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Auction Strategists Newsletter
Brought to you by Jenni Hunt
www.jennihunt.com
In this newsletter:
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1. Garage Sale For Inventory Plan: Your BUDGET
2. Heads Up:
– April Monthly Madness: Gymboree News and Gossip Column
– The Niche Blogger Report – Correct Link (sorry!)
4. How to subscribe or Change your subscription status
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Hi ~
This is a short issue because I wanted to send you the next part of the Garage Sale Plan so you can take advantage of the information right away. What could be more important than the budget, right? 😉 You can expect the next part tomorrow… and I’ll finish it up on Thursday night. I’ve gotten some great feedback – if you have a question or a comment, please share!
Enjoy!
Jenni
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1. Garage Sale Plan: Your Budget
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The Garage Sale Plan – Your Budget
Okay… let’s talk a little bit about budget for hitting those garage sales.
Your budget will really come down to the market you are in… and since we are focusing on children’s items – that is going to be the point of reference for this weeks topic of budgeting for yard sales.
I usually bring only $80-100 with me when I am hitting yardsales. This doesn’t mean I don’t stop for more – but, I’ve been able to do fine with around a hundred bucks. I like to break it down so that it isn’t all $20’s… it helps the seller as well because they aren’t having to give me change if I find a hot Blue’s Clues notepad for twenty five cents.
Most children’s items can be purchased for a buck or so… but, here is a general idea of how I gauge things. There are always exceptions – and if you are paying attention to the HuntedTreasure or MyToyGuide weekly lists, you’ll know if you come across a true treasure.
Okay – let’s get down to business… Here are the guidelines I usually go by when I am looking to build inventory from garage sales.
>>>Children’s clothing:
I’ve seen such a huge range for children’s clothing… every once and a while I hit a goldmine and find name brand clothing in pristine condition for a quarter a piece! For twenty five cents – there isn’t much risk and I’ll buy up whatever I can. What’s even better about finding this kind of deal is that when you are looking to buy a bunch of stuff – the seller usually marks things down even more! Unfortunately, I only find these kinds of sales a few times a year…
It is more of the norm to find a sale with children’s items for a buck a piece. Still – this is a great deal for name brand clothing. And, remember, if you buy more than one piece – ask if they will take less. Usually, if I am buying 5 things for $1 each, I’ll look for one or two pieces more and than ask if they will just take $5 for all of it. Usually they say yes. Now, for a dollar a piece – if you make an outfit out of 3 things and resell it for even $20, you’ve done pretty well for yourself.
Children’s clothing: $1 or less
I usually plan to only spend a dollar or less a piece.
Exceptions: If I find a top of the line dress or outfit that I’ve seen resell for $40+ easy, I’ll pay $10 for it… but, I don’t usually pay more than that.
>>>Children’s Bedding:
I usually buy bedding for a nursery bedding set – I don’t like storing things for long and finding a piece here and there, although effective, isn’t something I often do.
Usually I’d be willing to pay $20-25 for a bedding set… especially for Pottery Barn or another high end brand. Other sets like Classic Pooh or the John Lennon bedding – I’d probably pay up to $20. It depends on what is included and the condition. Usually for a bedding set I look for the basics of a comforter and sheets, crib skirt, mobile… but, what usually makes me super interested in buying is if there are extra unique pieces… a diaper hanger, matching frames, lamps, rugs, wall hangings, nightlights, etc… the more the better.
I’ve found that talking people down on price for children’s bedding is sometimes more difficult than clothing. For some reason, if it is the mom selling, they are a bit more sentimental and will not be so willing to come down on the price of their precious bedding.
Children’s Bedding: $20-25 SET
Exceptions: sometimes I’ll go up on super high end brands or round crib bedding.
>>>Children’s Toys:
One of my favorites to shop for is toys! Usually parents are so sick of all the toys they have in their house that they will practically give them away… especially if you have kids in tow! Seriously… I’ve had people not even ask me and just pile a bunch of toys on my kids telling them they can have them. If only they knew the treasures they were giving away! 😉
Toys have a huge price range for me. Many toys can be found for well under $1… but, I’ve also found big playground type toys for as little as $10. Usually when I am shopping for toys, I’ll have a few items that I am specifically keeping my eye out for… and then I’ll also have a few themes I’m watching for (such as Blues Clues or Little Tikes dollhouse items).
Ten dollars is usually the limit I set on an item from a garage sale… but, if there is something that I’m confident will sell well I’ll buy it for more.
Children’s Toys: $1-10 depending on size of item and resell value
Exceptions: Large climb on toys or ride on cars – $20-40 depending on value and condition.
>>>Movies
Okay, I know I said toys are my favorite… but, I love to score on movies too! Many people are getting rid of their VHS and even their DVD’s to upgrade to Blue-Ray… and you can get amazing deals on what they are getting rid of. Usually, my rule of thumb is $1 for VHS and $3-4 for DVD’s. Don’t forget when you purchase more than just one from a seller to barter a bit. If they are $1 each for VHS and you are buying 5 – see if they’ll take $3… It never hurts to ask.
It is important to know what resells well before buying a bunch of movies. You can research this yourself on eBay or watch for the movie category included in the HuntedTreasure weekly report.
Movies: $1-4 each
Exceptions: Every once and a while I’ll come across a move series for $5-7. Once we had a WWII (I think it was WWII) mini series on VHS – it had never been watched and was $5. There was a list of over 70 people waiting for it on amazon! We just named our price of $120 or something and it sold in seconds! 🙂
>>>Gear
Baby gear is usually plentiful at garage sales… but, it isn’t cheap. I usually just keep an eye out for a few things and expect to pay more for them.
What I look for is pretty limmited:
Bob Jogging Stroller – $20-40
Sit and Stand Stroller – $10-15
Kelty Backpack Stroller – $40
Medela Pump In Style – $40
Gear: $20-40
Exceptions: I have to be confident that an item is going to resell well for me before I’ll consider more.
So, let’s take a look at a typical day for me and how far $80-100 goes…
Clothing – I’ll often spend $30 total on children’s clothing and plan to have at least 30-40 pieces from that much. If I get 40 pieces and can pull 13 outfits out of it (about 3 pieces an outfit), I’m pretty happy for a few hours of shopping. If each outfit can bring in $10 profit – that’s $130 made just from clothing.
Bedding/Gear – I’m going to skip over this one for now because I don’t usually include bigger purchased like bedding and gear to be a part of the $80-100 that I plan to spend. If I end up buying a larger piece, I might head to the bank for a little more.
Toys – Usually, I only spend $30-40 on toys and have more than enough to resell. Many toys can be bought for 25-50 cents – that is a lot of toys! Even if I pay a buck for each toy and turn it around for $15 for about $10 return, I could make $300 from just one morning on shopping.
Videos – I don’t usually spend more than $10 on videos… and I like to shop for VHS more than DVD’s – just my personal preference really. I don’t pay more than $1 a movie – and, again, if I can sell them for $15 each, that’s about 10 made on each one… or a hundred bucks from movies.
So – how did we do…
With the above scenario we spent $70-80 and the return looks like it could be well over 500 dollars.
Okay – before we close up, I wanted to say something about the risk with garage sales. I think this is one thing that keeps eBay sellers from finding inventory this way… but, I really think that it is minimal if you know what you are looking for – and you budget it right.
Look at it this way… if you buy something thinking that it will sell – and then, it doesn’t… or you end up having second thoughts and decide not to sell it… take it to consignment! I bet someone could build an entire business on buying items at garage sales and then taking the items to consignment for resell… talk about easy! Another strategy that I’ve used before is to upgrade at consignment shops. I have an entire article about this – but, the short of it is that you can take in lower brand items… or items that won’t necessarily sell well on eBay and turn them around at consignment shops for higher end brands. Many stores will sell your items for you and give you 50% of whatever the item sells for. Considering that you aren’t doing any of the picture taking, listing or shipping – it’s not a bad deal! 🙂
Alright…
Next we are going be talking about the big shopping day! Lots to think about the morning you head out… so stay tuned.
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2. Heads Up
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***HEADS**UP***
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ARIL Monthly Madness is still going!
This month, Gymboree News, the premier resource for those who sell Gymboree clothing on eBay or would like to, is offering two months for $5… that is less than one month at the regular membership fee.
http://gymboreenews.com/site/amember/go.php?r=1205&i=l4
I don’t have a clue how long this is going to last… but, if you are interested in reselling Gymboree, this is an absolute MUST. Once you get into the membership area you will know why. 🙂
http://gymboreenews.com/site/amember/go.php?r=1205&i=l4
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***HEADS**UP***
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BIG Apology!!
In the last newsletter I mentioned a great resource to jump start your blogging… I have to apologize because it looks like the link I included was to sign up for the 3 day trial – not to get the book! You don’t have to send any paypal info to get the book… no signing up and then trying to remember to cancel… just give Amy your name and email address and she’ll send you the report.
Here is what the blogging report covers again:
– What caused Amy to stumble upon Niche Blogging and why she made it so successful.
– What the Heck is Niche Blogging?
– How do Niche Bloggers Make Money?
– What Should I Blog About?
– One of The Major Roadblocks Most Bloggers Face and How You Can Easily Overcome It
– How to Turn Blogging into Passive Income
– How to Know if You Are Meant to Be a Blogger
– How to Choose The Right Niche That Guarantees You Will Make Money
– How to Make The Most Money Spending the Least Amount of Time
– How to Overcome Internet Marketing ADD
– How to REALLY Achieve Your Income Goals
Get your copy here:
http://www.thenicheblogger.com/amember/go.php?r=1389&i=b15
or
http://tinyurl.com/c8bozq
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Copyright 2009 Jenni Hunt, www.jennihunt.com
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