Mr. Lister continues expansion with three new locations

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Jul 29, 2005 by Tampone, Kevin

SYRACUSE - Mr. Lister, a locally based eBay trading post and assistant, is opening three new locations in the next two weeks.

The new sites will give the company six locations, says Timothy Maloney, Mr. Lister's president and founder. The new storefronts will be in Cortland, Brewerton, and Fulton.

Mr. Lister currently has locations in Syracuse, Oneida, and Oswego.

Trading assistants like Mr. Lister take customers' items, photograph them, and post them for sale in eBay auctions. The company's commission starts at 25 percent and drops based on the value of the item.

Maloney attributes the company's growth to word of mouth.

"Every time we send out our checks [paying clients for items sold], we get those customers back," he says. "Then they come back with their neighbors, their friends, and other people they know."

Maloney's goal is to have 14 sites in the greater Syracuse area by the end of the year. He is also looking at expanding his business into the Rochester and Buffalo markets.

Each new store has about 1,500 square feet and starts with two employees. The company's Syracuse headquarters on Erie Boulevard has 6,200 square feet. The firm 'employs 28, Maloney says.

The business is tight on space and Maloney is looking for a larger headquarters that would be able to store items from all the locations.

"All of our stores are filled to capacity," he says. "They're all jam packed with stuff."

The company also stores items in off-site storage containers. Maloney is looking for a facility with at least 30,000 square feet.

Customers bring in everything from antiques to old toys. The company recently sold a piece of artwork for $11,000. The customer had the piece in a basement, Maloney says.

"People sometimes don't know what they have in their homes," he says. "They're amazed at what some of their stuff brings in. Every week there's a story like that."

Maloney is a Syracuse native who graduated in 1995 from Syracuse University with a degree in finance.

After graduating, he worked in management at Wal-Mart and the May Department Stores Company. He then went on to work for The Ozer Group, a retail acquisition and liquidat ion company based in Needham, Mass. The company bought failed department-store chains like Caldors and Bradlees and liquidated their merchandise.

While with The Ozer Group, Maloney got the idea of selling excess inventory on eBay, instead of selling it at 90-percent discounts instore. When he realized the model could be successful, he returned to Syracuse and started a company in late 2003.

At first, Maloney bought excess inventory from failed businesses and sold them in eBay auctions. He listed everything from musical instruments to Armani suits.

Eventually, friends started asking him to list personal items in auctions, and the consignment side of the business grew from there, he says. Maloney still buys inventory and lists it for sale on eBay through his original company, Mr. Markdown, LLC.

Mr. Lister, which started in March 2004, is a division of Mr. Markdown, Maloney says. Combined, the companies generate about $4 million in annual revenue, with Mr. Markdown accounting for 10 percent and Mr. Lister the rest. Maloney estimates that revenue will increase at least 50 percent for the next five years.