Just like “April showers bring May flowers,” Spring cleaning spawns garage sale season. When I was growing up, my neighborhood held a well coordinated, highly populated annual garage sale event. People would come from far and wide to take part in the Academy Hills HOA Garage Sale. By 10 o’clock, there was not a parking space to be had. Yes, my neighborhood peddled some of the best garbage in the greater Syracuse area. Based on my storied garage sale history, here are some tips if you are thinking of holding or attending a garage sale:
If you pick something up, buy it. Never forget that you are sifting through someone’s junk. At the end of day, what you are looking at will probably be in the trash. The chances of you finding something you actually need or want are very, very slim. Should you find something that actually has utility in your life and you pick it up, you might as well go the rest of the way. If your brain sends the impulse to your hand to hold up a Ronco Inside-The-Egg Scrambler, then go ahead and indulge yourself. It’s probably worth a dollar scramble an egg while it’s still inside its shell, even just once.
If someone makes you an offer, take it. OK, you’ve been holding onto a Commodore 64 computer for sentimental reasons. You’ve amortized what you paid for it in 1984 and you know exactly what it’s worth. And now, some cheapskate from across town wants to give you less than fair market value. Take a deep breath, take his money, and part with your useless computer. Don’t worry about “getting taken.” If someone wants to haggle over a computer from the Reagan era, they probably have the mental fortitude to drive back to your house tonight and pick it up off the curb when it’s free.
Think Mall Thoughts. If you’re looking to move your merchandise, try to provide your customers with a shopping experience they’re familiar with--the local mall. Try wearing one those annoying headsets like they do at The Gap. Make a call to the back to see if you have something in stock. Next to your cash drawer, sell CDs of music inspired by your store. Trust me, it’s no dumber than buying music at Pottery Barn.
Sure eBay and craigslist have taken their toll on our American garage sale tradition. But as long as we have warm Spring days and drivers with a penchant for following cardboard signs, I think garage sales will be with us for quite some time.
