Hey! Today is a great day…Amanda is here from Kuzak’s Closet with a crazy informative and entertaining post. It’s so awesome…Read on!
Hey Everyone! My name is Amanda Kuzak from Kuzak’s Closet and I am so excited that Amy asked me to guest blog today! I own a Professional Organizing and Estate Sale business in Northern California. Today I want to share my top 10 tips for holding a successful garage sale and give you a fun description of the types of customers you might see at your sale.
1.) Clean Up: Clear out a space in your garage for you to hold the sale. By starting here you will be able to prep for your sale little by little.
2.) Set Up Tables: Most people do this last but and then become overwhelmed with the mess that has been acquiring in the garage and end up canceling their sale. By setting up your tables first you will have a good infrastructure to start setting up your sale.
3.) Clear Your Clutter: Go room by room with a laundry basket or box and fill it with items that you no longer need or want to keep.
4.) Organize Your Items: Group items by like and type. If you are having your sale in your garage remember to move large items like furniture out into the driveway or lawn so buyers can get a good look at them.
5.) Price Your Items: It is important to have a price tag on every item in your sale so buyers know what you are selling and what your expectations are. Try pricing your items a touch higher than you think they should sell for. This will leave some room to negotiate, something shoppers love to do!
6.) Pre-Sell: I always list the big ticket items from my sales on Craigslist individually a few days before the sale. Craigslist buyers are typically willing to spend a little more than the average garage sale shopper.
7.) Advertise: List your sale in the local paper and/or on Craigslist: Die-hard garage sale shoppers will plan out their shopping day ahead of time. Also remember to place a few signs on major streets guiding shoppers to your house. Keep the signs simple: date, time, and address.
8.) Open On Time: Early birds are willing to pay more for items so be sure to open your doors on time. The majority of the profits from my large estate sales come within the first 3 hours of the sale (typically from 8:30am-11:30am).
9: SELL: Remember you have two goals for your sale. First you want to make some cash and second you want your unwanted stuff to go to good homes and get out of yours. Be friendly to your customers and keep rearranging the merchandise as the day goes on.
10.) Follow Through: If you have items left over from your sale follow through with your original intention and get rid of them! Donate them to your local church, charity organization, or neighbor but DON’T let them sit around and clutter up your garage until your next sale comes around!
I love the variety of people that I meet at my estate sales. There are all types; the dealers, the nosy neighbors, the collectors, the lingerers, and the jerks. If you have never had a sale I will leave you with a description and visual aid for each type, enjoy!
The Dealer: These types of buyers show up hours early to a sale. They always pretend that they are not dealers but they can’t hide from me! Usually one quick look at their car when they load up their purchases reveals it because it is typically still filled up from a previous sale. Some dealers are nice and some are not. The typically work in teams, and take turns standing by their pile of goodies while the other one shops. The are experts at packing their cars and from time to time they can assist in creating a sale by oohing and aaahing over items.
At a recent sale I had a couple that arrived bright and early, they were eager to help us set up the sale and were oohing and ahhing at all of the treasures being pulled out of the garage. This couple was really nice and pleasant to deal with so I opened it up early. They power shopped for 45 minutes and ended up spending over $700 on 2 car loads of little items.
The Lingerer: This type of buyer could stay all day if you let them. They usually show up later in the afternoon and shop for several items. They like to negotiate the prices as they shop and pay as they go. I don’t understand this method because it is hard for them to keep track of how much they have spent.
At a recent sale a woman who arrived on the second day around noon and she left at 4pm. If the price tag said $40 she would offer $5 which I wouldn’t take. I did end up selling her several items over the course of her visit and she probably ended up spending $80-$100 over time.
The Nosy Neighbor: This type of buyer comes to snoop at what is available, sometimes they call their friends and other neighbors from the sale on their cell phones to gossip about what is being sold. They usually don’t appreciate antiques and are loud and obnoxious.
At a recent sale there was a neighbor who drove all of us nuts, even my client. She picked up everything and asked “what is this? how does this work?” for about 2 hours. She ended up buying an antique cherry picker and when she cashed out she asked me what is was and how much is was. I had it priced at $15 so I told her it was a cherry picker and that it was $15. She looked at me and said, “this is $15, it looks like a piece of junk!” I responded by tell her that it wasn’t junk, that is was a neat collectible and that someone who came to my sale who remembered picking cherries with her Grandma with a similar item would be thrilled to find it. She looked at me with the strangest look and ended up trying to get it for $10, I said I was firm on the price and then she handed me a crisp $100 bill and asked for change. So annoying!
The Jerk: This type of buyer thinks that they can win me over with their less than friendly personality. They put together a pile and they want to know the price, I always add up the price tags and then give them their total and they start to yell at me saying that I am ripping them off. Sometimes I kick them out of the sale and other time, depending on what they buy I will cut them a deal just so that I can get rid of them.
At a recent sale I had a big jerk shopped both days, he yelled at me about all of the prices and I couldn’t stand him. He didn’t speak English very well so it was hard to negotiate. He ended up buying several items that were missing parts and were not in working condition. This type of buyer drives me nuts.
The Collector: This type of buyer is usually eclectic and probably drives a vintage car. They also arrive to the sale early and the suspense over what is inside the sale kills them. They love the hunt and often only purchase one or two things.
At a recent sale there was a man in his mid 50s, he was the first to arrive and drove up in a vintage mustang. He was wearing bell bottoms and had his hair slicked back. He shopped for over an hour and ended up purchasing one item, an old Buick light bulb. On his way down the drive way back to his car he dropped the light bulb but luckily it didn’t break. I always look forward to meeting this type of buyer
The Young Collector: This type of buyer will either contact you before the sale starts looking for particular items or they casually show up on the second day. They are always nice and fun to work with. In most cases that I have experienced they are male and they enjoy shopping for old tools, guns, and books.
At a recent sale I had both types, an early bird collector and a casual young collector. The early bird was looking for tools and I let him come for a preview, he looked around the sale for 2 hours and ended up purchasing a few tools, an old medical lamp, and some maps. The casual collector arrived on day two with his friend, he shopped for a while and chatted with me and my crew. He ended up purchasing an antique gun case and 2 steamer trunks (I cut him a deal, buy one get one free).
