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Ruby Lane: Your Guide to Selling Vintage Items Online

Learn how to sell vintage and antique items on Ruby Lane, the fees you'll be charged, and how you can make money referring other sellers.

  • Ruby Lane specializes in vintage and antique goods, offering a curated marketplace.
  • Sellers benefit from no commission fees; they pay listing and maintenance fees.
  • Setting up a store requires meeting specific criteria and a one-time setup fee.
  • Ruby Lane offers a $300 referral credit for bringing in new store owners.

If you've ever looked into selling items online, you've likely come across some of the major players in the game.

To sell something in your local area, you've probably turned to Craigslist or Facebook Groups.

For items you want to sell to potential customers around the world, you've probably thought about listing your items on eBay.

And then there's handmade goods and crafts — this is Etsy's specialty.

But what about antique and vintage goods?

All of these platforms let you sell these items, but none of them specialize in this specific space.

This is where Ruby Lane comes into the picture.

Ruby Lane is an online marketplace that specializes in vintage and antique goods.

If you're sitting on a stockpile of authentic vintage items, then this site should be at the top of your list when thinking about which e-commerce platform to use.

In this article, we'll provide an overview of Ruby Lane and explain how you can get started selling vintage items online.

We'll also go over the specific types of items you can sell, the fees you'll be charged, and how you can make money referring other store owners.

How it Works
Is It Legit?
Additional Information

What Is Ruby Lane?

Ruby Lane is an online marketplace where independent stores sell vintage goods, antiques, collectibles, and other sought-after products.

Shop owners can list their items at a set price and aren’t charged a commission when a sale is made.

Ruby Lane was launched back in 1998 when the internet was still in its infancy.

The founders — Tom Johnson and Jim Wilcoxson — discovered an opportunity to connect vintage sellers with online buyers who were looking for pre-screened, high-quality collectibles.

It’s now the world's largest curated marketplace for antiques on the web and used by millions.

RubyLane.com brings in over one million unique visitors per month who are on the prowl for a range of vintage products including jewelry, high-quality antique dolls, art deco furniture, fashion accessories, and porcelain wares.

This e-commerce site is unlike others you encounter online.

For starters, the products you can sell are strictly limited to vintage and antique items rather than everything under the sun.

In case you’re wondering what the difference is between vintage and antique goods, keep reading.

They are two different product categories depending on how old the item is — but more on that below.

Is Ruby Lane Legitimate?

If you’ve never heard of Ruby Lane, there’s no need to worry.

The platform is trusted by thousands of online users who sell goods online.

The site has been in business for 20 years.

It’s an accredited Better Business Bureau company with an astounding A+ rating.

It also has a five-star rating on Trustpilot with nearly 8,000 ratings.

The company is known for having excellent customer support, a highly secure platform, and a flexible return policy for customers.

All these things combined point to Ruby Lane being a reliable way to sell your vintage and antique goods online.

What Can You Sell on Ruby Lane?

Ruby Lane allows you to sell several types of vintage goods and collectibles on the site.

These different product categories are organized into 10 different lanes.

Unlike other e-commerce sites, Ruby Lane solely focuses on older goods.

You won’t be able to sell new electronics and clothing — only well-aged collectibles.

The platform breaks down its product lanes into the following 10 categories:

  • Antiques
  • Vintage Collectibles
  • Dolls
  • Fine Art
  • Furniture and Lighting
  • Glass
  • Jewelry
  • Porcelain and Pottery
  • Silver
  • Vintage Fashion

Within each of these lanes, there are listing requirements you must meet.

There are also different tiers for your items depending on how expensive and how old they are.

For example, as a rule of thumb, Ruby Lane considers an antique product to be anything over 100 years old.

In comparison, vintage goods must be at least 20 years old.

For detailed listing requirements, you can head to their lane requirements for each product tier.

Requirements to Sell

In order to launch your Ruby Lane shop, you must first sign up and provide several pieces of personal information.

You’ll then create your store and meet all of the requirements before you can begin selling on the platform.

To start the sign-up process, head to the vendor agreement page.

The information you must provide to register your account includes:

  • Full name
  • Business name
  • Email address
  • Mailing address
  • Phone number
  • Payment information

After you’ve submitted this information, your store will need to be approved by Ruby Lane.

Once you’re approved, you can start building out your online store.

The requirements for an acceptable store are as follows:

  • Must have at least 10 items available for purchase at all times
  • Offer at least one method of online payment
  • Sell qualifying items
  • All items must be available for sale
  • Full and accurate descriptions of products
  • Meet minimum price limit — there aren’t maximum price limits
  • High-quality product images

Now that you have a general idea of what it will take to sign up and set up your store, let’s look at what you’ll be charged to sell on the platform.

How Much Does Ruby Lane Cost?

To list your products on Ruby Lane, you’ll be charged a small one-time listing fee, monthly per-item maintenance fees, and a one-time store setup fee.

Unlike other e-commerce platforms, you won’t be charged commissions, sales fees, or shipping fees.

You also aren’t required to commit to a long-term contract.

The pricing structure for running your store on the site is as follows:

  • Commission
    • None
  • Listing fee
    • One-time 19-cent per item fee
  • Maintenance
    • Up to 80 items: $69 per month
    • 81-150 items: 30 cents per item
    • 151-1000 items: 20 cents per item
    • 1001 and up: 1 cent per item
  • Setup
    • $100 one-time setup fee
    • This includes the listing fee for your first 10 items

The Ruby Lane platform has a slight leg up on the competition since it doesn’t charge commissions or fees when you make a sale.

On the contrary, platforms like eBay, Aftrcra, and Etsy will charge a percentage commission, a fee for every sale made, and a shipping fee.

Ruby Lane only charges a monthly fee and a listing fee for each item hosted on your store.

If you take a look at this comparison chart of Ruby Lane and its competitors, you’ll see that there are drastic differences between the number of fees you’ll be charged among platforms.

When you factor in commissions, fees, and shipping charges you’re responsible for, Ruby Lane is by far the cheapest option.

There is also another way you can save and make money — referring other store owners to sell on the site.

Refer Other Sellers

Ruby Lane offers a store referral credit that pays $300 for every store owner you refer to the platform.

This is an easy way to make some extra money by spreading the word about the site.

If you operate an antique, vintage, or collectible store, there’s a good chance you may know others who are doing something similar in your space.

Why not let them know about the Ruby Lane and make money at the same time?

In order to refer another store owner, you’ll need to give them your official store name or store nickname that’s listed on the platform.

When they’re completing the sign-up process, they’ll need to type in your store name when asked how they heard about the site.

They must type in your store name at this point.

If not, you won’t be able to redeem your $300 referral credit.

Once their shop is opened, you cannot go back and apply your referral information.

After your referral creates an account and is approved, you’ll automatically receive your $300 credit.

This should take 90 days after their online shop is live.

A Vintage Selling Platform

If you're interested in selling antiques and vintage goods online, Ruby Lane should be at the top of your list.

Compared to other e-commerce platforms, the pricing structure for sellers is hard to ignore.

With no commissions and sales fees, it’s a more affordable option for selling older goods online.

It also has a built-in audience that is specifically looking for authentic antiques and venerable collectibles.

To launch your vintage online store, head to RubyLane.com and start building your virtual shop today.

Brett Helling
Founder, Gigworker.com

Brett Helling is the founder and owner of Gigworker.com. Having worked in the gig economy for nearly a decade, he has mastered freelance, remote, and app-based work. You can learn more about his journey in his book, "Gigworker: Independent Work and the State of the Gig Economy", now available on Amazon.

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