Consignment Sale Preparation Tips

I'm really looking forward to my Yard Sale/Consignment Sale plan for next month. (Okay, really I am a little nervous about pulling this all off... I'm a little overwhelmed when I think about it all!) By planning well in advance, I am giving myself plenty of time to prepare for both sales, rather than scrambling to prepare and price items at the last minute, which has been my method in the past.

 Here are a few tips that I am trying to follow when preparing items for yard and/or consignment sales: 

• Think outside the box when assembling items for sale. Something that isn't useful to you may be exactly what someone else is looking for. I find this especially true at yard sales. In the past I've been amazed to see what people are willing to pay for--items that to me held little to no value!
• Think small. One of the small items I priced the other day was an almost-full box of breast milk storage bags I happened to have left over. A box like this typically retails for $5 or more, so I am giving someone a great savings if I price it at $2. I will only earn $1 if I sell it at the consignment sale, which doesn't seem like a lot until I price 49 additional items at a similar price and earn $50. The little things add up!
• If an item isn't in good enough condition, don't sell it! The consignment sale I participate with requests good quality items and volunteers inspect them when you deliver them to the sale. If the item isn't something that you would feel good about buying, don't waste your time pricing it for consignment--chances are no one will buy it. Sell it at a yard sale or donate it instead.
• Price items to sell! It's very tempting to look at your item and remember how much you paid for it when it was new. Try to avoid letting the past value of the item influence the current price you are placing on the item. I try to think like a buyer when I am pricing: I ask myself, "What would I pay for this and feel like I was getting a great deal?" I'm as glad as anyone to make money selling, but my primary goal is to connect my stuff with a new home where my items are wanted, needed, and valued. I like to imagine the people who take my stuff home; I hope they feel good about their purchase! The added benefit is that more of your items will sell.

I have the option to pick my items up after the consignment sale, and my hope is to collect very few items--usually the few items I felt emotionally attached to when pricing and therefore over-priced.

Anything not picked up from the consignment sale will be donated. Leftover yard sale items not headed for the consignment sale will also be donated. It's not like the donated items will go into the trash, but I'd rather connect the items with someone who needs them right away; maybe save the donation organizations a little time and effort (and fossil fuels!)