I agree, there is definitely less competition. I mainly deal with ewaste, there used to be several ads on the local CL looking for scrap computers, etc. Now I hardly see any besides my own ad. I pay less too, so the margins are still more or less the same. Most of my larger regular customers understand that the market has gone down, so they are OK with the lower prices.
Also when selling scrap I shop around a bit too, to get the best price. I also accumulate enough of one type of commodity, so I can have a bit of negotiating power when selling. For example I can get a better price on wire if I take 1,000 lbs to the yard, rather than 100 lbs.
And last, I focus a bit more on re-sale items, the highest value items I fully test and sell, the lower value items I sell as untested, for lower price, but still more than scrap value. This is a time invested vs. return decision. Also having a local buyer for untested laptops, LCD monitors, etc helps.
I have been in this business for 3-4 years, 2014 was by far my best year, and so far 2015 looks just as good. I keep very detailed records, so I know where I stand.
Bookmarks