Children's Consignment Sale?

[TxRabbit]

Just found out about a one-time event type children's consignment sale. Drop off is August 26th, so I have 3 weeks to get ready?

We just moved. I have quite a bit that I could get ready for the sale. I have to provide my own hangers though, and unfortunately, I left a tremendous number of hangers at our old house.

Here are my questions:

1. Anyone done this? Is all the work worth it?

2. How did you get cheap appropriate hangers?

 

[DisneyMissy318]

There is a consignment sale in my area that I participated with for many, many years! Ours was run by a local church and had three sales a year. It was definitely alot of work - but you got to set your own price. I volunteered for a couple of shifts, which would allow you to shop early - before the public - which made it really nice. I can't say that I made money -it was more like getting DD's next season of clothing in exchange for getting everything together - I think I would usually spend what I made - but a great off-set - not to mention that you could then trade those clothes you bought at the next sale. As far as hangers - I would get them at the local drycleaners - most will sell you a bundle for not much $.

 

[kristin1724]

We have a two children consignment events every year - one in the spring and one in the fall. I've sold items once and will again at the end of August (the fall event). I definitely found it to be worth it. I had tried to sell my items at a garage sale before the event and hardly anything sold. I took it to the consignment sale and almost everything sold and for more than what I had asked for at the garage sale (which was good since I did have to pay the consignment fee). It is a lot of work but I really feel like it's worth it.

As far as hangers go - I got both the children wire hangers and the adult wire hangers at either Walmart or the Dollar General. I think it was 10 for $1.

 

[christyhud]

I've participated in our event for years and LOVE it!! Totally think it is worth it. But be sure and check with your event on hangers - some specifiy what kinds they will take. For example, ours won't take the wire hangers like you can get at the dry cleaners - only plastic or coated wire hangers, not the painted ones.

 

[iluvdiscruises]

I run a 2x a year sale in NY, and while it is a lot of work, our sellers all did really well, with the top sellers bringing in over $600 for themselves. We charge $35 to sell, which covers the advertising, space rental and insurance, and the sellers keep 100% of their sold items. It worked out really well. I think the most time consuming part was labeling every item with a price, but if you do a little at a time, it isn't so bad. I bought white strung labels at Staples, and did a bin every night while watching TV, so it didn't seem bad. The best part is that once you do it once, it's MUCH easier the next time, since any items that didn't sell are already tagged, and you know pricing better.

Our next one is 9/25. My biggest piece of advice is to have enough stuff to make it worth your while. One person contacted me to say she had 1 tub of clothes...I told her it wasn't worth her time. We let our sellers sell gear (strollers, high chairs, etc - no carseats allowed), toys, bikes, outdoor toys, books, dvds, clothes up to size 7/8, baby & toddler furniture). I definitely think the people who put the most effort in as far as clearing out their kids stuff did the best.

Hope this helps you!

 

[deedeecee]

I just participated in my first consignment sale.
It was a lot of work, much more than I anticipated. Very time consuming. I made about $225, but the organizers will collect about $75 of that. (I wish we had a sale that charged one flat fee, like the pp mentioned. Our fee was $15, plus 30-40% of sales. From what I can tell, that is pretty typical for consignment sales in my area.)
So, $150 in my pocket, plus a lot of stuff out of the house. And even though it was a lot of work, I will probably participate in the next sale.
Or maybe not. It was really tough to turn over 30% of my sales to the organizer!

Also, I purchased hangers from the 99 cent store. First time I went, I purchased plastic hangers. The next time, I found wire hangers (wire hangers were preferred for our sale).

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I sold at sales for years. It was totally worth it. I more than made enough money to pay for clothes for my kids. Now that my kids are in Adult clothes, I can't sell at them which is sad because I have plenty of toys now that they are ready to get rid of.

I asked neighbors/friends/local dry cleaner for hangers. Our sale wanted us to use the wire hangers.

I'd recommend finding out the sales requirements.

Some require one volunteer shift, some require certain types of labeling (ours was a specific computer label emailed to you!), some won't take certain things (you don't want to go thru the trouble of cleaning, labeling items only to find out they won't accept them), some require a certain number of clothing in order to sell (that's what mine did so they didn't end up with lots of sellers selling just toys.) Plus each one has different payment/participation costs.

Good luck. There is money to made but you have to work at it.

 

[TxRabbit]

Thanks everyone for replying.

The more I read, the more I don't think I have enough time to get ready for the sale. Things are still a mess from the move. I know I have a lot of things that I've been saving (and now believing I won't need again, I don't think another little one is going to happen for us.) but I'm not sure if I have the time and energy to go through everything and get it ready in time. We are going on vacation in less than 2 weeks too!

But...as I unpack, I might get things ready for such an event, or look for another one.

Just to know though: The consignment price is $10. You use their computer system to make your labels for your items. You have to print them on card stock and pin the labels on according to their requirements. You aren't required to work the sale, just drop off at a specific time. The give you 70%, unless you volunteer for 4 hours (75%) or volunteer for 8 hours to get 80% of the price of your items sold.

It's a 2-day sale and the second day is a 50% off day, but you can choose which items of your participate in the 50% day.

Then you can pick up unsold items. OR they will take your items to donate to charity if you don't pick them up.

Do these prices/policies seem on par?

 

[NYCDiane]

I run a 2x a year sale in NY, and while it is a lot of work, our sellers all did really well, with the top sellers bringing in over $600 for themselves. We charge $35 to sell, which covers the advertising, space rental and insurance, and the sellers keep 100% of their sold items. It worked out really well. I think the most time consuming part was labeling every item with a price, but if you do a little at a time, it isn't so bad. I bought white strung labels at Staples, and did a bin every night while watching TV, so it didn't seem bad. The best part is that once you do it once, it's MUCH easier the next time, since any items that didn't sell are already tagged, and you know pricing better.

Our next one is 9/25. My biggest piece of advice is to have enough stuff to make it worth your while. One person contacted me to say she had 1 tub of clothes...I told her it wasn't worth her time. We let our sellers sell gear (strollers, high chairs, etc - no carseats allowed), toys, bikes, outdoor toys, books, dvds, clothes up to size 7/8, baby & toddler furniture). I definitely think the people who put the most effort in as far as clearing out their kids stuff did the best.

Hope this helps you!

Where in NY is your sale? I have a bunch of stuff that I would love to sell.

 

[robinb]

I have done this before and I have made a few hundred dollars in the process. Depending on the type of hangers you need you can get them for free or pretty cheap. If you can use wire hangers, try a couple of your local dry cleaners. They will often set aside used hangers for recycling because they put new hangers on each clean item. Old Navy is also a great place to get plastic hangers. Call them in advance and ask if they can set some aside for you. Lastly, you can get hangers at the Dollar Store or Family Dollar. I end up paying about 10-cents per hanger for children's hangers.

One key is to make sure that your items are clean and ironed. You would not believe how many wrinkled clothes I saw at the last sale. Also, don't be afraid to include summer clothes in a fall/winter sale and visa-versa. I sold a winter coat in last May!

 

[iluvdiscruises]

Where in NY is your sale? I have a bunch of stuff that I would love to sell.

zip 10598, Yorktown Heights...send me a PM if you would like more information!

 

[cats mom]

Do these prices/policies seem on par?

Sounds very similar to the one I looked into.
Computer printed tags, seller provides hangers, optional 50% off day, pick up or donate leftover stuff.
$15 consignor fee
60% automatic take
65% for 3 hours work
70% for 6 hours work

No information other than that though, because I only thought about doing it.

 

[QVCshopper]

I have never sold my clothes at one, but the sale near me happens 2x/year. On the last day, you can stuff a huge bag for $5. I got clothes for the kids, me, DH, shoes, toys, etc. It was so much stuff. I grabbed anything that looked good and donated back things that didn't work. Everything left goes to charity.

 

[Nina1]

Thanks everyone for replying.

Just to know though: The consignment price is $10. You use their computer system to make your labels for your items. You have to print them on card stock and pin the labels on according to their requirements. You aren't required to work the sale, just drop off at a specific time. The give you 70%, unless you volunteer for 4 hours (75%) or volunteer for 8 hours to get 80% of the price of your items sold.

It's a 2-day sale and the second day is a 50% off day, but you can choose which items of your participate in the 50% day.

Then you can pick up unsold items. OR they will take your items to donate to charity if you don't pick them up.

Do these prices/policies seem on par?

That seems about right. I do a sale here that takes place twice a year - spring (for summer stuff and gear) and fall (winter stuff and gear). They take everything except car seats, potty seats, bathtubs and cribs (due to all the recent recalls). Items must be clean and in good condition.

I enter everything into their website. They print the labels, I pick them up and then adhere them to tags that go on my items, following the instructions posted on the website. The sale runs for a week, with two pre-sale days for consignors and their guests. On the last day of the sale, items are reduced to 50%; however, the consignor decides if she wants to do this or leave her items at the price she originally designated. Also, they will donate your items that don't sell, if you wish, or these items can be picked up after the sale on a designated day.

Consignors keep 60% of what they sell, but can earn up to 80% with volunteer shifts - I don't know the exact number of hours required for the 80%; however, I volunteer for one shift (3 hours) and keep 70% of my sales. There is also a $10.00 consignor fee that is deducted off the top of your sales. One fun thing...they have a page on their website that allows you to track your sales each day.

It's been very profitable for me. I earned $620 at the last sale I did and am signed up to do the upcoming sale. Oh, about hangars...I just buy those white ones that Walmart sells - $1.00 for 10 - if I need extra.

Good luck!

 

[Ceila]

Thanks everyone for replying.

The more I read, the more I don't think I have enough time to get ready for the sale. Things are still a mess from the move. I know I have a lot of things that I've been saving (and now believing I won't need again, I don't think another little one is going to happen for us.) but I'm not sure if I have the time and energy to go through everything and get it ready in time. We are going on vacation in less than 2 weeks too!

But...as I unpack, I might get things ready for such an event, or look for another one.

Just to know though: The consignment price is $10. You use their computer system to make your labels for your items. You have to print them on card stock and pin the labels on according to their requirements. You aren't required to work the sale, just drop off at a specific time. The give you 70%, unless you volunteer for 4 hours (75%) or volunteer for 8 hours to get 80% of the price of your items sold.

It's a 2-day sale and the second day is a 50% off day, but you can choose which items of your participate in the 50% day.

Then you can pick up unsold items. OR they will take your items to donate to charity if you don't pick them up.

Do these prices/policies seem on par?

Are you in PA now? It sound exactly like the sale I used to participate in, right down to the percentages for working a shift!

 

[TxRabbit]

Are you in PA now? It sound exactly like the sale I used to participate in, right down to the percentages for working a shift!

No. I'm in the Houston area. For any other Dis-ers in the area, here's the info:

http://www.pennypinchingmamastx.com/

 

[sherry7]

Thanks everyone for replying.

The more I read, the more I don't think I have enough time to get ready for the sale. Things are still a mess from the move. I know I have a lot of things that I've been saving (and now believing I won't need again, I don't think another little one is going to happen for us.) but I'm not sure if I have the time and energy to go through everything and get it ready in time. We are going on vacation in less than 2 weeks too!

But...as I unpack, I might get things ready for such an event, or look for another one.

Just to know though: The consignment price is $10. You use their computer system to make your labels for your items. You have to print them on card stock and pin the labels on according to their requirements. You aren't required to work the sale, just drop off at a specific time. The give you 70%, unless you volunteer for 4 hours (75%) or volunteer for 8 hours to get 80% of the price of your items sold.

It's a 2-day sale and the second day is a 50% off day, but you can choose which items of your participate in the 50% day.

Then you can pick up unsold items. OR they will take your items to donate to charity if you don't pick them up.

Do these prices/policies seem on par?

That is almost exactly like our local sale...$12 to sale, and they get 30% commission. Ours also uses the computerized printed tags on card stock, and the leftovers go to charity unless you pick them up.

I attended ours this Spring and bought a few things for the new baby. There is another one next month, but I don't have enough to sell yet. I definitely plan to sell clothes and some baby equipment next Spring though, after she is grown out of things.