Gotta love consignment!

[zachnsamsmommy]

I'm tickled pink b/c I just made enough money at a big twice-yearly consignment sale to pay for 2 passports for our DCL cruise.

Also, just bought half of my DS (2 yr old) clothes for the summer for $20 at the same sale...and half of it was Mickey Mouse.

If you have kids...consignment is a great way to earn money for DL, WDW, and DCL!

 

[neatokimmo]

I love consignment too! I sold all the yardsale stuff that wasn't the right size at the right time, along with all the baby gear I bought used. I made $386, a profit on a lot of it!

Then I found Natalie's flower girl dress for $5 and spent $23 on 18 other pieces Consignment sales rock!

 

[ashrae9216]

I have been wanting to take clothes to a consignment shop but I have NO clue what I am doing.. I have A TON of like new clothing that I dont have the time to list on eBay- Where do I begin?? Do I have to price things? Do they give me money up front or after I sell??

 

[neatokimmo]

For the kids stuff, consignment sales are the way to go. They happen twice a year (several different groups do them) and at ours you get 70% of your price. You get a lot more than what you would at a garage sale, about 1/3 of the new value.

Now consignment stores are way different. I worked my rear off to take in a bunch of clothes and made $100. Was not worth the hassle and they priced things way too high, in some cases higher than what I paid for it new?!?!

 

[neatokimmo]

Oops and to answer your questions, consignment sales, you set your own price. Ours have you tag it with an index card and mark it whether you are willing for it to go for half off on the last day or not. You put the brand, size and any additional comments. You also include your price and your consigner number. When you pick up your leftover items you get the cash from the stuff that sold. Our sale allows you to preshop if you consign, that allows you to pick out the things that are lower priced. Sometimes people just want to get rid of it at yard sale prices.

I have been wanting to take clothes to a consignment shop but I have NO clue what I am doing.. I have A TON of like new clothing that I dont have the time to list on eBay- Where do I begin?? Do I have to price things? Do they give me money up front or after I sell??

 

[DLW8]

I take my kids "better" items to a consignment shop. Sometimes they will not accept certain items (if they don't think it's up to par quality wise or they have too much of it), but the best part is they pay me ON THE SPOT!

I don't have to check back on if something has sold or not. They figure out what they will sell it for and give you 50% of that price. Cash or check rith then and there. It's great.

Plus, I don't have to have a tag sale or list it on ebay and it's out of my house. I go to Once Upon A Child here in CT, you can check their website to see if they have one near you. They will give you the list of what they are accepting and what they are paying you, and you can decide to accept it or not.

Sometimes, if they have a lot to go through, they will ask you to come back in a few hours, but if you time it right (first when they open on a Saturday) I can usually just poke around for 15 minutes and they are done.

I have been saving this money as my kids' spending money (if they decided we can sell some of their toys, etc). and they have accumulated a nice amount of money!

 

[McKelly]

Is it safe to assume that consignment shops only sell name brand items? Is Gymboree considered a good enough name brand for a consignment shop? We have one in town and I don't have enough stuff to have a garage sale and was thinking of bringing some of my daughter's like new dresses there and some like new sweaters of my son's. Thanks for any advice.

 

[MinnieForMe]

Hi;
If your Gymboree is like new, it will sell at a consignment store. I'm a big Gymbo shopper and I still pop into the local consignment store to see if they have any Gymbo from an older line. I will say that some of the consignment stores sell Gymbo for more than I pay for it new with Gymbucks or a coupon.

 

[McKelly]

Thanks! I will take it in and see what they say!

 

[TotalSnowWhite]

I definitely vote for sales over shops!! I got some stuff "appraised" at Once Upon A Child, and I ended up making double at JBF. If you've got a sale near you, do it!!

Our consignment money pays for our meals and souvenirs at WDW ($600-$800 per season), and that's with, on average, a rackful of clothes, maybe a big item or two (stroller, pack 'n play, etc.) and two totes of toys.

 

[jerseygirl81]

I've been going to consignment shops for about 16 yrs now to both buy and sell items, mostly clothing but some toys when my boys were younger. I've never heard of a consignment sale where you can get 70% back, is done a church or as a fundraiser? I making only a few dollars on good brand clothing especially ones with the tags still on them. I thought about selling them on ebay but don't really have the time to do that. Linda

 

[jerseygirl81]

I definitely vote for sales over shops!! I got some stuff "appraised" at Once Upon A Child, and I ended up making double at JBF. If you've got a sale near you, do it!!

Our consignment money pays for our meals and souvenirs at WDW ($600-$800 per season), and that's with, on average, a rackful of clothes, maybe a big item or two (stroller, pack 'n play, etc.) and two totes of toys.

Wow that's a lot of money per season! What is JBF? Linda

 

[TotalSnowWhite]

Wow that's a lot of money per season! What is JBF? Linda

Just Between Friends children's consignment sale. There are a lot of different companies, though. There are only really two "seasons" a year. Fall sale has all cool weather clothes and the spring sale has all warm weather clothes.

 

[cvjw]

Check with your local churches for consignment sales. I am on the board for my church's consignment sale, and we hold it twice a year. If you have nice, name brand stuff to sell, you can make good money! We probably have over 100 people lined up in the parking lot to get inside to shop on our first shopping day.

 

[CyndiLooWho]

I did this for years, and will start again now that we are back in the US. I have taken home a check for as much as $700 in one sale (sold a baby bed and a little tykes climber, among other things that sale).

I will never take my stuff to a consignment store. They offer very little and want only the absolute best of your name brand items only.

The church consignment sales, otoh, will take any item that is in very good condition, with no stains, holes, etc. You do work hard to have things tagged and organized, but it's a cathartic exercise for getting rid of things. I have sold all brands of clothes, from Lands End to Walmart brand, as long as it's in good shape, and they also take things like sippy cups, bouncy chairs, bicycles, books - ANY children's item that is in good shape.

All you have to do is price well (I price 1/4 - 1/2 new, depending on the item) and you will make money. Plus, sellers get to shop before the general public, and people who volunteer to work the sale get to shop even before sellers. It's a great way to get started on a budget. There are some small fees involved besides the 30% sales price donation (around here, usually $10 to register and another $10-15 on supplies like ziplock baggies, safety pins, and hangers), but those pale when you realize you just netted $300 from your old sippy cups and toddler outfits.

Proceeds from every sale in our area (and there are at least 4 that I know of in the large city 40 minutes to our north and 4 in or near the smaller city where we live now), the proceeds go to children's charities or missions.

 

[neatokimmo]

If your area doesn't have a twice yearly consignment sale then you are very lucky - set one up yourself! You will have to put some money into building racks (ours uses 2x4s with steel pipes) and renting the building. You will also need to advertise like crazy. But you'll get the 30% of other people's stuff and 100% of your own stuff. Ours also charges $4 on top of the 30%. If you can do it well, you'll build up clientele and make a ton

 

[tinkercat]

There is a local "mom to mom" sale going on here in a few weeks and I think I'm going to give it a try. I've got lots of stuff I could possibly sell and I'm thinking that anything that doesn't sell there can go into the yardsale at home. I'm a bit uncertain about prices though. Am I nuts thinking I could sell my toddler bed frame (its wooden and in very good condition) for $25 or so? We paid at least $60 for it new. I don't want to over-price things and then not sell much, since I will be paying $35 for my space (includes 1 8 foot table and a 4x4 space where I can put a rack, etc.

 

[gymboqueenkaylee]

that's awesome. I'm getting ready to pack up a ton of stuff for consignment and garage sales coming up to put into our vacation fund for our next Disney Vacation. Sounds like you did pretty good at the yard sale though. Our yard sales have stunk lately around here.

 

[TotalSnowWhite]

If your area doesn't have a twice yearly consignment sale then you are very lucky - set one up yourself! You will have to put some money into building racks (ours uses 2x4s with steel pipes) and renting the building. You will also need to advertise like crazy. But you'll get the 30% of other people's stuff and 100% of your own stuff. Ours also charges $4 on top of the 30%. If you can do it well, you'll build up clientele and make a ton

Amen to that!! I'm tentatively trying to find a place (within a reasonable distance) that doesn't have one. The women that own ours make an average year's salary for about four months of work.

 

[emh1129]

I haven't heard of any sales in our area (CT). Where would be the best place to look for such a consignment sale? It sounds great & I have a ton of stuff to sell..