Best Selling Smalls

Thanks Readers, for all the input for great selling smalls (the "it" smalls that sell no matter what)!  We got some great ideas!!!  For any vendor wanting to know what smalls to try selling, you're sure to find some great ideas here.

Here are the suggestions -

• Marti@RESCUE REHAB - License plates!!! Maybe just because I am in Alaska, they are extremely popular, easily fit into a tourist's suitcase and I cannot keep them in stock. -  - great idea for those who live in a popular tourist state

• Sherry@Back2Vintage - I sell lots of vintage children's books (especially Little Golden Books), aprons, wood-handled kitchen utensils and serving pieces like pastry servers and cake knives. 

• Jennifer Nail - I sell A LOT of cookie cutters and red handled utensils in my Vintage Kitchen booth. In my other booths, small milk glass pieces tend to sell very quickly and wire baskets of all shapes and sizes!  

• Betsy@My Salvaged Treasures - I sell LOTS of flattened and stamped silverware garden markers (spoons, forks, knives) It's hard to keep them in stock and I always have to make more between shows.  

• Liz Gant - World globes on a stand. I put one in my booth, turned around to grab a price tag, and a customer already had it in her hand. Quick sale!
  Patricia Lusk Grose added - This was true for me as well. Bought one on Craig's List and felt I may have bought too high- resold and doubled my money within two days.
  Beth Kohn added - Would love to know your sale price.
  Liz Gant answered - Hi Beth. This was a mini globe, shelf size. I found it at a thrift store for $1 and sold for $15.

• Mona Moore - Handkerchiefs, linens and doilies (but you have to display them on a rack or something, not just throw them in a pile), mason jars with zinc lids, old photos, old yardsticks, interesting old books and ones with pretty covers (I parcel these out, a few at a time, displayed around the booth, not crammed into a bookshelf.).

• Melanie Tolbert - All the sudden I am having great luck with the old metal cup trees and the wood ones too. I fund pyrex cup and mugs or other interesting old cups. Paint the holders to match the cups and boom. They are gone.

• Carol Jones Sasser - Small clocks, vintage linens

• Linda Schlott - Here in western NC, linens,globes on a stand,wire baskets,blue mason jars, aprons, large painted picture frames without the glass,kitchen items all do well. I'm so glad that someone asked this question, I've read the comments and got some great ideas!

• Lynne Solomon - In florida, old windows, doors architectural pieces, anything rusty metal . Any piece I buy just for display. ..lol. sugar & creamer sets, butter dishes and silverplate, crocheted or lace tablecloths & doilies.

• Cindy Jothen - I live in southern Arizona and anything western, cowboy, Indian or southwest (shot glasses, figurines, pictures, wind chimes, nightlight, etc)sells to our snowbirds. Other good selling items are linens (hankies, aprons, placemats) and vintage kitchen items.

• Karin Evans - Anything wood, I paint it distress it, wax it....., small wood boxes, sometimes I just stencil with a crown, fleur di lis!

• Charlene Speir Danner - East Alabama: vanity mirror trays, all mirrors, all kinds of trays, wire baskets, white creamer/sugar sets and small crates with mason jars tied with jute ribbon.

• Kathleen Williams Duffey - Trays, small signs, boxes, small painted wood things, anything birds.
  Kelly Stroble added - Same here. Also framed vintage art printed on book pages.

• Deborah Brockman - Anything of good quality sells in my area. I look for makers marks and known names. Also silver plate items, tea cups, tea pots, and trays- almost any kind of tray you are using in a display will fly out the door!

• Leigha Young Burnham - In Georgia I've been selling candlesticks like crazy and pillows....always pillows.
  Barbara Ackerman asked - What kind of candlesticks are you selling...wooden, brass or ceramic?
  Leigha Young Burnham answered - I've sold metal mostly and then recently, really ornate plaster kind. One lady came and bought all from my booth for her daughter's wedding! I had never thought about that....I'm trying to incorporate that idea into my displays.
  Jayne Ann - Right now in my shop it's been lots of sconces, brass candlesticks (not lacquered) and candles 

• Cindy Bailey - trays. all kinds, painted, wood, vintage, modern. just stage them and they sell.  Kathleen Williams Duffey added - Yep! Same here!

• Angie Kuhl - Vintage clear glass canisters with cork stoppers. (our shop is frequented by 20-somethings.)

• Jolene Forrester - Kitschy Salt & Pepper Shakers of animals.

• Mary Elizabeth Cauthen - I do well with odd dishes, bowls, trays and boxes. Also, sets of dishes from pier one, pottery barn, world market, etc.

• Alexandra Byk - Blue Mason jars

• Dana Crowl Schwarting - Distressed frames, architectural finds(like windows) and cloches.

• Catherine Jesse-Stegeman - anything aqua, turquoise

• Holly Daigle - Table cloths and metal ice cube trays

• Sheree Russ - In Michigan it seems to be shaving items (especially old razors), old windows, any old galvanized, one dealer does well with vintage formal dresses, people are asking for chandeliers and even outdoor hanging lights - actually most types of lamps/lighting do well if priced right, and industrial items, even very large pieces are selling well.

• Sharon Damm - Distressed frames with no glass, rusty items, floral, roosters, birds and clocks. In Selma, Ca.

• Janet Sears - Ephemera, keys, sewing notions

• Michelle Grell LaRue - Old books and anything galvanized.

• Stacy Miller Clark - Bed springs do well too.

• Cheryl Stead Henderhan - milk glass bud vases, blue canning jars, old books and doilies

• Marshall Dawn Kutchey - Vintage cookbooks, milk glass, painted frames...

• Yvonne Bullinger - Jewelry, anything nautical, small home decor & surprisingly linens

• Tiffany Ervin Steers - In AL & most of southeast, industrial items (old expandable rulers, yard sticks, wooden handled paint brushes, galvanized "anything", oil cans) any architectural (old windows, door knobs, wooden & porcelain castors, hinges, knobs, pulls, etc., anything w/ birds or nests, suitcases/luggage, vintage linens, silver plate

• Cindy Oplinger McCandlish - Hankies, doilies, buttons, bone China teapots and cup/saucer sets.

• Brenda Kirtley - Distressed larger size empty frames (no glass)

• Donna Smith Sita - Nautical, globes, barware, architectural items, jewelry, paintings

• The Ladybug & Company - Scales: table top or hanging.

• Jenny Polley Sadler - For me horse anything. .globes, aprons,pyrex, cookbooks,tools man stuff depends on which booth too

• Sherri Regenscheid - Wood letter painted or decoupaged

• Spoon Sisters Tiques & Treasures - Advertising memorabilia sells well in our shop.

WE DON'T HAVE TO STOP HERE!  

If you have more ideas, leave a comment on this post!!!

Question: Best Selling Smalls

This post is a little different because I'm asking for reader input.  I got a message from Stephanie (of Lovely Retro Renos) saying, " I would love to hear from your fans/readers what are the "it" smalls that no matter what always move in their booth!"

Great idea!

When I first started a booth, Jacque, one of the most successful vendors at the store passed on all sorts of advice to me.  I remember her saying that the smalls were the bread and butter.  They paid the rent.  They gave you a profit.  The big pieces were icing on the cake, but you may have to wait a little for some of those to sell.

Over time I learned that she was right, but there's such an art to finding the balance.  Too many smalls can keep the big pieces from selling.  Not enough smalls and you won't make enough money to make it worthwhile.  The biggest trick with smalls, of course, is finding great smalls that sell and look great.  While those smalls are in your booth, they should look great.

LEAVE A COMMENT!

Now here's where you come in.  Think about what sells well for you  (or for others in your mall) and leave a comment.  You can leave the comment here or on the similar post I have on the Vintage Showoff Facebook page.

Next week, I'll put the info together and write a post with the best advice about smalls!

Cluttered Booths and Changing Styles

I recently visited a couple of out-of-town antique malls.  It was interesting.  One thing stood out - the clutter effect.  Many of the booths that seemed the most cluttered were having sales - 20% or 30% off everything in the booth.  The regular prices were low.  It was obvious they were just concerned about low sales.

I'm sure there were treasures to be had, but it just looked like a mass of unwanted junk.  I found myself standing in the aisle and doing a quick booth skim.  I didn't even want to enter those booths.  It looked like exactly what I want to steer clear of.  I suspect many customers felt the same way and the poor vendors are no doubt thinking that if they just mark things down, those knick knacks will sell.

It also brought to mind something else that I have noticed more and more.  About 5 years ago, having vintage smalls were all the rage -especially old kitchen items.  Many people decorated with all sorts of things from especially the 40's and 50's.  Magazine photos were full of photos examples of  people who achieved the perfect vintage look.

Now, in those same magazines, you still see some vintage items but having too much now looks overdone and sad.  There will likely always be a draw for vintage items, but the way they are used and showcased changes.  A vendor needs to stay on top of the shifts in styles!

As I've said before, the next hot style doesn't seem to be here yet, but people know what they are tired of!  Unless you are a specialty booth with continuing good sales, you need to make sure your booth isn't selling mostly what most people no longer want to see.  Look through current magazines and popular Pinterest pins to see what is trending in terms of styles and colors.  Keep your booth current and you won't have to have a booth wide clearance sale!

Slow Times During the Year

You may be feeling a bit down in the dumps about your booth sales these last couple of months.   Don't worry.   Things should pick up for you.  This is a typically slow time of year.

Booth vendors would do well to keep the ebb of flow of the year in mind.

During the slow furniture months, you may not sell many large items, but smaller items will get you through.  It's a good idea to plan for that.  If you are very willing to have occasional months when you don't even make your rent, then it's fine to specialize in only large pieces.  It's possible that the sales of your other months will compensate for the off times.

If your booth business is more of a month to month thing and when you don't make a profit, you have little in reserve for finding deals, then you need a back up plan.

The thing is, even though April and May may not be great for sales, they are fantastic months for yard sales. If you don't take advantage of the peak yard sale months (Spring and Fall), you'll be scrambling at other parts of the year to keep your booth full.  And you'll pay higher prices during the off months, too.  You need to save up for the months when there are plenty of good deals.

Even though your big furniture sales may slow down, it's not an entirely dead time of year.  Smaller things do OK.  The things that sell are mostly items that people don't have to think too hard about.  Impulse purchases. 

You've probably made plenty of purchases like this yourself...   You see a cute little table.  It's around $50, give or take.  You think it'll work well in one spot.  If it doesn't, you have a feeling you could use it somewhere else.  If you change your mind about it down the road, you could get rid of it without too much regret.  You make a snap decision to get it.   Those snap decision purchases will sell!

During the slower times,

it's great to have plenty 

of nice things in your booth

that sell for $75 or less.  

Meanwhile, try to resist the urge to slash prices on your large furniture.  Better times are coming!  It's wise to keep the big picture in mind.