{
  "id": 37369,
  "title": "He turned a side hustle into a video game resale business that's brought in $4 million this year",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/02/he-turned-a-side-hustle-into-a-video-game-resale-business-thats",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-02T09:19:01.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Business Insider",
    "slug": "business-insider",
    "url": "https://www.businessinsider.com/side-hustle-video-game-resale-business-quickflips-caleb-ashton-2026-8"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Caleb Ashton, the founder of QuickFlips, has transformed a side hustle into a lucrative video game resale business, generating $4 million in revenue this year alone. The Kentucky-based entrepreneur launched QuickFlips in 2025, an online platform that allows users to sell video games, consoles, and Pokémon cards. QuickFlips has paid out over $5 million to customers since its inception in 2019.\n\nAshton's journey into the resale business began humbly in 2019 when he was living with his wife in a one-bedroom apartment. Faced with the need for an additional income source while his wife pursued law school, Ashton turned to YouTube for guidance on buying and reselling items. Initially, he focused on inexpensive items like textbooks, action figures, golf clubs, and sneakers, often purchasing them for $5 at yard sales.\n\nThe side hustle grew into a full-time endeavor after Ashton was fired from a friend's collectible coin business. He then discovered that physical video games could yield quick and reliable profits. In 2024, Ashton launched QuickFlips, an online resale platform that also features a buyback software system. Users enter the item's details to receive an instant offer price, after which the QuickFlips team inspects and ships the items, which are subsequently resold on Amazon, eBay, and TCGPlayer, or in Ashton's brick-and-mortar store.\n\nThe business now employs 33 people and has attracted over 661,000 subscribers across its social media channels, which generate ad revenue. Ashton's strategy emphasizes offering transparent payouts and swift sales, eliminating the need for buyers to visit the store for offers. He attributes the company's success to a focus on volume rather than maximizing profits from individual items.\n\nAshton notes that physical video games and consoles continue to hold value, particularly in the digital age where digital media and products are increasingly popular. Nostalgia and the desire for tangible items drive this trend, as highlighted by Sony's announcement of discontinuing PlayStation disc production in 2028, prompting collectors to seek physical alternatives. Ashton's YouTube channel, Phoenix Resale, showcases his business growth and entrepreneurial journey.",
  "summary": "Caleb Ashton, the founder of QuickFlips, transformed his side hustle into a lucrative video game resale business that generated $4 million in revenue in 2025. Ashton's journey began in 2019 when he started flipping various items, including video games, textbooks, and Pokémon cards, to supplement his income while his wife attended law school. He initially learned the trade through YouTube videos and a modest $500 startup budget. After being fired from a friend's collectible coin business, Ashton pivoted to focus on video game resale, recognizing the potential for quick and reliable profits. In 2024, he launched QuickFlips, an online platform for selling video game collections, consoles, and Pokémon trading cards, and built a buyback software system to streamline the process. By 2025, QuickFlips had paid over $5 million to customers and had grown to employ 33 people across its online platform and brick-and-mortar store in Lexington, Kentucky.",
  "key_points": [
    "Caleb Ashton founded QuickFlips in 2025 as an online video game resale platform.",
    "QuickFlips employs 33 people and has 661,000 social media subscribers."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": "https://urgent.news/ill/37369.png",
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}