Flea market vendors!

I wasn't sure where to post this, I've been out of the loop on ATS for some time but I'm back! A little back story:

My family is on a strict budget and have made the decision to move to lower rent/utilities, unfortunately our lease isn't up until April. We will be downsizing from a 3 bedroom/3 bathroom apartment to a 2 bedroom/1 bathroom house with a basement. I have.....a lot of stuff. I also go to auctions and have been selling on CL and Ebay for a short time now, and it seems I have a special talent for finding valuable items

I sold at a flea market for the first time this past weekend, I did a Saturday and Sunday. I paid a total of $20 for the space for the 2 days. I made that money back and...very little else. What I made will be put toward next weekend, and a few dollars to break a $10 or $20 bill for a buyer. The flea market I am selling at is currently only "soft opened" and is having their ***GRAND OPENING*** this weekend. I am unable to get a regular job because of my health, so we have pretty much put the farm on the line by starting daycare for my 2 year old so I can get ready throughout the week to sell and pick more items to sell if I run out, and have him in daycare on Fridays and some Saturdays(so the husband gets a break too). Needless to say, I only have a few weekends to "gamble" on making money at the FM, and then it's toast and I'm back to being jobless and unhappy.

So down to the meat and potatoes....what are some excellent strategies for a flea market vendor? Advertising is out of the question, although I put an ad on CL making sure people know there ARE outside tables too(we get ignored a lot). This weekend is expected to be busy and I want as many tips as I can get.

*table arrangement
*haggling without losing money
*how to handle price rejection (something is fairly priced but they won't haggle and they walk away)
*how to showcase the "good" items (some higher priced) without having the smaller things ignored

ETC ETC ETC! any help is appreciated!!!!

price stuff up at twice the min price you'll accept so you can give a discount but not cut your own throat and stick labels on everything so you dont have to mess around remembering prices

bring plenty of change/wrapping materials if the stuffs delicate/ your own food and drink

two people on a stall is better so you can answer natures call and watch out for dodgy people trying to get a freebie

reply to post by Maxatoria


I have a great neighbor who watches my table when I take a potty break. Very nice guy and makes the time go by fast...

I have realized that bringing my own food and drink is absolutely imperative. I didn't realize how much of a dent $6 would make on my "profits"

I visit flea markets pretty regularly for survival type items on the cheap.

Here is what I think is successful:

1. Prices on everything. No need for me to guess. Completely disagree on setting prices 2x what you would take. If I see something I like, I am not going to attempt to haggle on price 2x what I reasonably think it's worth.

2. Attention getter. Tie some balloons to your table. Something that causes my eye to go in your direction.

3. Signs, signs, signs, put some signs on your table, booth. Let me know what you have from 60 feet away.

4. Friendly, talk to people. Ask them how they are doing, etc...

5. Spend time with those who deserve it. Make sure you are not wasting your time with those that want to chat, versus those that want to buy. Feel free to talk to new people who show the slightest interest in your wares, even if you are in the middle of talking to someone else.

6. Paracord Bracelets are popular. Buy cord in bulk. $0.50 cents in cord and sell for $7 one color, $10 two colors.

You have to put yourself in the consumers shoes ask some questions here, most importantly: Why should I, as a consumer, visit your booth? What will draw me in, what will keep me there? Why should I purchase items from you when I could probably find them elsewhere at the market?

While I am not familiar with hosting or managing a flea market booth I imagine it must be similar to running an exposition or trade-show booth. With that said, below are trade show booth tips and etiquette that you may (or may not) be able to apply:

I hope you can find some of this useful...

Greetings and body language: Attendees are looking to the exhibit staff for a reason to spend time at the booth.

The following body language will help to convey a professional and approachable demeanor:
a. Stand up and greet attendees in front of the booth
b. Eye contact
c. Smile and make eye contact at attendees from all directions
d. Speak with attendees, not with each other
e. Sit down only if you are with a client who wishes to sit down
f. Do not cross arms or legs
g. Thanks attendees for spending time at the booth when they arrive and leave

Food and beverage: A common tradeshow booth etiquette violation occurs when food and drink is kept within the booth for personal consumption. It is easy to spot a dirty napkin, wrapper, plastic bottle and other items that are not part of the booth.

Engage attendees: It is important for staff to quickly introduce themselves and ask attendees questions quickly to find out if they can help in any way. (I will write a script with questions for this purpose).

Script: Everyone at your booth should be assigned a specific task and script related to their task/area to cover.

This is highly critical to present the organization as organized and efficient! We all need to be prepared to answer questions and understand where to get more information if necessary. We will all be managing the booth so we will all have limited expertise/authority and be accessible at all times outside the scope of our assignments for the day.

Dress code: We should all be wearing some form of corporate dress. However, our colors and style should be consistent and professional. I’m not going to tell anyone how to dress but I do want to make sure we match the theme of our booth and are dressed appropriately to conduct business.

Booth set up and maintenance: Further along in this document there is a tradeshow item checklist. This will give everyone an idea of the items we will have for the day of. Empty boxes, etc. will be stored under the skirted table. The area should always be neat, organized and well maintained with our promotional materials. We should all keep this in mind throughout the day.

More tips:
1. You never get a second chance to make a first impression. This will be our tradeshow booth motto.
2. A trade show is a non-stop series of beginnings. Every moment will be a chance to meet a new client or media outlet for the first time.
3. If all goes well, these crucial first moments will launch a mutually profitable relationship that will last for years.
4. Remember…. We must begin well and then work hard to negotiate and or close a deal.

What are we selling?

What you are really selling is YOU. Today’s consumers are nervous, this is a highly volatile economy and we have seen many companies fail… so how do our potential clients know who they can trust? There is a due-diligence component to business but a surprising number of decisions are made by people “trusting their guts”. During those crucial first minutes when you’re checking out the attendee, they are checking you out as well. They’re perhaps unconsciously assessing what they perceive as your intentions and motivations. Let’s face it; nobody believes they can get a good deal from someone they don’t believe is a good person.

PEOPLE HAVE TO BUY YOU BEFORE THEY CAN BUY YOUR SERVICE or GOOD!
Non-verbal communication plays a huge role. Attendees are constantly watching. If your body language conveys the fact that you don’t want to be at the show, would prefer not to engage with the attendees, or are just going through the motions, they’ll pick up on that and walk right by.

Don’t stand at the corner of the booth with your arms folded, don’t sit down, yawn, look thru a magazine, look at your watch or chat about non business related things…. People won’t come to our booth if our body language says “go away”.

Remember to “listen” to the attendee. Ask questions and listen to their answers, give them your full attention, hear what they are saying and offer appropriate responses. Focus on the attendee and stay engaged and committed even if it’s only for a couple of minutes. This is the easiest way to create a positive first impression.

Tradeshow Booth:
1. Think neatness and visibility: We will use various methods of display like display board, tri-pod with poster board, etc. All items should be at eye level to the customer to draw them to the display. The display will be organized and tidy. Customers will be turned off if they are confused, feel claustrophobic or have to search around for information.
2. Build the impression of demand: Customers will want our service more if they think we are in high demand.
3. Pull a crowd: By using interactive displays such as a raffle or a laptop slideshow will be an effective way to pull people over to our booth.
4. Have a stock of promotional items and giveaways: Little bags w/candy, pens, key chains, bumper stickers, etc…
5. Prize or contest: Have a raffle.
6. Make it easy for attendees to get information: Use signs in our display to give basic information.
7. Promotional Literature or information about items that you are selling
8. Must come up with a cohesive booth design

reply to post by Skorpiogurl


Skorpiogirl and Zestor, thank you! Before I started selling I admit I didn't visit FMs very often. I got some awesome advice from both of you, thank you!!