Gas over $3.00 and heading for $4.00. Mortgage payments going up. Food and electric bills rising and soon you've got less money available after the bills are paid to spend on luxuries. So how does a collectibles dealer compete for the ever shrinking disposable income budget of the average American household to increase their sales or at least keep them from diving below last year's levels? For many sellers there isn't very much that you can do but brave it out and keep your costs down as much as possible. You need to spend more time and effort on marketing items you've already purchased and dig them out of boxes and put them up for sale. Down times are a good opportunity to hone your sales skills and be a more savvy seller.
If you have booths in an antique mall like I do, now would be a good time to rearrange your booths and move the merchandise around so that it looks like you've got new inventory in even to the customers who browse the antique mall on a regular basis. If your inventory is basically in the same position it has been for the past year regulars will often pass it by thinking there's nothing new to draw them in to browse even if you've added several new items recently.
Try adding some seasonal items that will have plenty of eye appeal for those shopping for items to decorate with for the holidays. Brightly colored items will attract attention to your booth. Items that are at eye-level have the best chance of selling on average so be sure to place your usual best sellers there and often if you have nice inventory that should be selling but isn't because you've got it in a high or low spot, get in there and move it closer to eye-level. It really boils down to taking the time to keep your booth looking fresh and you're actively managing it. If you don't take the time it will show in your sales.
Talking to several dealers in my area lately I'm hearing that sales are half of what they were last year in the off season. This is most likely worse than the national average because my area is now in a recession after having ridden a real estate boom that has since collapsed. Foreclosures and unemployment has pretty much dried up the cash from the general local buyers. For those customers I try to stock as much items of local interest such as postcards from this area and anything that might have a nostalgia pull to them. There are still customers here who have money in good times and bad and they are out and taking advantage of this buyer's market so I do my best to tease them with reduced prices on more expensive and higher margin items where I can afford to take less to keep the cash flowing.
We lost a lot of dealers that had to throw in the towel because they went several months with sales that didn't even come close to meeting their booth rent. I myself decided to downsize my booth space to cut overhead and made do with less shelf space. I didn't want to do this but if you've got very little customer traffic you'd have little chance of selling even the Mona Lisa for $2000 so I feel it didn't cost me in sales. It also made me take a good hard look at my inventory and evaluate areas that really didn't have much potential even in good times. It was good to be forced to take a hard look at my inventory and trim the "dead wood".
Now finally we are moving into the busy season when we have our northern residents moving down and sales are picking nicely so I feel fortunate that I was able to weather a really brutal off season without having a month that I couldn't meet my rent and even turning a decent though small profit.
If you have booths in an antique mall like I do, now would be a good time to rearrange your booths and move the merchandise around so that it looks like you've got new inventory in even to the customers who browse the antique mall on a regular basis. If your inventory is basically in the same position it has been for the past year regulars will often pass it by thinking there's nothing new to draw them in to browse even if you've added several new items recently.
Try adding some seasonal items that will have plenty of eye appeal for those shopping for items to decorate with for the holidays. Brightly colored items will attract attention to your booth. Items that are at eye-level have the best chance of selling on average so be sure to place your usual best sellers there and often if you have nice inventory that should be selling but isn't because you've got it in a high or low spot, get in there and move it closer to eye-level. It really boils down to taking the time to keep your booth looking fresh and you're actively managing it. If you don't take the time it will show in your sales.
Talking to several dealers in my area lately I'm hearing that sales are half of what they were last year in the off season. This is most likely worse than the national average because my area is now in a recession after having ridden a real estate boom that has since collapsed. Foreclosures and unemployment has pretty much dried up the cash from the general local buyers. For those customers I try to stock as much items of local interest such as postcards from this area and anything that might have a nostalgia pull to them. There are still customers here who have money in good times and bad and they are out and taking advantage of this buyer's market so I do my best to tease them with reduced prices on more expensive and higher margin items where I can afford to take less to keep the cash flowing.
We lost a lot of dealers that had to throw in the towel because they went several months with sales that didn't even come close to meeting their booth rent. I myself decided to downsize my booth space to cut overhead and made do with less shelf space. I didn't want to do this but if you've got very little customer traffic you'd have little chance of selling even the Mona Lisa for $2000 so I feel it didn't cost me in sales. It also made me take a good hard look at my inventory and evaluate areas that really didn't have much potential even in good times. It was good to be forced to take a hard look at my inventory and trim the "dead wood".
Now finally we are moving into the busy season when we have our northern residents moving down and sales are picking nicely so I feel fortunate that I was able to weather a really brutal off season without having a month that I couldn't meet my rent and even turning a decent though small profit.
3 comments:
I just stumbled upon your blog today after doing a Google search on Antique booths at cooperatives.
I've been thinking about taking space at an antique mall near me. It's $240 a month for a 8 X 10 space. I have no experience selling in a mall, though I did work in an antique store before.
I've been selling antiques on Ebay for several years now. But, I'm nervous about the economy right now and I'm not sure this mall I'm thinking about taking space in gets enough traffic. There are some dealers that have been there for 17 years, so there must be some people making money there.
What's your thoughts on someone new wanting to do this with the economy the way it is?
I'm not sure I should just keep selling on Ebay until things get better.
First I would talk to other dealers in the mall and ask how their sales are compared to last year and try to get a general feel for how much traffic the mall is doing not just by how many cars are outside and customers are inside but rather how many are actually buying. Talk to the manager and ask how their sales for the store in general compared to last year. All the malls I've gone to are more than happy to talk to you especially if they have empty booths. If they have a full house or a waiting list there is a good chance that the dealers in the mall are happy to be there.
The other consideration is that selling retail in a booth is entirely different than selling on Ebay because the size of your potential customers is much smaller than Ebay. On the plus side though is the fact that they are going to be serious buyers ready to buy that day. You need to have a decent amount of skill at displaying your items for sale and you have to invest in shelving and display cases. There is a lot more overhead with a booth. Also booths tend to be season with their sales so be prepared for the cyclical nature of your sales and budget accordingly.
I find the main advantage of booths is to sell items that are bulky or heavy such as china and dishes that don't sell well on Ebay because of the cost of shipping. Also many collectibles need to be eye-balled to sell well and a booth definitely give you a better advantage for selling those items and also in general you can sell your items at a higher price in a booth than Ebay.
So if you're interested in getting a booth get a small amount of space such as a half booth and test the water and if you find you are suited for selling that way and the sales will support the rent and allow for a decent profit too then expand the amount of space you have and give it a go.
Thank you so much for taking the time to respond.
I'm still on the fence about taking the space I mentioned. I'm thinking of waiting until a space becomes available in another antique shop that's in a very busy tourist area in Concord, MA.
I've talked to the dealers there and I know they are pleased with business. I'm first on their list should something become available. I may just keep selling on Ebay for now, until something becomes available in this other shop.
In any event, I enjoy reading your blog, and I'll check it out now and then. Thank you again for the advice....Heather
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