Whenever I mention my youth ministry’s rummage sale to people, they usually ask in disbelief, “You’re really doing that again?”
To be sure, rummage sales are a ton of work; but as a youth worker, I love how they encourage people to purge in a culture that encourages consumption. Even though successful sales still require help from adults, rummage sales are also do-able for high school youth who can help sort, organize and price items in preparation for the sale and welcome, guide and help people on sale day.
Rummage sales are also great because they allow you to raise money from people outside your church community. At the same time, they provide a much-needed resource for people. Low prices enable those who otherwise cannot afford goods to shop with dignity and purchase items for their families. By donating unsold items to charities who can then sell them in their resale shops, rummage sales also benefit others long after they end.
With that in mind, here are 20 tips for making your rummage sale a success.
1. Set the date of your sale up to a year in advance. Unless you live in a place with reliably good weather, schedule your sale for a large indoor space.
2. Within your congregation, start publicizing your sale six months ahead of time. Ask people to save their unwanted items for the sale. Tell people what you won’t accept as donations. (For example: We don’t accept CRT computer monitors because they’re difficult to dispose of afterward.)
3. Six weeks before your sale, order yard signage. Companies such as FastSigns produce professional banners at reasonable costs. Including the day of the week (as opposed to a specific date) and the time of the sale will enable you to reuse banners year after year.
4. A month before the sale, invite people to bring donations to a designated storage area. Arrange to pick up items from those who cannot get them to you themselves. Call local resale shops to arrange for a pickup of unsold items.
5. The month before the sale, solicit volunteers to work during set-up shifts and the sale itself.
6. Prior to your first set-up shift, consider the flow of your sale. If possible, have customers enter and exit using different doors. This prevents confusion and congestion. Decide where to display large items such as furniture so customers can remove them easily after purchasing them. Place items such as jewelry that are easy for people to pocket near where people are checking out.
7. If possible, arrange tables prior to your first set-up shift. To help people efficiently sort donations, label tables according to what you want on them. Use categories such as Women’s Tops, Women’s Pants, Men’s Tops, Men’s Pants, Baby, Sporting Equipment, Electronics, Christmas, Holiday, Kitchenware, Linens, Books, Toys, Games, DVDs, CDs and Frames. Consider having a New category for items still in their original packaging and a Collector’s Table for items such as Lenox china or Precious Moments. Such items garner higher prices than other other goods.
8. As you sort, save boxes and bags. Use these to pack everything up at the end of your sale.
9. When you have lots of something, don’t price them individually. Instead, post signs that clearly designate one price for that item. For example, tops might be 50 cents. Price toys by the bag: A lunch bag worth of toys might cost $1. To ensure nothing other than toys get slipped into bags, on the day of the sale, have students staple bags shut before people leave the toy area.
10. Price everything else individually, and price low to get your stuff sold. To prevent customers from trying to adjust prices, use one type of price tag for everything. To change a price, use a new price tag rather than crossing out prices. To make checkout easier, use whole number increments whenever possible. If you have to use change, use quarters rather than dimes, nickels and pennies. Don’t have people price items they brought—they’ll always see more value in them than they’re actually worth.
11. The week of your sale, hang your yard banner and place classified ads in your local paper. Ads are how most customers find out about rummage sales. Never cut corners to save costs in this area.
12. Only accept cash at your sale. The day before your sale, get lots of $5s, $1s and quarters so you have change at the start of your day.
13. Ask volunteers to arrive an hour before your sale begins in order to do last-minute preparations. Keep all exterior doors locked until your sale begins. (Trust me, people will arrive early!) Keep all rooms in your building not being used for the sale locked.
14. Assign each volunteer a role. Roles might include greeting people as they arrive (in the parking lot and outside entrances, directing them where to go), straightening items, checking people out, bagging items, and helping people carry items to their cars.
15. Assign a few people to be bargainers. Having someone other than cashiers negotiate prices saves everyone aggravation and makes checkout lines go faster. Provide bargainers with a separate form to give customers that contains the original price, the negotiated price and their signature.
16. To avoid having large amounts of money around, frequently empty cash boxes. Lock the money into a safe or office.
17. An hour before the sale ends, hold a clothing bag sale. Distribute bags and tell customers they can have all the clothes that fit in the bag for $2.
18. Thirty minutes before your sale ends, begin encouraging people to make their final decisions and check out.
19. As soon as the sale ends, pack up items (even if customers are still in the room). Take packed items to a central location from which they can be loaded onto your charity’s truck when it arrives. Ideally, schedule the charity pickup for two hours after your sale ends.
20. Count your proceeds and celebrate how much you’ve raised!
