6 Tips for a Successful Family Garage Sale
The sun is out and the kids are out of school, which makes this the perfect time to organize a family garage sale. It’s a great way to clear out clutter, make a bit of cash and get your kids’ entrepreneurial juices flowing.
Here are a few tips to guarantee that your family’s garage sale is a big success:
1. Gather all the items and divide them into categories. Have everyone, young and old, figure out what they would like to contribute to the garage sale and then separate all the items into categories like kitchen, clothing, toys, etc.
2. Advertise your garage sale. The kids (and their friends even) can help make some large signs to put up in your neighborhood to let everyone know about the time and location of your garage sale. You can also place an ad in the paper as well as list it on Craigslist.
3. Presentation is everything. Remember how you separated all items that are for sale into categories? Well, when you set up your sale, think of it as your own tiny department store. Set it up so that items are easy to browse and the whole thing makes sense. If you have tables, use them to display items. Clothes are easier to see if they are hung up on a rolling rack or makeshift clothesline.
4. Price to sell and label clearly. Look, I understand you want to make some money, but the point of a garage sale is also to get rid of things you no longer want or need, so don’t go chargin’ crazy retail prices. Label everything clearly with prices ahead of time. You can buy stickers for this or use masking tape. Make sure the prices are even numbers so you won’t have to give back weird change.
5. Cash is king and small bills rule. Paying customers are gonna need change so make sure you set yourself up for success. Instead of a cash box consider having family members wear aprons with change in the pockets to make it easy to do transactions.
6. Think of the extras. Play some nice music so there isn’t awkward silence while people are browsing, have bags for people to put their purchases in, the kids could also simultaneously run a lemonade/snack stand and make some money that way.
Easy peasy! Have fun, make some money and bond.
Image via slgc/Flickr
