Scrap Dealer

Buying, weighing, grading, and reselling scrap is the core of the work. You're acquiring material — metal, paper, cardboard, electronics, sometimes auto parts — from individuals, businesses, or industrial accounts, evaluating it, pricing it, and moving it to processors or end users who need it. The margin lives in the spread between what you pay and what you sell for, which means knowing commodity prices and grade differentials as well as your counterpart on the other side of the scale.

Commodity price exposure is constant. The price of copper scrap when you buy it in the morning may not be the price when you sell it that afternoon. Understanding how to price your buys against your sell contracts — and when to hold material versus move it — is the analytical layer underneath what looks like a transactional business. Reps who understand the market dynamics rather than just the day's price do better over time.

Relationships with suppliers and buyers are the durable asset. Regular industrial accounts that bring scrap consistently are more valuable than one-time sellers. Buyers who trust your grading are more likely to pay full market price and absorb your volume. Building and maintaining those relationships is the long-term business development side of work that runs alongside the daily hustle of the floor.