Wahaaj Shabbir is regarded as part of the first generation of eBay (EBAY) “flippers”, the art of buying and reselling for a profit. His expertise also helped to secure his first job at the global online marketplace.
Shabbir is now eBay UK’s head of sneakers, a category which has seen such exponential growth in recent years that a pair, either new or pre-loved, is sold every five seconds.
“When I was growing up it would have been a hard ask to get me wearing a pair of second hand sneakers,” says Shabbir, “but the perception of wearing pre-loved is no longer stigmatised.”
Read More: ‘David Attenborough saved our canned water business from folding’
Shabbir did purchase his first pair of Nike (NKE) Air Max sneakers through eBay. He also queued for two days outside a London store before even having the chance to buy another pair of Nikes. After shelling out £120, a week later he sold them for over £4,000.
“I was selling anything and everything,” he recalls. “One day I was selling sneakers and the next china plates or tyre pressure monitors. I would buy stuff in winter, like paddling pools, to sell in summer.”
It was, he says, a decent side hustle while studying mechanical engineering at the University of Liverpool. In nine years he accrued over £500,000 in sales. His best period came when he sold £60,000 worth of Nintendo consoles in a fortnight.
“For someone sitting in student accommodation, it helped to pay my way through university,” he says of his venture.
When he finished his studies, Shabbir closed his business down for mental health reasons and worked in a newsagents on 4am shifts, part-time at Uber Eats (UBER) and Amazon Flex (AMZN) app as a delivery driver while trying to land a job. On LinkedIn, he applied for as many jobs that fit his criteria before he came across an eBay internship role.
Read More: Meet the ‘jokers from London’ who sold 100,000 blocks of butter in first 10 weeks
“It felt like a natural fit based on the fact I had an eBay business,” he admits. “Even though I had it for nine years, I feel like no one really appreciated what that meant, but it was a real business. When I went to eBay it felt like the first place which appreciated that experience.”
An interviewer had searched for his eBay account and saw that he was a top-rated power seller on the system. “They gave me a break and the stars aligned,” he admits.
Having joined in 2019, he was made head of sneakers in 2022 and oversees a market which has been born out of the US and basketball’s popularity. It led to the launch last year of eBay’s authenticity guarantee, to cover branded sneakers costing more than £100.
With this, sellers are given a box with a shipping label which negates the need to weigh and measure. “We are making it easier for the younger generation to sell. If there is a barrier to selling your product they probably won’t do it,” says Shabbir.
“We want to create economic opportunity for all and part of doing that is building that next generation of entrepreneurs.”
Shabbir also helped launch eBay’s Sneaker Academy last year, which supports entrepreneurs who have faced barriers in getting into the job market.
Shabbir adds: “When the story and purpose make sense, it’s easy to get things done. It had no resistance for getting it off the ground.”
In 2022, sneaker seller business Loaded Kicks was one of six recipients of the eBay for Business Awards, landing a £10,000 cash prize and tailored package of business support.
Read More: ‘No one was googling ‘colourful lockers’ in 2018 – if they are now it’s because of us’
“There are big opportunities around pre-loved. We have entrepreneurs going to people’s houses, car boot sales or cashing out people who aren’t thinking of selling,” says Shabbir. “They are cleaning them up, taking great photos and relisting.”
Meanwhile, the online retailer this month scrapped transaction fees for private sellers.
A survey for the site suggested over 290 million unused items could generate £9bn in resale income across the UK, with half (50%) of households valuing unused items at between £50 and £300.
On a wider scale, Shabbir says there are changing perceptions for brand e-commerce on eBay.
“It was seen as a place historically where you buy and sell your stuff that’s old or is a bargain,” he adds. “We’ve had brands who may not have wanted to sell on eBay who are now doing that.
“It’s undeniable how big we are as a platform. We open the doors for a lot of brands to get visibility.
“If you are thinking about sustainability, eBay is the natural partner and we have a number of solutions in place to help brands and assist them on that journey.”
Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android.
Add Comment