Everyone wants the answer to this question, and every list you'll find is the same recycled advice — "vintage clothing!", "old phones!", "Lego!" — with no actual numbers.
We pulled the categories and items that ScanJunki users are scanning and flipping profitably right now in 2026 in the UK. This is what's actually selling, what margins look like, and where to source each one.
The criteria
For an item to make this list it has to hit three things:
- Consistent demand — sells within 30 days, not "maybe in 6 months"
- Healthy margin — minimum £15 profit per flip after eBay fees and postage
- Sourceable in the UK — you can actually find these without flying to Tokyo
1. Retired and rare Lego sets
Sourcing: Car boots, charity shops, Facebook Marketplace, downsizing parents Buy price range: £5-£50 Sell price range: £40-£300 Typical margin: 40-80% ROI
The Lego flip is so reliable it's almost boring. Look for sets that have been discontinued — Lego stops producing every set after 2-3 years, and prices climb. Friends, City, Star Wars, and Modular Buildings are the strongest performers. Sealed sets command 2-3x more than opened.
The trick: scan the box barcode with ScanJunki, see sold prices, decide on the spot.
2. Vintage film cameras
Sourcing: Charity shops, car boots, estate sales, family loft clearouts Buy price range: £5-£40 Sell price range: £40-£250 Typical margin: 200-400% ROI
The film photography revival is real and showing no signs of slowing. Canon AE-1, Olympus Trip 35, Pentax K1000, Yashica T4, and Minolta SRT series all sell well. Even non-working models sell as "spares or repair" if the lens is intact.
3. Trainers (deadstock, vintage, hyped)
Sourcing: Charity shops in affluent areas, parents' lofts, sample sales Buy price range: £5-£60 Sell price range: £50-£500+ Typical margin: Varies wildly — top end is huge
Adidas Samba, Adidas Spezial, original 90s Air Max, Jordan 1s, Yeezys (yes, still). Authentication matters — fakes are common. Check stitching, box labels, and use eBay Authenticity Guarantee for anything over £100.
4. Power tools (battery brands)
Sourcing: Car boots, gumtree, builders selling old van stock Buy price range: £20-£80 Sell price range: £60-£200 Typical margin: 60-100%
Stick to Makita, DeWalt, Milwaukee, Bosch Professional (blue, not green). Buy the tool body alone if you can — battery packs and chargers are where the cost is. Cordless drills, impact drivers, multi-tools all move quickly.
5. Vintage and out-of-print video games
Sourcing: Car boots, charity shops, retro game shops with sale shelves Buy price range: £2-£40 Sell price range: £20-£200 Typical margin: 100-500% on rare titles
Anything boxed (CIB) commands a premium. Look for: - Pokémon games — Sapphire, Ruby, FireRed, LeafGreen, Diamond, Pearl - PS1 RPGs — Final Fantasy VII, IX, Chrono Cross, Suikoden II (rare) - N64 first-party titles — Banjo-Kazooie, Conker, Mario Party, Paper Mario - GameCube boxed — Resident Evil 4, Wind Waker, Pikmin 2
Scan the barcode to verify. Loose carts sell for 30-40% of CIB price.
6. Funko Pop (vaulted only)
Sourcing: Car boots, eBay job lots, comic shops sale shelves Buy price range: £2-£15 Sell price range: £20-£200 Typical margin: 5-10x on the right ones
Most Funko Pop is worthless. Vaulted (discontinued) ones can be very valuable. Check the box for "Vaulted" status on PopPriceGuide before buying. Convention exclusives (NYCC, SDCC) and chase variants are the gold.
7. Designer fragrances (full, boxed, authenticated)
Sourcing: Charity shops, gift bundles, hotel auctions Buy price range: £5-£25 Sell price range: £30-£90 Typical margin: 100-200%
Tom Ford, Creed, Jo Malone, Le Labo, Dior Sauvage. Must be sealed/boxed for full value. Beware fakes — buy from sources you trust, and learn the batch code lookup process.
8. Outdoor and workwear brands (UK weather brands)
Sourcing: Charity shops, car boots, end-of-season sales Buy price range: £5-£30 Sell price range: £40-£150 Typical margin: 80-150%
UK weather creates year-round demand. Focus on: - Barbour — waxed jackets, especially vintage - Berghaus — Mera Peak, Yeti, vintage Gore-Tex - Patagonia — fleeces, especially Synchilla - Fjallraven — Kanken bags, Greenland jackets - Carhartt — Detroit jackets, Active jackets
9. KitchenAid stand mixers (used, working)
Sourcing: Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree, downsizing Buy price range: £40-£100 Sell price range: £150-£300 Typical margin: 100-200%
New KitchenAids retail for £400-£600. Used ones in working condition sell consistently at £180-£280. Most sellers underprice them dramatically. Test before buying.
10. Specialist books and out-of-print cookbooks
Sourcing: Charity shops, car boots, library sales, university clearance Buy price range: £1-£10 Sell price range: £20-£200 Typical margin: 10-50x on the right books
Signed cookbooks (especially Ottolenghi, Nigella, Rick Stein), Phaidon photography, out-of-print art monographs, vintage Penguin classics in good condition. Scan the ISBN with ScanJunki to check.
What to scan, what to skip
If you remember nothing else from this article, remember this — don't trust your gut, trust the data.
Open ScanJunki, scan the barcode, see the sold price history. £8 of profit on a £2 buy is good. £40 of "maybe" profit on a £30 buy is gambling.
Scan first. Decide second. Pay third.
How to actually do this consistently
- Sign up for [ScanJunki](https://scanjunki.com) — 30-day free trial
- Visit a car boot, charity shop, or browse Facebook Marketplace
- Scan barcodes / search ISBNs — see real-time UK eBay sold prices
- Buy only items showing £15+ profit after fees
- List the same evening with good photos
- Reinvest the profit, scale up next weekend
Most ScanJunki users break even on the £20/month subscription in their first weekend.