The sign is up!

Pictures from the spring 2010 sale

Tips for the next sale

Everytime I have a sale I'm sure I'll learn more and more about what works and what doesn't. Here are a few things I learned from this sale:

- 1/2 price day was the best selling day, so if you really want to sell your items allow them to go for 1/2 price on half price day!

- everyone is looking for a deal so, price your items $6 and less and that will draw attention to your items, especially on 1/2 price day!

- Shoes didn't sell as well as I thought they would, next sale I'll only allow 3 pair per consignor with an opportunity to bring more if they sell well. I will be thinking about a better way to display the shoes for the next sale.

- Purses sold well, however we had so many that I will limit purses to 3 per consignor with an opportunity to bring more if they sell well. It seemed that the majority of purses that sold were Vera Bradley and Coaches! They sold for about $12 on average. So if you have some you'd like to sell make sure they are clean inside and out. Price them a little higher and allow them to go for 1/2 price on the last day of the sale. A lot of people were very excited to see them at the sale!

- Jeans and pants... Next sale they will have to be hung with pants hangers, the kind that the dept stores use or pinned to hangers using the giant safety pins ONLY. Customers wanting to try them on had a difficult time doing so with all the small safety pins.

- Shirts that are safety pinned to the hangers will not be accepted next time. Too many pins were too much for the customers. I understand you wanting your item to stay put but with customers trying them on. The best thing you can do is securely attach the tag with your info on it.

- I really want the Flip Flop to stand out and be different than the local consignment stores, however clothing over 10 years old will no longer be accepted. Most of the local consignment shops say no older than a season or two so I'm still within reason there and will still accept any brand and any size, but we really had some items that were just too old for anyone to want to buy. Keep in mind the work you put into preparing your items you don't want to waste time on items that just won't sell. Older than 10 years, items with stains, fading, holes or just too much wear won't sell so don't waste your time.

Thanks for all of you who put your trust in me! I will do my best to provide a great place for you to sell your things!! Please tell all your friends about the Flip Flop!!

Drop off schedule

Drop off for the fall/winter sale will be:

Sunday, October 3rd from noon-8pm

Monday, October 4th from 9am-8pm

Volunteer Schedule

In order for the sale to acheive and maintain a high quality event I will need volunteers. Here is a list of the dates and times available to work, please contact me to schedule your time.

Sunday, October 3rd:
Noon-4pm (help with drop off)
4pm-8pm (help with drop off)

Monday, October 4th:
9am-1pm (help with drop off)
1pm-5pm (help with drop off)
4pm-8pm (help with drop off)

Tuesday, October 5th:
10am-2pm (organize for sale)
1pm-5pm (private sale, fitting room, help shoppers and check out)
5pm-9pm (private sale, fitting room, help shoppers and check out)

Wednesday, October 6th-8th:
10am-2pm (private sale, fitting room, help shoppers and check out)
1pm-5pm (private sale, fitting room, help shoppers and check out)
4pm-8pm (private sale, fitting room, help shoppers and check out)

Saturday, October 9th:
9am-1pm (1/2 price sale, fitting room, help shoppers, check out)
1pm-5pm (sort)
4pm-8pm (sort)

Sunday, October 10th:
Noon-4pm (pick-up, help consignors find there stuff and check tags)

All you need to know

Items accepted and other info for the fall/winter 2010 Flip Flop Consignment:

Thank you for consigning with the Flip Flop. I am excited about helping you earn some money by getting rid of clothes you no longer want and giving you an opportunity to shop for clothes at the Private sale. Consignors get 70% of the sell price and I get the other 30%. There is a 20 item minimum and a $15.00 consignors fee to participate. The consignors fee will be taken out of your earnings check. However if you volunteer at least one 4 hour shift the fee is reduced to $5 and you will receive 75% of your sales.


Busy Body Option:

Try the Busy Body’s Option if your too busy to prepare your clothes. Just bring your clothes, hangers and index cards and I’ll prepare them for the sale for you. For a small fee and 50% of the sale price you get to consign your clothes with less work and still have the opportunity to shop the Private sale.

Women all brands, all sizes:

Shirts/blouses (when tagging be sure to mark if they are petite, misses, tall or women’s; women‘s clothing are in even numbers)
Jeans/slacks (when tagging be sure to mark if they are petite, misses, tall or women’s)
Skirts (when tagging be sure to mark if they are petite, misses, tall or women’s)
Dresses (when tagging be sure to mark if they are petite, misses, tall or women’s)
Bras (in good condition clearly stating size)
Pajamas
Purses (3 per consignor)
Belts (3 per consignor)
Hats (3 per consignor)
Shoes (make sure they are safely attached as to not get lost or separated) (3 per consignor)
Fitness Apparel
Laptop bags
Jackets/coats

Men’s all brands all sizes:

Shirts (long and short sleeved button up dress shirts, all other shirts need to be short sleeved only) (also be sure to mark the size correctly using the width of neck and length of arm ex. 15.5-32/33 for dress shirts)
Suits (when tagging be sure to mark if they are short, regular or tall)
Jeans/slacks (when tagging be sure to mark width and length ex. 36x38)
Pajamas
Belts
Ties
Hats (3 per consignor)
Shoes (make sure they are safely attached as to not get lost or separated) (3 per consignor)
Fitness Apparel
Brief cases
Laptop bags
Jackets/coats

Home Interior Items:

Candles
Pictures or frames
Bedding
Window coverings
Knick knacks
Plants
And any other item you can think to decorate your home

Furniture:

tables
couches
chairs
etc...

Fitness Equipment:

Stairsteppers
treadmills
weights
etc...

Electronics:

tv's
vcr/dvd players
sound systems
stereos
etc...

Preparing your items:

A few things to consider I will only accept items that are in good condition, no fading or noticeable wear please. Items must be appropriate for the fall and winter seasons. Remember to wash all items and you may want to iron them for best appearance. If coming from a smoking home please wash, tag and deliver ASAP. If the items stink they won’t sell. Please use wire hangers only. Use index cards for tagging, follow template at bottom of page for tagging instructions. Use only steel safety pins. Price all items in $.50 increments with nothing under $2.00, meaning$2.00, $2.50, $3.00, $3.50 etc…. Pair items together to raise the value to $2.00 or more. Lastly, if you don’t want your item to sell for ½ price at the ½ price sell please put a red dot in front of the price. If there is no red dot it will sell for ½ price. If you are planning to donate your items you may want to price them on the low end. It would be better to sell everything at a lower price then to sell a few things at a higher price.

Provide a brief description of your item. (Example: Sonoma Red Shirt or Land’s End Skirt Khaki.) Also, provide the size XS-XL or use the number size. Also state if it is petite, misses or women’s. Then provide a price of your choosing as well as a red dot if you don’t want your items to go for half price on half price day. Remember to price your items fairly think about what you would pay for them at a consignment or price it about a 1/4 of what you paid for it. Also, take into consideration that a lot of the dept stores are offering deep discounts and sales, so price your items competitively.

Drop off:

Dropping off your items to sell will begin on Sunday, October 3th from noon - 8pm and on Monday, October 4th from 9am - 8pm. Please let me know if your are unable to deliver your items between these times so we can make other arrangements. Along with your items please bring a self addressed stamped envelop to drop off. This will expedite getting the checks in the mail after the sale.
Before arriving to drop off your items be sure they are separated into sizes, that way it is easier for us to put them on the racks and get you on your way. Upon arrival you will need to check in at the desk to sign your consignor agreement and to confirm your volunteer shift if you’ve sign up. At that point you will be able to get your items and bring them in. The items will be inspected for stains, holes and wear. If all is good you will be free to go.

Volunteering:

In order for the Flip Flop Consignment to achieve and maintain a high quality event, I rely on volunteers to work at least one 4 hour shift. This is not mandatory however it is very much needed and appreciated. By volunteering you will receive 75% from the sale of your items, instead of 70% if not volunteering. The consignors fee will also be reduced to $5.00.

Consignors who volunteer to work a shift will be held responsible for showing up for the specific time agreed upon. If a consignor is unable to work the assigned shift and is unable to find a replacement will be charged a fee of $20 that will be deducted from their earnings. Volunteers do not have to be the consignor themselves. Husbands, wives, mothers, older children, aunts & uncles can all sign up to volunteer. A volunteer is not consigning will be allowed to shop the Private sale along with the consignors.
Volunteer shifts will be first come first serve. Contact me for times available.


Private sale:

Consignors and volunteers have the opportunity to shop the private sale on Tuesday from 1pm - 9pm. Please bring a photo id to get into the sale. You may also want to bring a bag or clothes basket to hold the items you want to buy.
If you know someone who isn’t a consigner or volunteer let them know they can shop at the Private sale by donating $5 to The Restoration House of East TN at the door and they too will be able to shop the Private sale. 100% of the proceeds go to Thye Restoration House of East TN.

Pick up:

Pick up of your items that didn’t sell will begin Sunday, October 10th at noon. If you don’t want to pick them up or if they are not picked up by 4pm they will be donated to a non-profit organization.
When you arrive to pick up your items you will be greeted at the door by someone who can help. Give them your name and consignor # and they will assist you in locating your items and inspected them to be sure they all have your consignor # on them.

Receiving your check:

Within 10 days after the sale end I will mail you a check. Please remember you receive 70% of the selling price of your items. I will also deduct the $15.00 consignors fee from your check, unless you have volunteered then you receive 75% and the fee for consigning will be $5.00.

Sale Flyers:

I will do all I can to get the word out about the sale however if you can hand out flyers at your child’s school, church, mom’s group, gym… we can spread the word even further! Just contact me and I can email you a flyer.

Business Promoting:

Interested in promoting your business. For $25 provide me with 300 of your flyers, magnets, business cards, catalogs or whatever else you have and I’ll pass out a goody bag to the first 300 customers. This is a great way to get noticed! Limited to first come first serve in each marketed area. Only one Premier Jewelry, one pampered chef and so forth. So, don’t wait contact Keona now to reserve your spot in the goody bag. The promotional material you want to be in the goody bag must be delivered to me by September 30th.

I will alos have vendor tables available. The fee is $150 for all 5 days and an entry into the goody bag or $30 per day. This is a first come first serve in each marketable area and you place is not reserved until payment is received.

If I have forgotten something or you need more information please feel free to call or email 865-898-9307 or keeblek@charter.net
Thank You for choosing the Flip Flop Consignment!
~Keona Keeble~