Consignment shops appeal to a lot of potential retailers simply because they do not require a large grubstake to purchase merchandise to sell to customers. Well, they think, that’s cool. If I don’t sell it at a profit, heck, I don’t have to pay for it. So, I don’t sell it, I’m not out a penny.
We’ve already talked about how easy it is to go bankrupt.
There’s another way to go bankrupt in a flash, and this way is not limited only to consignment shops. It applies just as well to BOR stores (Buy OutRight, those second-hand shops that pay cash for underused possessions) and even thrift stores (stores which sell donated items, usually operated by a bona-fide charity).
This way of ruining your own hard-worked, hard-earned, hard-won business is totally inadvertent. In fact, you may see this way of operating your retail store as, shall we say, “fair.”
Fair, now there’s a concept. Synonyms of fair include: “high-principled”, “commendable”, “good”, even that word our mothers brought us up to treasure: “nice”.
It’s fair, that is, NICE, to limit the number of incoming items so that everyone who wants to be a consignor gets an equal chance. Oops. Turns out that could be an excellent way to go bankrupt, as I discuss here.
And it’s only fair of course to prepare incoming items for the sales floor in the order they were received. After all, you accepted Consignor #288’s items before Consignor #289’s, so that’s how you should deal with them. Even though the #289 batch contains some terrific size 16’s, which is what the 3 customers in the store right now probably wear. But #288 came in FIRST with her size 4’s, so it’s only fair that you prepare hers first…even though you might just miss a sale or three. After all, it’s important to play fair…all the way to oops, I’m out of business. That’s not nice.
My advice? Forget fair. Forget (at least in this context!) nice. Do what is best for your consignors/ sellers/ donors: that is, what makes you business thrive. After all, it’s not fair that your shop should go out of business, and that your suppliers and customers should be left high-and-dry. That wouldn’t be, umm…. nice?
More of Kate’s retail and resale wisdom at Too Good to be Threw, home of The Complete Operations Manual for Resale & Consignment Shops, as well as consumer-focused thoughts at HowToConsign.com where you can find a professional resale shop
Auntie Kate The Resale Expert 
I love everyone’s “trash”. Because typically the person that donates a bag will say “I’m not sure if you will want…..this.” While the person who is trying to sell me the bag full of stained, smoky clothes will ALWAYS tell me they are perfect, nearly new.
We now do a quick sort and all the “trash” goes into our free stash. Once a month I have Free Sunday. Over a year of Sundays now, most of it gets picked up for various uses and I have had a TON of new business in the store. The leftovers are thrown away or donated to other local needs if usable.
https://www.facebook.com/events/143716086108199/
Imagine the folks who can use this stuff that still has life in it, but isn’t what the shop can devote energy and space to! Not just folks who need free clothes or goods, but artisans (quilters, fabric artists, crafters), re-purposers, heck, even theater costume directors! I salute you for taking the time to re-home these items, and to keep useful things in the loop and out of the landfills!
[…] More ways to go bankrupt […]
[…] Another way “fair” will ruin your business, an earlier post where we talk about what’s “fair”, and I conclude with “Do what is best for your consignors/ sellers/ donors: that is, what makes your business thrive. After all, it’s not fair that your shop should go out of business, and that your suppliers and customers should be left high-and-dry. That wouldn’t be, umm…. nice?” […]
Hi Joan,
It’s not necessarily FAIR, but it is certainly NECESSARY to the profitable continuation of the business, to exercise some control over donations in an NFP. Disposal fees and the management of the shop’s disposal area are MAJOR concerns with donation-only shops. And it’s SO easy to get jaded by the trash factor: “Did this person really think we could resell [name an item, usually soiled on top of all its other flaws!]”
But I would suggest, strongly, your rewording of the message you posted above. It could be more gracious, and there’s also the problem of the reader of such a message even grasping the concept of “quality items” vs. “your trash.”
Hope to see you over on our Sharing Discussion Board at http://www.TGtbT.com , which is a more interactive place to talk about the resale industry!
Thanks for joining us!
In the non-profit, donated items, world it’s only “fair” to reject sub-standard donations because they will not generate a profit for the charity cause. Getting rid of unsellable items costs the business money. This is a good way of explaining it to donors; “If you really want to support our cause you will donate only quality items and take your trash to the recycling center.”
Wow! Thank you for defining the word FAIR. It is fair to tag and sell the snowsuits that just came in because that is what the phone is ringing off the hook for, and have the cute bag of jewelry or halter dress wait a few additional minutes.
Now because the snow suits have sold, there is room on the rack for the cute halter dress to have its fair share of hanger time.