GARAGE SALE 101

Garage sale season has arrived! Remember, I had mine last weekend? Whether you love them or loathe em', I am here to tell you that for the last 20 years, I have had a May Garage sale and always have huge success! This year's sale was the extra mula to pay for Graduation Open House. I know many of you may think much of the merchandise sold at Garage Sale is junk, but not only do I only sell my nicest things, I have hit the jackpot at many sales myself. I don't shop them much anymore, but I still have a sale myself every other year and while it is a ton of work, it is always awesome!!

Here are some tips for having a super successful sale:

Choose the right date. Yes, it must fit into your busy schedule, but it also must work well for everyone else. This means avoiding major holidays and choosing a date near the middle of the month, in the early spring/summer tend to do best. And generally Friday's are better than Saturday's. Saturday's, I usually close shop at noon and then box it all up for goodwill. 
Make it a Multi Family/ Neighbor Event. Multifamily sales get about 50 percent more traffic, so before you do this alone, ask neighbors if they want to have a sale too. If you can't get a group together, then ask friends and family if they want you to sell their items at your sale. The more things you have, the more people will be apt to stop in. 

Advertise! This is one of the most important ones. I advertise a few days ahead of time in 2 newspapers and put signs at the road corners, addition entrance and front yard. Share on social media too for local folks. 


Price your items to sell. If you have something that your grandmother gave you, then Google it and make sure it's not a $5,000 item that you're trying to sell for $5. High Dollar items are best left for resale, antique stores or Ebay. Furniture sells great if priced right. Also name brand clothing especially ladies and kids. 



Spend time on your expensive items. If you have bigger, pricier items, then make sure they look good. We put air into the tires of the bicycles we sold, dusted and wiped down tables . Don't put in a ton of time on items that are priced at just a few dollars. I make bins saying "everything 25 cents, 50 cents or $1, that way you don't have to put a sticker on every little thing.


Stage the items. Transform your garage into a general store/boutique with a little staging.  I have a couple portable clothes racks that I group clothing on, like coats, long dresses, etc. and hang the nicest outfits on the ends to showcase. I hang big ticket kids clothing like winter coats, Jersey's, Nike above the kids table. 



Group like items together. I always put home decor together, electronic, clothing by size and category and group outdoor things on the driveway like bikes, garden equipment, tools and things like that. I groups things like jewelry and beauty products together.





Have what you need ready. A cash box and lots of changes is important, especially 1's, 5's and quarters. You may want to keep a measuring tape handy for customers to check the dimensions of your furniture and a mirror for ladies wanting to try on a jacket or necklace, etc. A few months ahead of time,  start stock piling bags of all sizes, shopping bags and grocery store bags are perfect to place customers purchases in.


xoxo



47 comments:

  1. I'd say your garage sales are better than any other's I've ever seen! I love that you section things off so people don't have to dig through stuff!! I would never think to have it on a Friday either - that's a great tip!! xo, Biana -BlovedBoston

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  2. Once we move into our new place we definitely want to do a garage sale so I loved reading your tips! Glad it was a success! Happy Monday love!

    www.rosyoutlookblog.com

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  3. These are great tips! I love how you set it all up. It looks like a store not a garage. Yay, Andrea! You do all things well.

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  4. Love these tips! I like the idea of having a multi-neighbor sale. I feel like people would definitely be more willing to come to something like that, with so many "options"! :)

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  5. This is perfect! We are doing a yard sale June 4, so I definitely need to keep up with these tips! Glad yours was a success!
    Sarah at MeetTheShaneyfelts

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  6. These are great tips! You transformed your garage into a little boutique! Our neighborhood has an annual garage sale but I've never had much luck selling things. Maybe I'll try again next year. We still have so much stuff to get rid of!

    Jill
    Doused In Pink

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  7. You are so organized! Even your stickers are pretty! :) Hope it went well, and you had a great weekend with the fam! XO

    Shauna

    www.lipglossandlace.net

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  8. These are some great trips for garage sales, Andrea! I think picking the right date is definitely important. I've been seeing a lot of garage sale signs popping up in our neighborhood lately. Hope you had a fabulous weekend!

    xo, Rachel
    A Blonde's Moment

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  9. Awesome tips! I love how even your stickers are pretty and you've got staging down to a science <3
    Green Fashionista

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  10. I miss garage saling....I haven't done one in years!

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  11. Bwahaha! That Ryan Gosling quote totally cracked me up! I need a cold pop after seeing him this morning! Ha! Great post, Girlie! I've never had my own garage sale, but I've helped my mom and her friends with theirs. Now I KNOW that isn't a leopard blouse you're selling in that clothes rack is it?! GIRL! Also, more info on a "graduation open house, " please! Yo! It's Monday! Work it!!

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  12. Love the Ryan Gosling quote. Great tips!

    Lisa
    Daily Style Finds

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  13. This is such great advice. We had a yard sale once and it did not go well at all. Saving this post for future reference.

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  14. Would you believe I've never hosted a garage sale before? I'm so glad you posted these tips because I would not have thought to do most of those things to organize and set up a sale that's easy for shoppers to navigate.

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  15. Great ideas!!! My mom held a big one last year. I was able to sell a lot of my daughter's baby clothes that weren't being kept for memory's sake... as well as some of her toys and other small things she outgrew. I also sold some of my clothes and shoes in the sale. It was a big deal and my mom was hardcore about keeping things organized and appealing, just like your tips!!


    Amber
    All the Cute 🎀
    Today's Post: Pink Floral Print Dress

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  16. Great tips. I love garage sales.

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  17. Aww! This post comes at the right time! My hubs and I are planning a garage sale this summer! Thanks so much for sharing -- I can't wait to share your post with my hubs!
    Happy Monday, love!
    xoxo, Vanessa
    www.WhatWouldVWear.com

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  18. I love garage sales! My parents do one every few years and I love working the money box. My grandma always goes to sales and she finds the best deals!

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  19. I don't think that we've had a garage sale since we've been married, but our neighborhood always has one twice a year! It's always so much fun to walk by and see what everybody has to offer! That's such a great idea to group everything into buckets too!

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  20. I haven't had a garage sale in years, but I'm thinking it's time again. All of your tips are really helpful - you did a great job merchandising your sale. No wonder it was successful!

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  21. I definitely think staging is so important....I'm always blown away when I drive by a garage sale and they literally just have a tarp laid out with clothes all over it..ON THE GROUND. No mam...my Meme for sure taught me how to host a good garage sale.

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  22. I love yard sales! They are totally hit or miss but I have snagged some great stuff on the major cheap that are unique and useful! I wanted to have a big yardsale last year when I was cleaning the house to prepare for baby arrival but my husband was not as enthusiastic as I was and I couldn't find a free weekend so everything just went to the Goodwill.

    Erica
    www.pumpsandpushups.com

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  23. Andrea! Wow! You know what's up when it comes to garage sales! I'm so impressed with all of your organization! No wonder your sales are always such a huge success!

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  24. I love garage sales! I have had one for two years now and have done really well with it. I agree that organizing your items and staging it to where it looks nice, definitely helps sell the items quicker. A little bit of effort goes a long way! Great tips!

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  25. Looks like you put together an awesome garage sale! We used to put them together often, but haven't in awhile. These are some great tips and I'm glad it went well for y'all! Extra cash is never a bad thing!

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  26. Look at your garage sale, so organized!!! Nothing is more disappointed to walking up to a sale and seeing everything just thrown about like it is trash. I like to see things clean and organized.

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  27. wow, I have never put on a garage sale before...while the thought of having some extra cash is nice...the work, oh goes the work! Can you come do mine too? hehe. But I like how you set this up, if in the future I do this, I"m going your route! Thanks!

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  28. You and I definitely prepare a sale the same way. Hard work, but pays off in the end. I switched to a pocket apron found at hardware stores for the cash however. That way I didn't have to be keeping an eye on the cash box if someone needed me to answer questions away from it.

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  29. Always thought about having a garage sale, but never actually followed through with it. You shared some great starter tips. Thank you!

    http://www.thebeautybeau.com/in-living-color/

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  30. garage sales are so fun, we probably need to have one but instead keep giving stuff away lol!!!

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  31. These are great tip s for having a successful garage sale!
    www.amemoryfous.com

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  32. I've never met a garage sale I didn't like! It's one of the best things about summer:) Hope you had a great weekend!!!

    Laura
    www.blackcoffeebeautiful.com

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  33. Great tips! I love looking for great things on garage sales. I also love the negotiate.

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  34. A tip I learned years ago, only price items by the quarter amount. Then you don't have to worry about dimes, nickels, pennies etc..my personal rule is I don't usually have many items that are under a dollar..if its not worth that to me, I usually just toss it in a free bin.

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  35. I love the staging tip! I am not a digger, so I would be way more likely to buy something that is easy to see than just in a typical garage sale pile. Great advice!

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  36. You really know what you're doing! I haven't done a garage sale since I was a kid...I remember trying to make some extra money that way :) Once I'm out of apartment living, I'm sure I'll have another opportunity! Kelsey @ So Much Life Blog

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  37. I have never held nor BEEN TO a garage sale! I totally have some stuff I could get rid of though. Maybe before we (eventually) move, that would be a great idea!
    Evelina @ Fortunate House

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  38. Great tips! Our neighborhood has a huge garage sale twice a year and I love trying to get rid of as much as I can! I'll have to read back over this before the next one!

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  39. Fabulous tips! I used to have a yearly sale but now I do consignment sales instead. I wish so much I could have bee bopped over to your sale! Looks like it was awesome! Love to you!!!

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  40. Pinning for future reference.

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  41. I'm jealous of people who have garage sales and make money. We are a load it in the car and donate it NOW people. :)

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  42. Organized and neat. You offer great tips here.

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  43. These are wonderful tips!
    I would love to come to one of your garage sales.
    Happy Thoughts of Home on Thursday.

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  44. Great garage sale tips! I need to pile some of my things together to sell! I have some bigger ticket items and I'm sure I can round up a lot of other kid stuff I need to get rid of! You seem so organized- I would love to shop your yard sales!

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  45. These are great tips! We are moving at the end of summer and were looking to do a moving sale beforehand. This post will be a big help!

    Stop on by my link party and share this with everyone : )

    http://www.twentysomethinginthe2010s.com/peace-love-linkup-009/

    Hope to see you there!

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  46. I haven't done much with garage sales, but these are some great tips.

    Thank you for sharing this with us on the #HomeMattersParty. We hope to see you when we open our doors on Friday at 12 AM EST.

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  47. Super valuable tips Andrea, thank you so much. Pinning for the next time we can organize a garage sale

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