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Posts Tagged ‘small business’

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.

.

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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Consignment / resale/ thrift shop giveaway week: It’s not all about price.

Posted in economics of resale, Shopkeeping talk, tagged , on September 23, 2010| 14 Comments »

This post is part of Auntie Kate’s 35th anniversary of being a consignment shopkeeper, author, maven, and fan. Here’s the intro to our anniversary giveaway, and if you haven’t already posted a comment on this week’s messages to enter each drawing: Monday’s is here, Tuesday’s is here, and Wednesday’s is here.

So many shopkeepers spend every day, in every way, telling the world that they are incompetent.

Yes, they do. How? By (more…)

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My consignment anniversary giveaway: In honor of Martha Stewart

Posted in economics of resale, Shopkeeping talk, tagged , on September 21, 2010| 14 Comments »

This post is part of Auntie Kate’s 35th anniversary of being a consignment shopkeeper, author, maven, and fan. Here’s the intro to our anniversary giveaway, and if you haven’t already posted a comment to win Monday’s prize, you can do so here.

Every entrepreneur dreams of gaining the public attention an appearance on Oprah or Martha Stewart or other shows can bring their business, book, invention or passion. That’s whyMartha Stewart’s show giving

10 minutes of fame for consignment shops was so exciting

for all resale shopkeepers, and the show itself was well-done. Never once did we hear the phrase “musty dusty thrift shops of old”…thanks goodness. Each of us, even those without the audience of millions Martha has, can (more…)

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Deja Vuesday: What makes a great promotion?

Posted in Deja Vuesday, Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , on September 14, 2010|

After all, some Auntie Kate blog posts are, ahem, Too Good to be Threw!A weekly feature where you can visit a gently-used, recycled blog post. It’s even better the second time around. Because some info here on Auntie Kate is just Too Good to be Threw.

This week’s Deja Vuesday is (more…)

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Everyone’s a winner (or can be) at consignment and resale shops!

Posted in Shopkeeping talk, tagged , , on August 30, 2010| 9 Comments »

Everyone's a winner at consignment shops!This tip is so simple, I smacked my forehead when I read it. Isn’t it amazing, how something so obvious can just escape us?

I’m sure we can all agree that everyone wants to feel like a winner.

And that if we can make our customers feel like they’ve won something, they’ll be happier, and they’ll tell their friends and just overall, skies will be bluer and birds chirpier.

Here’s how you make each and every customer a winner (it’s so obvious! Did I say that before?): (more…)

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