Making Sense Of Cents. Learn how to make extra money, reach goals, how to save money, how to start a blog and more. April 14, BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 11 Comments This post may contain affiliate links.

Selling at Flea Markets: Here’s How to Get Started

Please read my disclosure for more info. Today, I have a great post about how to make money selling at flea markets. She runs a booth at a local flea market with her mom. Below is her blog post: A yard sale is a quick way to make some cash. But, when you live in a northern climate like I do, yard sale season is short. A flea market booth stays open all year round, which means you have the opportunity to make money on used or vintage items whatever the weather.

About a year ago, my mom and I were shopping at a local flea market. There is a long strip of them in my area, one right after the other, mixed in with a few thrift stores and antique shops. My mom and I would spend hours at these places, checking out all the cool vintage items, and sometimes critiquing the booths.

As we spent more time together perusing local flea markets, we started to throw around the idea of opening up our own booth. After all, we both had houses full of items we could sell, including vintage furniture, home decor, some new appliances or dish-ware still in the box, gently used clothes and shoes, and our own handmade crafts. Opening up a flea market booth sounded like a great way to clean out our houses while earning some extra cash.

Flea market booths, if done right, are a great source of side income. The rent is fairly cheap when selling at flea markets, depending on your local market. Their success tends to ebb and flow with the retail market. They will vary depending on location and on the size of the booth.

Rental fees are usually charged monthly, though some flea markets will offer a discount if a vendor pays annually. Vendors are then supplied with a certain amount of space to sell their wares. Flea markets may or may not provide guidelines to vendors on what kinds of items they are allowed to sell.

Some allow used or vintage items only. Be sure to ask about this up front. The majority of flea markets are staffed by the owners or the people they hire.

The one I sell at does not. It provides hourly employees who man the cashier station, answer the phone, and answer questions. This allows vendors to be as hands-on or hands-off as they want to be.

Starting your own booth and selling at flea markets does require a little homework, but once you find a spot, things move pretty quickly. Every flea market is different. They will all charge different rent amounts for booth space. And they will all offer different booth sizes. This is an ongoing process.

But some general retail techniques can help. First, check out how other vendors have set up their booths. In my booth, we have a long folding table with a nice tablecloth over it along one wall. The back of the booth is covered in pegboard for hanging items. The left side is a wall of bookshelves that house all manner of objects, from a basket of playing cards sets to Pfaltzgraff dishware.

At the end of the day, the flea market staff come around and turn off our surge protector, then turn it on again in the morning. Little touches like these make the shopping experience more pleasant for your potential buyers. Tell your family and friends about your booth and invite them to check it out in person.

Post photos of unique items on your social media feeds. Talk to the flea market owners about doing some grassroots marketing.

She now posts at least once a day, showing pictures of items from all the booths. The social media activity lets people know who we are and what we have available. The owners may even give you a rental discount in return for this kind of work too. Do your part to get people in the door, maintain an interesting inventory, and your flea market booth will be set up for success. Shannon Rooney is a freelance writer, content specialist, and avid side hustler.

She's working to pay down debt and when not laser focused on that, she enjoys reading and spending time with her family.

How to Make Money Selling Items at a Flea Market

Learn more at ShannonRooney. Join the free email course and f inally learn how to manage your money better, pay off debt, save more money, and reach financial freedom. Budget , Extra Income Tagged With: Budget , Extra Money , Hustle Series.

Michelle is the founder of Making Sense of Cents , a blog about personal finance and traveling. She discusses how her business has evolved in her side income series. Click here to learn more about starting a blog! April 14, at 7: I always love going to flea markets… but always as a buyer. I thought that your Aliexpress reselling tip was interesting. What sort of markup works well on Aliexpress items at your Flea Market? April 14, at 1: Prices on AliExpress vary quite widely. And the mark-up we use depends on the size and type of item.

April 14, at 9: I can imagine it either bringing in a real nice income, or being really hard to eke out a living, depending on a lot of variables.

Yes, it definitely depends on how the retail market in your area is doing in general. April 14, at I learned my earliest childhood money lessons by going to flea markets with my grandpa. With his help, I talked a seller down on an old vintage baseball bat. It was the first time I ever threatened the use of walk-away power, and it was an awesome experience.

Being on the other side of the flea market experience would sure be interesting. If you have the right personality and eye for selling items of high value, this could be a great side hustle or even a great full-time gig. Thanks for sharing your experience, Shannon! Frugal Asian Finance says. This sounds like a great plan! Yard sales are super hit and miss. Beth The Money Pixie says. April 16, at 2: This is great information. I read a story about a man in Florida that would go dumpster diving and then sell what he found at a flea market.

April 28, at 2: What a great story! May 10, at Your email address will not be published. Making Sense Of Cents Learn how to make extra money, reach goals, how to save money, how to start a blog and more. JOIN OVER , MONTHLY READERS!

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How To Save Money Make Extra Income Debt Payoff Travel Tips. How to Make Extra Money with a Flea Market Booth April 14, BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 11 Comments This post may contain affiliate links. Selling at flea markets.

Related reads about selling at flea markets: It turns out we were right! And merchandise is fun and easy to source. I will offer one caveat: Here is how to make money selling at flea markets: How to Start Your Own Flea Market Booth And Start Selling At Flea Markets Starting your own booth and selling at flea markets does require a little homework, but once you find a spot, things move pretty quickly. Scout Out Your Location Every flea market is different. Here are some things to consider: Location Location Location — See if you can find a flea market situated in the same area as a few others, or with a group of antique or second hand shops.

Shoppers tend to visit these kinds of places all in one go. Antique malls and flea markets are also popular stops for senior bus trips. So, if you can get in with a group of shops, do it.

Shoppers tend to do more thorough looking there. This is basic retail merchandising. Talk to other vendors.

They will be able to give you the skinny on all aspects of booth set-up: Ask if the flea market has security cameras or provides locked cases for small or valuable items. The market may even provide display cases for a small rental fee. Start Small — Every flea market offers different booth sizes and some booths will be bigger than others in the same market. Will you be starting with mostly knick knacks?

Or do you need space for large pieces of furniture.

I recommend starting with a smaller to medium-sized space. You can always size up later as your business gets going. Here are some possible places to find items to sell in your flea market booth: Scour the attic and basement. Do a real purge and de-clutter. Take your gently used items to your booth. Garage sales and estate sales. Facebook yard sale groups. I bet your area has one.

See something interesting on the side of the road? Jewelry is a serendipitous find for most people. Put out a variety of necklaces, earrings, bracelets, rings, and watches. We all love something unique during the holidays. Decorate your displays seasonally with purchasable items—for example, autumn leaf decor in the fall, eggs at Easter time, and lights and ornaments at Christmas. The rustic farmhouse look is going strong and anything nostalgic is a hot commodity.

Think egg baskets, rusty saws, window screens, tin toys, and old typewriters. Stools, ottomans, end tables, and slim corner shelving units—these all sell well in our booth. Some are refinished vintage and some are nearly new. If the pieces are useful and can fit in a trunk, they go. Vintage and new, place these around the edge of your booth at kid height. They are easy impulse buys. Dolls, teddy bears, and little playsets sell well for us.

My mom and I both love crafting. Flea market shoppers are usually looking for a deal. Board games and puzzles: Here are a few other rules of thumb for selling at flea markets: Place several vases on the same shelf. Hang vintage baking tins on hooks in a line. Place small toys in a colorful bin ready to be rifled through. Grouping similar things together helps your customers take visual stock of your inventory.

You may want every one of your items in your booth at once in an effort show how many things you have. Label and price everything. How much is it?

This is what bargain shoppers want to know. Make the information easy to find by labeling and pricing everything. Your flea market will let you know of their own guidelines for marking things as well.

Join the free Master Your Money course! There was an error submitting your subscription. Comments Nate Matherson says April 14, at 7: I also have great memories of going to flea markets with my grandma. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Learning how to save money and make more money changed my life.

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