Consignment sale what to buy/prices?

[birdmom]

I'm pricing stuff for a sale now, and I googled "consignment sale pricing guide." I found some things that broke down how much you should price what type of item by brand name, condition, etc. It's helped me a lot in pricing things, maybe it'll help you. What I'm reading online says you should price at 30% of retail.

[Deleted]

I don't have much experience with consignment sales, we only have one semi-annual one in my small town. I can give you my impression of it, though.

The big items (strollers, bouncy seats, and jumperoo/exersaucers) are too used and too old for me. Our sale typically knocks 30-40% off retail, which is just not enough for me to buy a 4 year old, faded dingy stroller IMHO. I go for smaller gear, toys, books, and clothes. I got a like-new shopping cart cover for $5, tons of toys for $2, good condition board books for $1, and lots of clothes. My price guidelines are roughly:

Shoes $8
Shorts, onesies, t-shirts $3
Dress pants $5

I personally don't care about brands, I buy it if I like it.

[zarapipe]

For gear I can usually find stuff for 40-50 percent of retail.

[Deleted]

Which sale are you going to? I've been to a few in the immediate area and none have had gear. I've also been really unimpressed with the clothes (and you shouldn't get those yet before your shower).

[chia]

Yeah, in your case, I'd just wait a bit. See what you get for your shower, and go from there.

[bunch]

I buy my gear for well less than half of retail, but I go to presales and pretty much buy which ever items are cheapest. I got a pnp for 15, rnp for 15, I've seen bouncers for 10...

[havarti]

If you have items you need to fill out your maternity wardrobe you might find some of that stuff too.

[arch01]

i only buy stuff if it's dirt cheap and i stick to bigger name brands.

sleepers $2, shoes $5, jeans $3, rompers or shirts $2-3

gear-honestly, you'll probably have better luck with the ergo on CL. we have some huge sales around here and i've never seen an ergo. i looked every time until i bought one from another mom.

i'd look for stuff that's at least 50% off.

[barefootcontessa]

This post is helping me price my stuff. I was going to price my clothes too low, it sounds like.

[halfpint]

I don't know about gear - everything I've seen at consignment sales so far has been beat to hell, or else gone by the time I get there. The few things that are in decent condition have been priced at maybe 75% of retail, which was way too much for me.

If you do end up looking at clothes, I just keep in mind that I can get brand new stuff at, for example, Children's Place, for $2.99 on clearance, and use that as a guideline. I have picked up a few pieces here and there, like I got a sweater that retails for $70 (sorry, totally ridiculous), new with tags, for $5.

[whitepicketfence]

I've never had much luck with buying gear at consignment sales. As another poster mentioned, the items are usually too old and not in the best condition. My MIL did find our swing at a sale and got it for about 60% off retail. I also bought our Bumbo seat on eBay and got it for right around half price.

I generally stick to clothes (which I wouldn't buy much of before your shower). I pay anywhere from $1-3 on most pieces.

[chickens987]

Not what you asked but I feel like in this area, the best deals on gear are to be found on our local moms yahoo group - I think around here people clean out and want to get rid of stuff ASAP rather than collect it until there is a sale. I hit up some yard sales last weekend and there wasn't a ton of stuff (although I did get an exersaucer for $5). On the yahoo group I've bought a swing (for my mom's house), a baby k'tan and a clip on highchair. Someone just posted a Boon drying rack for $5. I am sure there is a group for NoVa if you aren't already on it.

[suburbanzookeeper]

I've bought a few smaller pieces of gear at consignment sales but it's been at the pre-sale/consigner's night. By the time it reaches the public most of the good stuff is picked over and what's left is either too old or too highly priced for being used. I tend to stick to Craigslist or my local resale groups if I'm looking for something specific/local.

Another option is Nobetterdeal.com - they deal with overstocks/returns/etc. and I've found some major steals in their baby section: www.nobetterdeal.com/. I usually check once a day (sort by newest) to see what else they've gotten. If you like them on Facebook they often run free shipping or % off promos.

[MadamePresident]

I've only gone to one consignment sale, but I think you would probably do better on Craigslist or at garage sales. I got a Bumbo with a tray for $10 and a like new Moby for $15 from Craigslist, but it did take a few weeks of looking.

[vanillacourage]

I'm selling in my first consignment sale this week, today was the consigner's presale and I sold 15 or so items of clothes, plus a Moby at $15 (bought at Target clearance for $25) and a 5-year-old RF Jumperoo for $30. Woot!