Step one: Set a goal
Car boot sales require a bit of hard work: you need to clean and organise your stuff, you have to get up early on the day and you have to be organised. So, you need to be committed. The best way to do this is to set yourself a goal or promise yourself a reward at the end of the process. For example, you could:
- Reduce your debt: Use the money you raise to pay off some of your credit card bill.
- Treat yourself: Perhaps buy new clothes that actually fit you.
- Redecorate your room: Breathe new life into the room you have just cleared out.
A simple reward will help keep you focused on the money-making goal.
Step two: Choose what you want to sell
Once you've set your goal, its time to be ruthless:
- Leave no stone unturned: Systematically check every room, drawer, suitcase and cupboard for things you don't use or need any more. If you haven't worn it for a year; sell it. If you haven't ever managed to squeeze your thighs into it; sell it. If it was a DIY project that you never turned your hand to; sell it!
- Raid the loft and the garage: Anything goes at boot sales, so if your garage is storing 'spare' motorcycle parts, old tools and manual push-along lawn mowers; sell them. Sell everything that you don't use. What are you keeping them for?
- Storage units: If you are paying to store products that you never need to access, you don't need them. Cancel the unit, save that monthly rental fee and turn your stored rubbish into liquid cash.
- Craft projects: Car boot sales are also a low-cost way to sell any home-made craft projects or food that you have made. Home-made jams and cakes sell easily as do gifts cards, garden shrubs and vegetable plants.
- Exceptions: Car boot sales are an excellent way of converting unused low-value products into cash. They are not the right place to sell fine art, fine jewellery or antiques. Take these to specialist dealers or auction houses and get market value for them.
Step three: Choose your car boot sale carefully
If you don't have a car boot sale that you visit regularly, then you can go online and check your local newspaper for sales in your local area. Ask your friends and family which boot sales they think are good. Attend two or three that you might want to sell at and remember that this is a research mission, not a shopping opportunity!
As a seller, you are looking for different touchless car wash equipment for sale things:
- The local area: Choose your area according to the stock you're trying to shift. What type of properties are in the local area? Are they mainly family homes with lots of children who will 'need' lots of toys? Or, are they studio flats and one bedroom apartments who will be looking for home accessories for setting up their new homes?
- The pitch cost: How much does the car boot organiser charge for a pitch? Typically, fees are £8-£12 for a car and more for a van. This should include your car, at least one table and a couple of portable clothes rails. Look out for incentives to sell. Some of the car boot organisers offer sellers the chance to enter a prize draw to win £100.
- The time: What time does your chosen car boot sale start? Lots of car boots advertise a single time that the sale opens. Make sure that you know what time sellers should arrive. You don't want to be unloading your stock while customers are buying from the neighbouring stalls because you were late. Be realistic: can you really wake up early with the car loaded up and queuing in at 6.30am?
- Large crowds: Does the site attract hundreds of buyers and is it easy for them to park or get there by public transport? Once you have parted with your pitch fee, you want as many buyers as possible to see your stall.
- Buyer fees: Are buyers charged more than fifty pence per person to get in? If so, that will turn off large families or buyers with small budgets such as pensioners.
- The competition: What products are the other sellers selling? Some car boot sales are great for shifting kids' toys and others are better for small items of furniture and home accessories. If you can hear are shouts of, "All items twenty pence", then you won't get the best price for your products at this sale.
- Facilities: When you leave your house at 6am and stand in a cold field for six hours, you will need access to a toilet and hot drink at some point. The same works for buyers; you don't want people leaving early because they need a rest-break. Choose a site with good facilities.
Step four: Prepare your stock
A little bit of effort now will help you make the most cash on the day of your car boot sale:
- Wash and press your clothes: You don't need anything extravagant, just set a 'quick wash' on your washing machine with a drop of fresh smelling fabric conditioner and then run the iron over them.
- Wash glassware: Glass vases, drinking glasses and glass candle holders will shine brilliantly in the daylight after they have been cleaned with a little water and washing-up liquid. Using less than five pence worth of washing up liquid will enable you to charge more for your items.
- Polish woodwork: Wipe dust off wood and plastic products with a clean damp cloth. Just removing dust will make them look better and help you make more money per item.
- Price your products: You could do this while watching TV. Either price items individually, or sort products into piles so that similarly priced products are together and easy for buyers to identify.
- Packing your items: Use old newspapers to wrap your glassware and breakable items. Fold clothes or roll clothes neatly and put them in bags. If you have a valuable item, use an old quilt or picnic blanket to protect it.
Step five: What to take with you
The day of the sale get up early to ensure that you get the best pitch. You don't want to be the last stall that customers see once they have spent all their money. When loading your car with your stock, remember to take:
- Willing helpers: Fundraising should be a family affair so make sure you have at least one person to help you get through the day. You will need someone to watch your stock when you need a toilet break. If you leave your stall unattended you will lose sales and stock.
- Rainproof jacket: Wear layers of clothing so that you can remove jumpers and tops as the weather warms up. It is easy to throw a lightweight rainproof jacket in the back of the car so take one with you.
- Small shoulder bag: Choose a small bag with a zip fastening that crosses over your body so that you keep your money is safe and on your person at all times. Avoid leaving cash in an open Tupperware box on the table as people might help themselves.
- A pasting table: Take a basic decorating pasting table with you to display your wares. Cover your pasting table with a colourful sheet or table cloth so that you attract the buyers' attention.
- A clothes rail: It is easier for buyers to browse through your old clothes when they are neatly pressed and hung up on a portable clothes rail. Remember to take a bag of old wire hangers with you. If you take old, spare hangers, you can leave give them away at the end of the sale.
- Fold-up chair: You might want to take a fold-up camping chair in case you get tired. Remember that you are there to sell, so you need to look interested in your customers and proactively tell them prices in case they are too shy to ask the price.
- Picnic blankets: Place picnic blankets on the grass so that you can display more products. Try and keep your stock off the grass so that it stays as clean as possible. This will help you get the best price for it.
- A large cardboard box: The ground is usually damp first thing in the morning, so open out the box and stand on it so that your trainers don't get damp.
- Your float: Make sure you have plenty of change and a couple of five pound notes. Remember to count your float so you can work out how much money you made at the end of the day.
- Carrier bags: Take your old carrier bags with you so that you can give your customers a bag with their purchases. Most customers bring bags with them in case sellers run out. Whatever you do; don't buy bags to give away.
- Labels: Take spare sticky labels in case you need to re-price your stock during the day.
- Loo roll: Some car boot sales offer basic toilet facilities or portaloos. With hundreds of buyers and sellers all using them, you will need to take your own toilet roll and anti-bacterial hand wash if you need to use them.
- Refreshments: Take a flask of tea or coffee and a bottle of water to help keep you hydrated. You should also pack some fruit and a sandwich, or you'll end up spending your profits at the burger van.
- Warning: Only load your car the night before the sale if it is garaged. If you park your car on your drive, or on the road, you are likely to lose your stock if opportunists decide to break your window. Repairing your window could cost more than your stock, so just get up early the day of the boot sale and load your car just before you leave.
Step six: Enjoy the day!
The day of your car boot has arrived! Your stock is ready, your kit is packed and you are mentally prepared to make money. Now all you need to do is make sure you have fun and enjoy saying goodbye to your old stuff.
When you return home tired and hungry with an empty car, be happy in the knowledge that you finally cleared your clutter and raised cash towards you goal. Well done you!
- Be nice: All of those people wandering through the sale are your potential customers. So, smile, look happy and approachable and remember to say good morning to people so they want to look at your items.
- Beware of dealers: Antiques dealers and professional traders will be at the sale early in the morning. They will turn up at the same time as the sellers because they are hunters and they will be trying to sort through your stock as you unpack. It is a clever tactic to negotiate with you at this time because you will be distracted and excited at the prospect of an early sale. Their hope is that you will accept a silly price to just recover the cost of your pitch. Hold out for the price you want for more valuable items. You have been warned!
- Protect your stock: Keep expensive items near you at all times and keep your car locked once you have unloaded your items. Although most people are just out looking for a bargain, all it takes is for an opportunist to steal something and ruin your hard work.
- Product placement: If it is good enough for shops, it's good enough for you: place your best items on the table so that customers see them first. The same with the clothes rail: hang your designer clothes at the front of the rail. Once these items sell, choose the next best products and move those to the front. Any lower cost items that you think are less likely to sell should be put in a box with a big price ticket on them - for example '50p per item'. Think about your buyers and put childrens' toys on the ground where kids can see them. Do not make your ground display so wide that customers cannot reach your stall. Try not to stand in front of customers who are trying to choose something to buy. Move your stock around when there's no one at your stall.
- The art of haggling: Remember that all customers love to haggle. They will offer you a low price for the thrill of winning themselves a bargain. They don't mean to insult or offend you. Listen to their offer and then either meet them half-way or decline politely with a simple, "Ooh, I can't do that".
- Accept offers: Customers don't care what you originally paid for your John Lewis lamps so don't feel the need to tell them. By now you should have mentally parted with your stock, so the goal is to sell it. Don't be offended when someone offers you a low price and try to emotionally detach yourself from any personal belongings. If the customer makes you an offer then be polite as they genuinely might not have a lot of money. Keep reminding yourself that you have sorted these products out to sell, not take home again. This is especially the case with mirrors, glassware and large picture frames that might get broken on your return journey.
- Check your cash: Car boot sales are an excellent way for fraudsters to distribute counterfeit notes. Check any notes that you are given and check all coins as customers are renowned for giving away foreign coins.
- Selling techniques: Consider copying some supermarket tricks towards the end of the day to get rid of the last stragglers. Try buy-one-get-one-free offers, or dropping the price of everything. It should attract the last few customers still hunting for bargains. Be prepared for major haggling by the end of the day and remember that 20p for an item you no longer need is better than taking it home.
- Avoid pestering: Most customers will respond to a bit of banter but they are there to touchless car wash system find a bargain, not to share their life story with you. So, be polite and offer pricing information but try not to over-do your chatter and put customers off.
- No refunds: There are no refunds at car boot sales. It really is 'Buyer Beware' and 'Sold As Seen', so if someone gives you five pound for a vase and then decides they don't want it when they get back to their car; you are not obliged to give them a refund.
- Clear up: At the end of the day, be a good seller and pack up your belongings and bag up your rubbish to take with you. If you have lots of stock left decide whether you want to run another boot sale. If you just have a few items left, then donate them to a charity shop, or clothing recycling bin on the way home.
When you return home tired and hungry with an empty car, be happy in the knowledge that you finally cleared your clutter and raised cash towards you goal. Well done you!
car boot,boot sales,boot sale,car boot sale,sell at car boot sale,car boot sales,make money Car boot sales are a great way to turn unwanted items into cash. Read our simple guide to find out the best tricks to maximise your profits.
No comments:
Post a Comment