Book recycling companies

[Castleton]

Has anyone any recommendations/experience of sending their excess books to a company where you enter the details and they buy them, albeit for probably very little? They also provide boxes etc?

 

Edited August 4, 2025 by Castleton

[Smiley_blue_1234]

Slightly different but the second hand bookshop on Adys road / close to the corner with Maxted might be interested?

https://www.books-peckham.com/

[Sue]

28 minutes ago, Castleton said:

Has anyone any recommendations/experience of sending their excess books to a company where you enter the details and they buy them, albeit for probably very little? They also provide boxes etc?

I have an opportunity to set up a scheme for a huge amount, and ongoing

You have an opportunity to set up a scheme to buy people's books,do you mean?

And you will pay someone a huge amount to be allowed to set up the scheme?

I don't understand. Is your final sentence unfinished?

I buy a lot of books secondhand. If there's a particular book I want I always google to see if I can get it secondhand first. Quite often the book I get looks virtually new and unread, but much cheaper than if I had bought it new, even at a reduced new price.

There are loads of places online with a huge selection of secondhand books. At least one of the websites  sells them via a number of different secondhand booksellers who all apparently  gain potential customers via their search online for a particular book.

But I also give away a lot of books, either to friends or to charity shops (especially the Oxfam book shop in Herne Hill). 

It would be a huge hassle to send them somewhere like you are suggesting, especially if you have to put in the details first.

I suppose at least these days you can easily google to find out if any of them are worth anything. When my dad died, on behalf of the family  I took a carload of his books to Hay on Wye (I lived not far from there at the time) plus some of my old childhood books.

They cherrypicked the ones they wanted and wouldn't take most of them, and I strongly suspect I wasn't given anything like they were worth. 

[hellose5]

the companies issue a phone click on qr code to give you guide price - however, they seem to work more on an algorithim of what works for them, so after a few books, they suddenly go 'no' until they get one they absolutely want - they buy for pence - so you need a lot of books, then they go through them and subjectively tell you the ones which are not up to scratch, but having bought also from the same company, they do not necessarily send out 'good' stock - you must pack them, they give the labels and then they collect.  I think there is room for a more honest competitor, but I am sure it is a difficult business, built on inventory and algorithims rather than buying 'books'.  Would be interested in hearing in more detail about the venture.

[Castleton]

29 minutes ago, hellose5 said:

Yes I'm afraid for the amount of work scanning the books the company will choose relatively few. Difficult to know what company to go with

 

 

the companies issue a phone click on qr code to give you guide price - however, they seem to work more on an algorithim of what works for them, so after a few books, they suddenly go 'no' until they get one they absolutely want - they buy for pence - so you need a lot of books, then they go through them and subjectively tell you the ones which are not up to scratch, but having bought also from the same company, they do not necessarily send out 'good' stock - you must pack them, they give the labels and then they collect.  I think there is room for a more honest competitor, but I am sure it is a difficult business, built on inventory and algorithims rather than buying 'books'.  Would be interested in hearing in more detail about the venture.

 

[Jenijenjen]

I've used World of Books- or WOB as they call themselves now - a couple of times. It's a time consuming exercise for little reward which is why they are able to sell titles at quite low prices. They're not interested in the mega best selling paperbacks as they probably have warehouses full of them already. Despite the low return, I'd sell to them again.

St Christophers must receive many many books as donations. In the past I have seen the World of Books van outside a few times.

Edited August 5, 2025 by Jenijenjen

[Moovart]

I've used ziffitt and I liked it because they collect from your house so no lugging of heavy boxes; once accepted you know they're definitely going to take them whereas many charity shops just don't want books.  But it takes a bit of time to scan the books.  The amount you receive is small so I wouldn't do it for the money. For me the main attraction is the collection of the boxes from your house and the fact that they actually want the books that you send them.