Posted in I've been meaning to tell you, quotations of use, Shopkeeping talk, tagged buy-outright, consignment, Thrift on December 31, 2012| Leave a Comment »
A thought for all shopkeepers, not just those who have resale or consignment shops. One thing that I love about being in retail is that our feedback is often instantaneous, and totally controlled by what we do.
Posted in economics of resale, Shopkeeping talk, tagged buy-outright, christmas, consignment, holidays, Thrift on December 26, 2012| 1 Comment »
Just like we suggest to consignment, resale, and thrift shopkeepers that they motivate suppliers to clear their closets of Halloween costumes every November,
for next year. After all, no one wants to store them for the next eleven months, and YOU want to be sure you have them bright and early next Christmas.
(Remember, do NOT call them “ugly” sweaters when you’re trying to get them in, or Aunt Sally, whose favorite holiday sweater is now, alas, a bit too tight what with the 5 eggnogs and fruitcake… won’t bring it in.)
It’s not just that you want the sweaters… it’s a great way to remind folks that they can consign, sell, or donate stuff now that they’ve gotten something new to replace it with, and of course… you want those shoppers
too, right?
Remember to repeat your advertising message a few days after New Year’s too, for those hard-core Christmas sweater wearers who can’t part with them just yet.
Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged buy-outright, consignors, daily operations, resale shopkeeping on September 4, 2012| 12 Comments »
Talking buy-outright (or even consignment) for store credit only amongst some resalers.Wanna listen in?
Posted in 5- Minute Fixes, Not-for-Profit Resale, Shopkeeping talk, tagged accessories, buy-outright, Thrift on May 10, 2012| 5 Comments »
Click for the mini-tutorial.
If you buy gently-used costume jewelry outright from your suppliers, include in the batch offer, and also save, ALL bits and pieces.
You can (more…)
Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged accepting, buy-outright, consignment, resale shopkeeping, Thrift on January 11, 2012| 3 Comments »
This video is a great case study for shopkeepers and accepting staff. If we look at it not as “how to consign”… but “how to treat a potential consignor” we can take the opportunity to fine-tune our shops.
At 0:30 she recounts a bad experience… hope you never react with “disdain”!
At 1:00 the consignee actually introduces herself to the incoming consignor. Do you and your staff do the same? It means a lot… makes the interaction between two people, rather than a person and a business.
At 1:15, the consignee gives the consignor a compliment on her items. I’ve bolded and italized that because you know? It seldom happens that a consignor hears a positive before a potential negative.
At 1:30, consignee takes the conversational opportunity to put in a plug for larger sizes by saying “big is great ’cause we don’t have enough.”
At 1:50, consignee passes on a NTY, without volunteering a reason. I’m sure she had one, but the CONSIGNOR (as seen by her video editing) didn’t consider it important. So if the consignor doesn’t care why, the consignee needn’t throw negative comments into the mix like “out of style,” “fake,” or “are you kidding, this is SO 20th-century.”
At 2:00, the consignee gives the consignor a good reason/excuse not to be concerned with unsold items at the end of the consignment period. Notice the lack of “if you want unsold items back, you must pick them up at X days”… because all most consignors hear is “you must pick up…”
At 2:10 the consignee has a great spiel about the charity the shop uses. Sweet!
At 2:30 the consignee might develop a good spiel about using store credit. The consignor had to ask, and the reply was not as motivating as it could have been.
My thanks to verygoodlooking.com for creating and posting this video. A blog I’ll be watching daily. I like Ms. Horchow’s presentation. Usually, these types of commentators are so smarmy and self-important, but I actually like Sally!
.
Too Good to be Threw is the flagship site of the TGtbT Family of Sites for the Professional Resalers
Auntie Kate The Resale Expert 