Car Boot Virgin

choogirl

Hi

I'm sorry if this question has been asked lots of times before but I would really appreciate some help and advice.

I'm going to be doing my first carboot sale in a few weeks time and would appreciate some help on the following 2 areas

1) Do I put a price tag on, stating the price that I would like and then haggle with the potential buyer or do I just leave it to the discretion of the buyer to offer what they think is appropriate?

2) How much should I be aiming to sell items for:

Paperback books - medium thickness
Childrens clothes - in very good condition
Childrens toys - in very good condition

Thanks in advance xx

OneYorkshireLass

I would price everything up too, makes it far simpler. I'm not sure what price to put on things; haven't done a car boot in years so hopefully someone can give a rough estimate.

If you've never done a car boot before I strongly recommend that if, when you first arrive, you find people are trying to get a look at what you've got before you've even opened the door then park up and go for a wander for five minutes. Otherwise you find things can go 'missing' from the stall when you're trying to set up and people will try and get away with cheeky prices because you're distracted.
If they crowd round you when you're setting up then say you're not selling until you have got everything out, say in five minutes' time.
It is worth doing this as some people really will take advantage if it's busy.

kerri_gt

Personally I differ from DirtyCash's opinion - I did my first car boot last year, spent ages tagging everything with prices and tbh, I found that people still asked how much things were, or would haggle, or the bloomin things just got tangled together etc etc. For the time it took to price everything up, I found it wasn't really worth it, and people don't seem to really expect ot have prices on everything anyway.

I did some more after that and didn't bother pricing things, it didn't seem to put people off.

For things like books etc, you could just make a poster with the price, something like 'paperbacks £1 each or 2 for £1.50'. See how they go - you can always remove the sign/reduce the price if they aren't shifting.

Lots of people tend to sell children's clothes and toys. My friend (whom I share a stall with - that way we split the entrance fee, and can each take a quick trip to the loo if nature calls ) tends to sell most items for 50p - £1. These include t-shirts, shorts, summer dresses, etc etc. Kids coats or a nice party dress she will sell for £2-£3.

I tend to sell a lot of adult clothes from anything between

£1/£1.50 for a summer top/t-shirt,
£2/£2.50 for cardigans / men's shirts
£3 / £4 for jeans /trousers

Some things like coats or jackets can go for more. I have sold items for more than this before but most of this stuff is just old clothing I want to shift.

People will try and haggle and want something for nothing, I've asked 50p for items before and some cheeky people offer 5p / 10p. My advise is don't be afraid to say no to them

You will get people coming up at the beginning asking if you have perfume / jewellary / mobile phones etc, just stay in your car or politely say no and then ignore them - they will go away. Same for those who like to 'rush' the car as soon as you get there, often they are dealers or people looking for bargains. I tend to stay in my car for a few mins and they soon move on.

Take your own flask of tea and something to eat while you are there - saves you spending your profit on drinks and snacks from the food vans.

If you have one, hang clothes on a clothes rail (needs to be study as some tend to blow over in the wind) and lay other items out on a table. We used to use a pasting table which has now given up the ghost so bought a new table from Homebase this year. it was £40 but we split that between two of us, and it's paid iteself back from our first car boot profit of the year. I don't suggest you rush out and spend that on a table for your first car boot, but just a thought for the future if you decide to do more.

Don't be afraid of people, they will try and haggle, and some (unfrotunately) can be a bit rude - but you're the stall holder so you are in control. Most of all have fun :)

soolin

Prices depend on area. For me paperback books go for about 10p-20p if in good condition, clothes around 20-30p a piece maybe offer 4 items for £1.

I've only ever sold a few toys and have received hardly anythign for them unfortunately.

I did start pricing some of my items up, but people just ignored the price and still asked 'how much', so I don't bother now.

There are several car boot threads, including a sticky with tips, on the ebay board that you might find of use (see my sig)

lincroft1710

I have found that books don't sell that well at car boots, you may be lucky to get even 50p each for them. Many stallholders have them for 10p or 20p, even recently published ones and in good condition. With children's toys and books there could be lots of competition, so if you price too high, you won't sell.

I would suggest you visit your potential site as a buyer at least once before you go as a seller. You can then judge the type of buyers and what prices are like.

Finally don't be surprised at very low offers, even if an item is priced reasonably. Just decide whether you want to hold out for your price or are prepared to let it go, so you don't have to take it back home again.

blossomhill_2

choogirl wrote: »

Hi
[ ]
1) Do I put a price tag on, stating the price that I would like and then haggle with the potential buyer or do I just leave it to the discretion of the buyer to offer what they think is appropriate?

2) How much should I be aiming to sell items for:

Paperback books - medium thickness
[ ]

I price up the cheap things - as a shopper I find I buy some things I wouldn't have bothered with if I see they are only 20p/30p/50p and then I ask prices for the posher things; once I have a deal with the stallholder I am more likely to be a bit more genrous for the posher items

As a stallholder I ask 40p for medium paperbacks (or 3 for £1 as i dont want to cart them home) but happily pay 50p each if in good condition

DO please be aware that sad people steal things and pass counterfeit notes - take a note detector pen and make sure you don't put your valuables out until you can give your full attention - beware the early people who rush you as some of them may try to distract you while their tealeaf mates rob you :mad:

They also do this by asking for carraier bags - I am not a shop so I dont allow myself to feel obliged to find a bag for them - they knew they were coming to a sale, they could have brought one. Nice people get a posh carrier from me though :rotfl:

Dont be pushed into changing a £20 note for a 20p sale (sometimes this is a ploy to cash up fake notes) - if you say "sorry no change" a genuine buyer will either come back with the 20p or you will sell to another buyer later

As you arrive and are unpacking; ask much more than you really want for your stuff - you may get it or it may cause buyers to leave you alone for a while until you get your bearings - don't be flattered by a lot of buyers - they'll come back if your stuff is interesting enough

Only put one out of good shoes

We don't haggle until about an hour before the end either - if it's a good site you wont need to too

If someone says you are too dear but hangs around, ask them to move on to make room for buyers who do realise the value of what you are selling

Also we always say "no" to the early buyers who always come round asking if you have jewelery/phones/gold/perfume - they won't be planning to give the best price so we won't let them pressure us when we need to set up the stall

Its a great time and we love it, so dont let these pointers put you off - just learn from our experiences

We have taken a lot of money over the past two years on things we would have previously thrown out and its fun too

smj43

I sold a few things at car boots. We have a lot of new odd bits around the house like gaffer tape, earphones, paint etc. That sort of stuff sells really well for some reason.

wishuponastar

I did my first and second car boot last year and wasnt sure exactly what ot expect at the first one.

I had priced a few things but then folk would haggle and ask how much. So i would say that its more hassle and takes the fun out of people asking how much and haggling...which is why folk love a CBS to get a bargain.

Also if you have a lot of itmes you want to get rid of put them on display and say everything on this table Xp each or 5 items for the price of four.

I was prepared for folk bringing a lot of notes but most people brought cash and the right money. but better to be prepared than not. Mine was beside a large shop so i was going to tell people if they only had a large note to change it in the large store if i was suspicious of its markings.

If you get asked can you keep something for someone before they paid for it its up to you but it can be tricky....
-you can either say no sorry first come first served,
-or keep it for a set time period....say you will keep it for five ten mins. if they havent returned after the time say you will put it out again.

Happy booting

AnnaLicious_2

Most children's clothes go for 50p. You'll get £1 for things like coats and jackets. Books don't sell well, as others have mentioned. I'd sell books on ebay, or to a used book store, instead. The only people that do well at car boot sales are selling large volumes of more expensive things, like collectables. But it's a good way to clear out your house of unwanted little things.

I did see someone once with a clothes rail full of children's clothes. The clothes all had handwritten tags saying 'Monsoon, 6-9 months £12'. She had a scowl on her face, and didn't look like she sold anything. I'd only sell brands like george, F&F, ladybird at a car boot. Next, mothercare, monsoon I'd put on ebay.

I've found the worst thieves are 9 year old boys. They have sticky fingers at car boots!! Not all boys, obviously, but that has been my experience. I do know there are professional thieves out there.

kerri_gt

Another tip I have, is try not to think about how much you originally paid for an item when you are selling it. You're unlikely to get anything near that value back. Instead, I think about how much it's making me by sitting at home (ie nothing) and then accepting a reasonable price for it's sale is far more satisfying. I'd rather have a couple of extra quid 'cluttering' up my bank account than an item I don't wear cluttering up my wardrobe

lincroft1710

kerri_gt wrote: »

Another tip I have, is try not to think about how much you originally paid for an item when you are selling it. You're unlikely to get anything near that value back. Instead, I think about how much it's making me by sitting at home (ie nothing) and then accepting a reasonable price for it's sale is far more satisfying. I'd rather have a couple of extra quid 'cluttering' up my bank account than an item I don't wear cluttering up my wardrobe

In full agreement with this.