How to Sell Items at a Flea Market
There is a right way to sell your new and pre-owned merchandise at a flea market. Nonchalant, rude or bored vendors put off visitors browsing their wares. Carrying on conversations with neighboring vendors and assistants but not with potential customers also deters sales. Incorrect pricing, dirty items, and a bad appearance and attitude make shoppers walk right by. You can sell your product or service the right way at a flea market by taking care to check yourself and your items before your potential customers do.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Decorations for table (your choice)
- Racks for clothing (optional)
- Cloth
- Spray cleaner
- Price tags
- Instrumental music
- Microphone (optional)
Instructions
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Ask someone to help you work at the flea market. This person should be available to answer questions and help you set up.
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Decorate your table and space with bright colorful items such as a tablecloth, balloons, real or fake flowers and other things that are eye-catching.
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Put all of your best items up front to the right or in the middle of your table. Less attractive items should be placed behind the appealing items or off to the left side. Most people will either look at the middle of your table first, or from left to right as we do when we read.
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Organize small items so they are not buried underneath larger ones.
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Hang clothing on a rack or place neatly folded on your table, similar to the displays in clothing stores. Remove any stained or flawed clothing into a separate area and clearly state its condition to customers.
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Check that all toys, novelties and housewares are clean. If not, be sure you have a cloth and cleaner on hand to spruce up those items.
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Place price tags on all items.
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Play instrumental music or use a microphone to draw people to your table.
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Talk to people. Offer bargain prices, discounts or drawings to get people to come to your table.
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Take a break and walk around. Observe the way the best and the worst vendors operate. Do their tables look poorly arranged? What about their appearance? Are their prices inflated? What makes the seller good?
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Tips & Warnings
The best salespeople are the ones who know their product. Provide a product history or story about your items.
Be careful of people who linger at your table for a long time chatting with you and monopolizing your attention. These people may have accomplices who are picking from your table while the talker is distracting you. Answer questions, but always keep your eye on others visiting your table. Tell your assistant to do the same.
