Why doesn't glassare, dishes, clothing, books, toys and baskets sell at yard sales?

Question

I have, and also go to other people's lawn/yard/garage/ tag sales. I notice one thing - the items I've listed - nobody even looks at. I guess because my mom was a clothing/basket/glass and dish-aholic, I thought these thing would sell like hotcakes. I only know that she could never pass them up. Now I have a houseful of these things to dispose of and nobody is buying.

Answer 1

You may have priced the items too high. Most people expect to pay pennies on the dollar for yard sale items, no matter what it cost originally, and no matter what its antique value may be.

Clothing, baskets and dishes seldom sell very well; that's why you see so much of those items at second-hand stores. Used toys are germ-breeders and unless you're selling them for just under a dollar, or they're complete in their original boxes, they won't sell well. When my sons were very small, the Transformers were huge Christmas toys, but I couldn't afford them. The next summer, I found lots of them for 25 cents, sterilized them in boiling water and had happy little boys.

You may want to rethink your advertising. If you have a lot of Depression Glass, for example, list it as such in your ad; that way people who're looking for that kind of item come to your sale.

Answer 2

These are things that are, literally, at EVERY tag sale. People just get tired at seeing similar merchandise everywhere. After a while they stop looking. I could swear that even I've seen the exact same basket at 3 different yard sales! I went to a thrift shop recently and they were GIVING baskets away if you made a purchase.

As for clothes, people are fussy about fabric, size, color, seasonality, and age of clothes. Some people will only wear NEW stuff and would be embarrassed to be seen looking at USED clothes. It makes them look needy.

Toys - usually shoppers don't want to go to the trouble of looking through toys & games to see if all the pieces/parts are there. Stuffed animals are germ playgrounds.

Most Americans eat out of pizza boxes, sub bags and take-out containers and drink out of cans and bottles. What need is there for glassware and dishes? And who wants to bother washing all that stuff?

Answer 3

Where I live, these items sell well (except the toys). Pricing is a huge factor. People are looking for cheap prices. Most the time they almost want free. As far as clothing, I won't go through stacks of clothing trying to find my size. At sales where the clothing was hung up and clearly marked with the size, I will at least look at it.

Answer 4

glassware...if its glass baking dishes/serving dishes and I can use it...I'll buy it if the price is right
dishes...don't need them as most people would rather buy new
clothing...sometimes its hard to find the right size and the right condition (like new)
books...depends on what the books are
toys...I've bought toys for my nephew before, but most people won't because they think of them as dirty
baskets...lets just say they are evil *LOL*...if I see a basket at a sale, I have to figure out where (amongst the rest of the ones I have) it will go and if its a good price for what I'm getting

Answer 5

It may be fun for them and teach them about sharing as well as money if they were allowed to keep a portion of the sale money. For every toy or other unused item they donate to the sale, they can get to put the sale funds in their piggy bank. You could also set up a small lemonade or icetea stand at the yard sale if they are old enough to help and tell them they can keep all of the money they earn. It teaches them about money and budgeting early, as well as social skills.