reduction in the bid price on parts that are outside of that 2 year date code range. Once you know your parts are excess, it’s best to find a reliable resource

2. Blasting it To the World. Some OEMs post on EBAY, Craigslist, etc and try to handle it themselves. Many companies have strict policies prohibiting the purchase of goods from those sites and just the fact they are on there taints the parts from being able to be purchased by some of the higher-paying OEMs

3. Working with a Huge Broker. Find an Inbound Certified Broker. An Inbound Certified broker is adept at content marketing and can get your higher value parts to rank on Google and everywhere they can be seen by other end users who will pay the highest amount for your surplus. Huge brokers have huge overhead. While it is sometimes needed to have a broker with multiple ISO certifications, a Global footprint, and an overseas purchasing team, that’s all bloat when it comes to selling your excess. It’s not uncommon for the big brokers to mark up excess ridiculously. It’s not just greedy salespeople it’s also the company minimum margins that are set by management. 90% of excess goes to overseas buyers. 

What is your surplus inventory worth? Start by getting a free appraisal by clicking the button below: