Advice for your consignment, resale or thrift shop is as close as your computer: Just Ask Auntie Kate!
Update June 2016: There are now about 700 comments on this page, and while they are completely fascinating, it can be difficult to find your specific issue. For more guidance see our Products for the Professional Resaler, covering over 30 areas of resale shopkeeping.
Also, check out the articles at Too Good to be Threw in our Back Room. They might have the info you’re looking for.
In the tradition of Dear Abby and Ask Ann Landers, we present Ask Auntie Kate. Well, actually, it’s Ask Auntie Kate and her resale industry buddies, because I expect you… yes you, Dear Reader… to chime in with your thoughts, experiences and perspectives. Don’t be shy. People ask questions because they want answers.
To keep questions and responses together, you need to be sure to hit “reply” when you’re reading the post that you want to, well, reply to. Otherwise everything gets all mish mashy and tops hang off their hangers and placemats are stuck in with the pillow cases and tags get lost and it looks like a mess.
Yes, Auntie Kate will reply to your most vexing problems, most heart-felt concerns, your secret shames and undiscovered desires. After she gives her friends a chance to put in their 1o-cents’-worth. So ask, answer, or opinionate away.
Auntie Kate The Resale Expert 
We are a new consignment shop in Osage Beach, Missouri. We are planning to have a booth at the local Products and Services show on March 10 & 11. We have purchased Auntie Kates TGTBT manual. Any suggestions where to look on your website for ideas for the booth. We are planning to have brochures to pass out and photos of shop merchandise. Our website is http://WWW.AnighyasTreasures.com Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Helloooo Auntie Kate!! My Kid Resale shop just celebrated 1 year! We had no prior plans, but the opportunity came our way. Your manual, website, blogs, advice helped us make some great decisions! Your amazing knowledge has been both an inspiration as well a tremendous help! Thank you! So here I am 1 successful year later with more stuff to sell then I ever thought I would have and I am just buried in it. As you know Resale is an endless river of goods and processing. I trade/purchase 1 day a week and have had up to 25 drop offs. Oy. So, I am trying to figure out how to physically process such large intake on that day in my small space. My first brainstorm is to sort each piece by category (shirt, dress etc) in one receptacle and attach close pins with prices written on them. Hoping this will save me time and space. I don’t want to look like a yard sale with bags of people’s stuff piled in a corner. I would love to see your thoughts or any other ideas? Thank you! Thank you!
Hi Traci, Congrats on a successful 1st year, and here’s to many more! As to processing in a small space, the key is TOUCH EACH ITEM ONCE…. well, it’s never just once, but as seldom as possible. I assume you’re not presenting your merchandise on the sales floor in receptacles, or by category alone, right? So why sort like that?
I’m imagining you buying an incoming batch, then having this mixed bundle of STUFF to individually set a price for, tag, hang, and transport to its place on your selling floor. I’m also assuming that you are setting aside these goods on your buying day so that someone, not necessarily you, can do the pricing etc on another day? Is that a correct picture?
Here’s what I would do: designate this sorting solely by PRICE. So Receptacle A is $5, B is $7, etc. That will avoid attaching clothes pins with prices to every item and eliminate a “handling”… you can “price” immediately after purchase with a flick of the wrist, and work on tagging and presentation at your leisure.
Of course, this means you need as FEW price points as possible… you don’t want bins for $5.00, $5.25, $5.50 and so on… OR you allow your helpers leeway as they hang and examine, so they can price over a designated range ($4 to $5, $6 to $8, for example)
Hope that helps, and hope some BOR kids’ shops can add their unique experiences here. And hope that now established, you feel comfortable joining the Sponsors on http://HowToConsign.com I believe there’s only a single childrenswear shop listed for your entire state there!
Many of you mention you have volunteers…does this mean you are a non profit or you have “vendors” that rent space from you and then volunteer hours in your store? I am looking for more information on the later. I have several people interested and would love to have the extra help in the store…but am not realy sure what to charge for rent or commission or time…can you please share what you do.
Hi Kerr,
I have a couple of different things going on. I have a vendor that rents space to put up a display in our store. She pays on a quarterly basis. I do not get a commission because for her products, it would be hard to track if they came from us. Then I sell blankets for a charity and I don’t charge rent but I get a percentage and it’s for a great cause. I am in the process of getting another vendor in here to sell cloth diapers. I am taking a percentage of sales but not charging her rent just yet until we see that they are moving quickly. The advantage that I have with that is she has a pretty large following and it would get me more exposure as well as for her. She has offered to work volunteer hours here at the store but I thought that she may not sell anything really well in the store except her products which is understandable and it would take so much time to train her. In my case, if I need help in the shop it’s because I need to be out of it and that just doesn’t work for me. The idea is appealing but I would much rather have the money in rent. I have contracts written up with each vendor and none of them are formal. Basically just the amount of time (monthly/quarterly), amount due and when, commission if any. I add in there that I am not responsible for theft or damage so they should have insurance, I pay out on a certain date, and I can rearrange and move their displays whenever I want to, and we both have the right to cancel whenever we want to.
We have just one “volunteer” so to speak. She is a vendor who rents a space and trades work hours for it. She merchandises her space and prices all her own things on her own time. We charge 10% of all sales in addition to the work/trade time.
It has worked out so well that we also pay her part-time for some additional hours each week, so we have flexibility in scheduling and some time off.
So far so good!
I would like to open a clothing consignment shop where revenue would be donated to a woman’s mentoring program. This program (not yet developed) would be “Women Empowering Women” (WEW) and would pay experts from the community to teach young women home skills such as gardening, preserving food, sewing, child care, THRIFT STORE SHOPPING, etc. I believe my first step is to get non-profit status, but I need more help to get this off the ground. Do you have suggestions for women’s groups that would offer me funding/advice/staff? I love your site and will use your advice once I get going. I just feel a “calling” to do this but seem to be “stuck” in moving it forward. Please give me somewhere to turn….Thanks!
What a worthy cause! I am sure that there are various programs in your area who would be happy to explore possibilities with you. First, you need to have clear goals: are you interested in designing/developing such a program, or in running a shop that would raise funds for such a program run by others or a coalition of others? Then, start old-girling: make contacts with as many people in this area of charity that you can, have a good set of questions to ask, and never ever leave without asking “And who else would you suggest I connect with?” Hope that helps!
Hi Kate,
I had a rep from the NFIB (National Federation of Independent Business) come in to my shop today to talk with me and take a survey on what I think about some federal issues. I took his info and said I would get back with him. I have never been really involved in politics and know that I need to be more “in the know”…but that aside, is anyone a member of NFIB or does anyone have any thoughts. I’m sure he is looking to recruit me as a member but is it valuable? I’m looking up info and of course finding a lot, but I would like advice from people here who have actually dealt with them.
honeyB, NFIB is a lobbyist group that helps small business’s with state government issues like taxes, regulations and such. They are a great group to be a member of because it’s basically helping you and other small business’s from the govenment trying to screw us over basically.
Hi Auntie Kate,
We are preparing a new 5300 square foot consignment store that should open for business sometime in January 2012.
The space has been completed (i.e. lighting and flooring), and we have shelving ready as well. The layout will include 8×8 and 8×16 “booths” down each side of the store to allow crafters, artisans, and others to have exclusive display areas for their items (flat monthly fee plus small percentage of sales), and we will also have display shelves and sections for regular consignment items and BOR items.
We hope to have an appearance of a “village” style shopping experience along with an area for people to be able to sit and relax while shopping if they choose.
The question I have is:
“What is the best way to advertise for advance consignment items prior to the store actually opening so we have a full inventory upon Grand Opening Day?”
We have purchased a lot of the PDQs and manuals from your site, and we are finding them invaluable resources for our library of information. We have been in this type of business for awhile, but this will be the first grand-scale venture for us with a ton of floor space to fill up prior to opening.
Any advice/suggestions?
Thanks in advance!
Joel – aka “Crazy J”
Hi Joel, The suggestion on our Start A Shop Page on TGtbT.com (also, in more detail, in the Manual) holds, even for your vision of a shop which would include vendor booths.
And you do NOT need to “look full” the day you open. What you do need to look like is a professional… so be sure, of course, that your merchandising is spectacular, your displays so tempting that you fear you’ll sell out in the first week! Vendors and consignors will find you… but natch, they will want to get a feel for your business before they participate.
It’s WAY easier to find these folks by letting them find your open, operating shop. So if need be, use all the tricks in the Manual to make your shop look full and promising… even if that means draping off or “hiding” part of your floor space for the first few weeks!
Hi Katie! I am trying to start a non for profit resale shop in St. Louis MO. Right now I am exploring ways to recieve items by way of donations from individuals as well as corporate businesses. Do you have any suggestions on obtaining donations? I have low start up funds. My end of town is very ideal for this style of business. I believe I will have great success while helping fund my Womens Charity. What is the average time most resale shops see a return in profit?
Kandyce, The first thing you need to do is set up a NFP corporation which is a bit more complicated than a private, for-profit business due to federal tax reporting requirements. THEN it’s time to think about receiving donations… unless people just want to donate to you, and don’t care about receiving tax credits for charitable donations.
If you already have your NFP set up, then the board of directors would, I assume, want a say in how your funds are raised, whether it be through a thrift shop, a seasonal sale, or any other ways to sell donated goods.
Just a question about selling your consignment shop.. Is it a good idea to pay all your consignors up until the day you leave. or add up all the moneys and issue a single check to the new owner to deposit in her account to pay consignors. just wondering about some different ideas on this subject
Hi Lucy, This is actually a combination of a legal question that your lawyer should be addressing for you (how are the business debts structured in your buy/sell agreement?) and a personal one. “Paying all your consignors up to the day you leave” means, I assume, that you would issue checks for all items sold while you/your business entity was the consignee. That is certainly doable, and if I were the new owner, I would create a letter introducing myself as same, signed by both you and her, and as the new owner I would even pay for the mailing, since it is a GREAT way to get a running start on the whole concept of “under new management.”
Your other choice you mentioned, “issue a single check to the new owner” is doable as well, but make sure that you are legally protected from past debtors. Actually, I will assume that this dollar amount would be deducted from the check she will be handing you at the closing, when you’re both signing papers and having them witnessed?
I am sorry that no one else has answered your question here. Maybe they will now that I’ve broken the ice!
Thank you for the advice Auntie Kate , I appreciate the advice.
Anybody know of some good thrift shops close to the Opryland Hotel in Nashville? Wanted to do some shopping while here!
Hi Auntie Kate,
We are preparing a new 5300 square foot consignment village that should open for business sometime in January 2012. The space has been completed (i.e. lighting and flooring), and we have shelving ready as well. The layout will include 8×8 and 8×16 “booths” down each side of the store to allow crafters, artisans, and others to have exclusive display areas for their items (flat monthly fee plus small percentage of sales), and we will also have display shelves and sections for regular consignment items and BOR items. We hope to have an appearance of a “village” style shopping experience along with an area for people to be able to sit and relax while shopping if they choose.
The question I have is: “What is the best way to advertise for advance consignment items prior to the store actually opening so we have a full inventory upon Grand Opening Day?”
We have purchased a lot of the PDQs and manuals from your site, and we are finding them invaluable resources for our library of information. We have been in this type of business for awhile, but this will be the first grand-scale venture for us with a ton of floor space to fill up prior to opening. Any advice/suggestions?
Thanks in advance!
Crazy J
Hi, i’m 26years old, i’m a full-time teacher, and finishing a 2nd degree in Speech Therapy, but my passion has also been to have some type of clothing store of my own. So, I have been trying to open up my only little chic consignment store. I was just selling clothes, shoes and purses out of my house that had been hanging in my closet with tags on them and have made good profit from my simple advertising on Facebook and twitter. I have a small shop where I plan to start it up and what not. The only thing is, I’m not sure what the correct percentages are when buying from a seller (brand name and no brands) for their item or when they are consigning, what percentage goes to them and me if item is sold. Another thing is people around my area tend to think of it as a “garage sale” and were offering me little to nothing for name brand clothes with tags. My store is in the midst of getting decorated and I plan on selling women’s clothing and very few men’s clothing. Can you please give me some advice, I’m determined to make this store a success.
Best wishes Ashley, on your new venture. Are you planning on buying outright and consigning, both? Sounds ambitious!
The “correct percentage” is (first of all) not a percentage, because that implies a pretty firm selling price to take a percentage OF, and that you won’t know for months, seasons, even years. So I would approach this a different way:
I’d think of the price you can afford to pay and still make a go of your business. Pay too much, you haven’t got enough profit, and you go out of business and your sellers have nowhere to sell their next batch. Pay too little and you risk getting the reputation of “ripping people off”.
Then there’s the question of what people will pay. If you are accepting offers, like you perhaps did with your own stuff via social media, then sure, people will offer as little as they think you will accept… but of course you will now have blood sweat tears and cash invested in a store and its ongoing overhead, so you’ll have to feel confident in your pricing.
I suggest that you read the Manual, and probably The Money-wise Guide to Accepting and Pricing, and then, once you feel the shop is going well, The Big Book of Buying Outright. Unless you have many many tens of thousands to invest in buying outright from the start, I’d go slow… start consigning (and thus spreading the risk) until you have a handle on what your marketplace wants, and for how much.
The Products mentioned above, and dozens more, are on our TGtbT.com Shop page at http://TGtbT.com/shop.htm
Let us know how your business is progressing!
Hi am trying to open up a thrify shop how will i get it going.
Hi Rashunda, Start on our Start a Shop Page at TGtbT.com, and you can also take our quiz, Do I have what it takes, also at TGtbT.com. You’ll find loads of ideas and tips throughout TGtbT.com, and many, many helpful Products for the Professional Resaler in our TGtbT Shop. Best wishes and keep us in tune with your progress!
Hi! I have bought your ‘To Good To Be Threw’ book and loved it! I just have a question on how to have a sale store wide sale, while still having the consignor be able to make money? I have heard of quite a few stores doing a bag sale, or buy one get one free? How does this work? If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them!
Thanks!
Hi Krista, Since none of our viewers have answered you, let me point you to a TGtbT Product for the Professional Resaler which is JUST what you need: Bag Sale$, Dollar Rack$ & BOGO Deal$ avaialble here: http://tgtbt.com/shopgrow.htm#6 I feel confident that this Product will not only answer all the questions you have, but even some you didn’t think to ask!
Krista-
We don’t have store wide sales because of info we received at NARTS! Our prices are already so good, there’s no need to have a sale. It’s better to train customers to shop frequently than to wait for a sale. We have bag sales a few times a year (contains expired items that we now own) and it generates a HUGE amount of business for our consigned items on the floor at full price! We even encourage our consignors to bring stuff in right before a bag sale because we are SO busy-a win/win for everyone! The bag sales are awesome on so many levels!
Opening a consignment shop of only hand crafted merchandise. Any suggestions on how to pay commission on hand made items? Thank you!
Hi Sharon, I hope you can research on the web what crafters think is a fair split. I did have this entry marked, which may get you started. http://blog.landofodds.com/2010/02/22/consignment-selling-a-last-resort/
Did your sales agreement provide for payment of consignors on the books prior to transfer of ownership? Were those boxes there when you began negotiations? Is there any paperwork attached to the items so that you can contact the owners – of course, I’m assuming that you acquired all client lists, etc. Might be a rash assumption. Was (is) there any buzz in town about the store and how it may have left consignors unpaid? Not a good spot to start off in – let us know how you make out!
I have purchased a consignment store that the owner just walked away from 1 year ago. She left all the merchandise inside and the basement is full of boxes that were never gone through. So the people who brought there stuff in thinking it was going to be sold never got anything because the store closed. This was handled poorly. I would like to clean the store out completly and start fresh with my stuff. Any suggestions what to do with all the stuff in the store?
Put musty smelly clothing in in a storage tub with Baking Soda freezer box for a few days, works like a charm… I did this when I pulled some old material out of a stinky basement.
What kind of POS system do you recommend? software? thermal printers? how bout how much you pay for something in a resale store?
Toss in the dryer with a dryer sheet! 🙂
We use an inexpensive fabric refreshener/wrinkler remover spray from Dollar General. If it’s a really strong smell, just pass on those items.