All of these clothes got me thinking, "What if I sold all of my stuff at a consignment sale?" After hours of prepping for our community garage sale last year and bringing in a whopping $40 (not including loading everything to Goodwill afterwards), I declared garage sales useless. A few weeks after the consignment sale, I was alerted to another one in my area that invited me to consign my items. Seeing that we're not having anymore children, I thought, why not? Plus this would kickstart spring cleaning.
Prepping items for sale
All of the items I was consigning were already clean and in good condition. The consignment company provides a website to log all the items you'll be selling. After you input your items, you print off bar code tags and pin them to the items. You name your price for each item, though it strongly suggested nothing be priced under $3. If an item is valued less than $3 resale, you're asked to create a combo pack that would value $3. (For example, by putting three onesies together to raise the price to $3). Then each clothing item needed to be safety pinned to the clothes hanger. All of this took me around two hours to do.
Bringing items to the sale
The day before the sale started, my son and I loaded everything up and headed to the sale location. After checking in, I was given a clothing rack with wheels to put all of my items on. A staff member then checked over each item I was selling for quality assurance. If any product could be subject to a recall, there was a person who would make sure the item was OK to sell. After my items were approved, I put my them on the sales floor on the appropriate racks. By being a consignee, I was eligible to enter the consignment sale on the first day for free (typically this company charges about $3 for admission the first day) and bring a few friends.
Related: When to repair your stuff and when to replace it
How payment works
For this particular consignment sale, I was set to make 65% of everything sold, minus a $10 fee to consign. I was given the option of volunteering three hours to receive a 70% cut for my items. In order to pick up my unsold items, rather than having anything that didn't sell donated -- I would have to work two hours at the sale. I opted not to volunteer and to have anything unsold donated.
How much money I made
All in all, I made around $150 consigning multiple items, including a bassinet, a stroller, my maternity wardrobe, and a swing. Was it worth it? Seeing as how the products are out of my house, yes! Would I consign again? Probably not!
Related: 10 things that are cheaper to buy in May
At the end of the day, it was a lot of work and time and in all honesty, I feel that the $150 I earned is not significant enough for the work put into it. Looking back, I would have preferred donating the items to someone in need, as the items were all in good condition. Maybe it was the sale I went to and my pricing, but 65% or even 70% wasn't worth it to me.
Find a consignment sale near you
Check out kidsconsignmentsales.com to find a consignment sale near you! This website lists consignment sales in various regions around the country and offers resources for shoppers and consigners and tips for starting your own sale. If you're more interested in buying than shopping, check out these tips from Southern Savers and Parenting Squad. It won't be your typical shopping experience, but the savings can be worth it!
- By Molly Thornberg
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