Collecting vintage dishes can be done a variety of ways. The garage sale is still my favorite source. It’s the voyeur in me, yes. And the find… definitely the best part is the find. Having spent many a Saturday morning searching for treasure, I have a few tips for the host or hostess.
#1 SIGNAGE
Even if you have advertised out the wazoo, signage helps everyone find you and brings in spontaneous foot traffic.
– Buy the neon colored paper – go ahead and splurge – nothing else can be seen from a distance like neon.
– DON’T feel you have to include details (addresses, dates, etc.) I can find that in your ad and if I’m on the street near you, I just want a concise, easy guide to your door. Instead, cut that paper into fat arrow shapes. This is all you need to being me in. I once followed a series of neon green arrows from a major intersection to a remote neighborhood a good 15 miles away. I didn’t even know that part of town existed! I don’t even need anything that says “garage sale”. What other reason would someone be posting directions to your home. No one ever followed signage to find someone that just wanted to have coffee. Just a note, be sure to put an arrow at EVERY turn. And for long stretches between turns, throw in an UP arrow to let people know they are still on track.
– THINK about driver safety. We are like lost puppies out there making illegal u-turns and quick turns from inside lanes. I know you can’t stop us from driving like hungry koi, but you can help. Keep your signage (arrows!) on the side of the street the car will be turning – right turn, right side of the street, left turn, left side of the street. I’m going to switch lanes (when I see that neon ahead) to turn where I see the sign posted, regardless of which way the arrow is pointing. Also, don’t worry about the box of rocks. Tape those arrows up high on street sign posts. Eye level is better.
#2 ADVERTISE
I use a couple of different garage sale apps on my iPhone. These apps draw from craigslist and other sources to compile locations and directions. I look at this before I leave the house to map out my excursion. If you didn’t advertise, I may not even come near your neighborhood.
-Take advantage of free ads to add a lot of details of the types of things you are selling. If there are a lot of sales, I may do a keyword search (“dishes”) to narrow the field.
-Post photos the day of your sale. A quick snapshot of your table of goods added to your ad might draw me in. (“Is that a box of silverware I see next to that Atari?”)
-If someone is not dead or is not going into an assisted living or nursing home, DO NOT advertise your sale as an “estate” sale. Estate sales are very exciting for treasure hunters because there are often whole collections to peruse. If I show up at your estate sale and find that you are moving and want to sell some clothes and a tube TV, I am going to be pissy and may not stay long enough to see that you have a really great record collection under the table.
#3 SPREAD OUT
Display your goods so that everything is easy to pick up. You might be tempted to just take off the lid of your Rubbermaid bin and push it out to the driveway because you think it’s “fun” to dig. It’s not. A box full of similar items, like a box of ball caps, is fine. But a box with a potpourri of items is frankly kind of scary to reach in.
#4 DETACH
If it means that much to you, keep it inside. The whole idea here is to get rid of your stuff. If something has a great story, share it and then let go. It’s just stuff and if you don’t sell it you’ll have to move it, again.
#5 KNOW YOUR PRICE
This is where American Pickers type negotiations come to life.
-Don’t waste your time with price tags or stickers. General signage is good (“All Shoes $2”) if you do anything at all.
-This is not about how much you paid for it. If you are looking to get most of that back, listing on Craig’s List or eBay is a better option. Garage sales are about selling a lot of items at one time. It’s more about bulk. The more you sell the better you’ll do. Suggest a bundle whenever you can.
-Before letting someone get away that needs the ATM, ask if they have a PayPal account. It’s an easy way to send and request money just by exchanging email addresses.
#6 HAVE FUN
The more fun your garage sale is to visit, the more your guests will feel relaxed and comfortable doing business with you. No one likes an anxious, desperate seller watching you touch their stuff.
-This is a perfect time to have friends over to help run the store or sell things together. Spend the downtime catching up.
-Play some fun music. I’ll linger and look longer if my favorite Beach Boys tune is playing.
-Involve the kids. Let them help with currency transactions. Have them greet guests. I’m a sucker for a lemonade stand or a school fundraiser on the side.
