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Archive for the ‘Shopkeeping talk’ Category

Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without: The resale shopkeeper’s guide

Posted in economics of resale, Not-for-Profit Resale, Shopkeeping talk on October 14, 2010|

Good advice for us all...and especially for resale and consignment shopkeepersUse it up:

All those peskyteacups that Aunt Maude left you in her will?  Use them up.

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Wear it out:

See what’s in your attic, basement or garage…and wear it out in its new life in your resale, thrift, or consignment shop.

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Make it do:

Before you send it home as a NTY… or throw it in the dumpster…could you make it do?

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Do without:

(This might make a great Halloween costume for an avid recycler, too.)

No need to buy those commercial plastic jewelry cards. Just say no and make your own store-branded cards. Adhesive backs to turn cards into hanging cards.

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Plastic bag dress photo from Treehugger.com (directions there too if you want to make one for a costume…or a recycling display.)
 

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4 ways to have happy customers

Posted in Shopkeeping talk on October 13, 2010| 1 Comment »

Here’s just one tip from 101 Daily Tips for a Better Resale Shop, a  mini-Product for the Professional Resaler at our “Have Lunch with Kate” Luncheonette. These are especially potent because so few retailers of any sort observe them.

1- Learn and USE your customer’s name.

2- Keep a file of customer purchases. A quick glance means you can suggest something.

3- Maintain a new arrivals area for constant shoppers. They’ll love to see what just came in.

4- Realize that sometimes exceptions to the rules have to be made.

The fact that these 4 ways to have happy customers costs your shop nothing money-wise…well, that’s just a bonus, isn’t it? See all the resale-specific mini-Products available to consignment, resale, and thrift shopkeepers.

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Deja Vuesday: Consignment & resale…even thrift…stores could attract more teen buyers

Posted in Deja Vuesday, Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , on October 12, 2010|

Getting the high school and college market can be done!

Now that most college and university towns are full up again with students…

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…and high-school students have sorted out what they want to wear this semester…

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is it time you (more…)

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A picture’s worth a thousand more bucks… in increased sales.

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , on October 11, 2010| 2 Comments »

Consignment, thrift, resale shops market their markdowns a lot of ways…Twitter, Facebook, web sites, blogs, broadcast email. Not to mention traditional media! And we’re always fighting (more…)

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What’s the difference?

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , , on October 10, 2010| 4 Comments »

A phrase has been on my mind for a few months now:“Dusty musty thrift store.”

It’s most often used by journalists but it reflects what so many (as many as 9 out of 10) people think about used, secondhand, thrift, consignment, resale shops. Now maybe you, as a resale shopkeeper, would like to think that “dusty musty thrift store” is no longer true. That the public no longer thinks of our industry as sub-standard. But in your heart-of-hearts, you know

there’s a vast difference between “new” stores and “used” stores.

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Without peeking at the store signage or the price tags, every one of us can tell, just by looking around, whether a store sells new or used. My question, and what I’ve been trying to put my finger on, is

What’s the difference? (more…)

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