do any of you have booth space in a mall?

[clovis97]

Yes.

When I buy a Stanley plane out of your booth, I take it to the cash register to pay. They will enter your booth number and a short description of the item into the computer, along with the price you have on the tag.

Your sales report will read:

Booth 718 Stanley 55 wood plane $45.50
Booth 718 Stanley Bailey plane #3 $25.00
Booth 718 Vintage silver spoon $22.00

You get paid when the mall cuts checks, which is usually one day a month.

 

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[Bassmaster96]

Okay, thanks a lot! I will probably look into it for items like glass and stuff that I can't sell on eBay.

 

[Butter Hat]

Don't people sell glass on ebay or do some consider it not worth the packaging/shipping problems?

 

[Bassmaster96]

It's on there, but I can't sell it. I think people just want to see it before they buy it.

 

[clovis97]

Okay, thanks a lot! I will probably look into it for items like glass and stuff that I can't sell on eBay.

That mentality is a slippery slope to utter failure.

I've been doing this long enough to have seen hundreds of people think that a booth or case is an ebay dumping ground. Most last about three months. Booths need good stuff that people want to buy.

Sorry if I sound harsh...I don't mean to sound that way...but this is reality.

 

[clovis97]

It's on there, but I can't sell it. I think people just want to see it before they buy it.

Glass, at least in my experience, is super soft in demand right now.

As with anything I post, YMMV.

 

[Bassmaster96]

Sorry if I sound harsh...I don't mean to sound that way...but this is reality

No no no, I am proud you are commenting back. I wasn't going to use it for just glass and junk that I can't sell on eBay. I would put that stuff in the booth, but that wouldn't necessarily be my main stocking. I would also have fishing lures and equipment, antiques of all kinds-tools, oil cans, etc.-, newer items-books etc.-, and a lot more to go with it. I would basically want it to be a yard sale in a booth.

 

[Koffee]

i agree in the above statement Glass is really soft for me unless it is Vaseline glass or carnival glass on the mid to higher end. I throw some in one of my booths from time to time just to recheck the market every two or three months. My experience with a booth is that it needs to be really good or really interesting stuff. I usually price my stuff with about 17 to 20 percent below eBay. I see a few of my items from the booth end up on eBay from time to time. I try and leave meat on the bone for the thrifty shopper. I actually do pretty good with glass at peddler fairs or antique shows considering your cost for thei stuff is so low in today's market..

I think one of the main reasons a booth fails is that someone can not sell it on eBay so the try it in a booth or they do not rotate their stock weekly along with changing you space every 12 days. If you are new to this ask the mall person which booths are successful and study what they are doing and watch what stock they have and how they rotate their items and change their booth around. Then just copy what they are doing until you get your feet on the ground.

Cheers - Koffee

 

[clovis97]

Interesting, Koffee.

We often sell on par with ebay, except that the customer doesn't have to pay for shipping. Sometimes, I'll drop the price a tad, since I don't have to list the item or pay the fees.

 

[Bassmaster96]

Have you guys ever had a bad month where you have lost money?

 

[Koffee]

Yeah I have lost money on spaces from time to time. I got hit fairly decently when the glass market fell. I had items I payed 10 to 15 dollars I could not sell for a dollar. You just have to watch the market and detect trends on what people are buying. The one thing to is when you are buying a booth evaluate what and where that mall is and specializing in. I often walk the mall space to see what other dealers are stocking and doing. One of the big reasons I have multiple booths is because of the different clientele and product that these different locations offer.

Cheers - Galen

 

[Koffee]

Interesting, Koffee.

We often sell on par with ebay, except that the customer doesn't have to pay for shipping. Sometimes, I'll drop the price a tad, since I don't have to list the item or pay the fees.

I find in the summer months with all the estate sales, flee markets and garage sales stuff is cheaper and easier to come by. With competition being less and I get better prices and end up with more product then I can list and this is just a way to make sure I have a fast stock turn over rate. I also do this to have a happy wife as she does not mind me storing stuff but wants it to be a reasonable amount and not end up on a TV Show.

Cheers - Koffee

 

[clovis97]

Have you guys ever had a bad month where you have lost money?

I lost money one month at the indoor flea market, which operates the same way an antique mall does. I lost money because I hadn't restocked it in two months. I think I owed $15 in rent.

There is an antique mall that we are at, and I tell ya, I can't figure that place out. I suspect that their foot traffic has fallen SIGNIFICANTLY over the past year. I used to sell $500 to $600 a month out of a case, and do so consistently. But then, one month, it died, and I am struggling every month to make rent.

The mall says in their official monthly email that the foot traffic "is off slightly", but the employees tell me a different story. It is as dead as a door nail every time I go there. I do wonder if antique malls aren't falling out of fashion. I hear that AM's are struggling everywhere.

I am doing something wrong at this AM, but I can't figure it out.

 

[Bassmaster96]

Wow, that is surprising that it would just die like that. I think the antique market is down overall. Auctions have items go cheaper at them all the time. It is sad really.

 

[jerseyben]

Wow, that is surprising that it would just die like that. I think the antique market is down overall. Auctions have items go cheaper at them all the time. It is sad really.

You are correct! Trends are changing. Customers who are shopping for themselves (and not people who are buying for resale) are looking for unique decorative items. They are looking for unique, rustic, chabby-chic, rusty, un-restored stuff that has an edgy or unusual appearance.

 

[Bassmaster96]

Yeah, I have noticed that too. Well, as bad as I was talking about selling glassware, I just sold a lot of small milkglass on eBay.

 

[trdhrdr007]

Things have slowed considerably at the local antique mall since I started selling there several years ago. I've talked to a lot of the old hands & they say it's a cyclical business, with most starting out well & then falling apart after a while. They haven't been able to tell me why.

I suspect it has a lot to do with the venders, especially in a small town. When the mall first opens there are a lot of people that have some really choice pieces. That makes the mall really attractive to buyers. As time goes by venders run out of their better stuff & either move on or start selling the next lower tier items. New venders also stock their booths with their better pieces, replacing with lower quality items as time goes by. Of course venders are searching for the best items to resell & that helps, but eventually the best inventory is in the final consumers homes & stops being cycled through the mall. Rinse & repeat until the mall goes out of business.

Added to all that is what I see as a giant shift in consumer tastes. Items that were once good sellers are no longer popular. If they do sell it's at a reduced price. Many venders will only buy what they like.....figuring if it doesn't sell they can keep it. That means their inventory is no longer relevant, which in turn contributes to the decline in customer traffic.

 

[Koffee]

The big thing I have noticed is that the Shabby Chic stuff that made up about 70 percent of the malls inventory has changed this year. I am starting to see less and less of this stuff.

 

[Bassmaster96]

Really? I despise walking through a flea market full of that junk.

 

[clovis97]

My guessimate is that people are walking the indoor flea markets here, instead of the antique malls. We have a few very good flea markets, feature quite a few dealers who sell antiques and interesting stuff.

The AM's here charge 10% commission on everything sold. Deduct 10% at the buyer's request, and another 3% for credit card surcharge.

An item you have marked $100 is now less than $80. Some still complain that ebay charges more than they should...LOL.