indebted Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 Hi Fellow HPC-ers, Considering doing my first ever boot fair at Tripes Farm (Orpington) this Bank Holiday Sunday. Whilst I'm a tad apprehensive about standing round in a field surrounded by bargain hunters thirsty for blood/bargains, I seriously need to get rid of some stuff! So, any experiences of boot fairs you'd like to share? Good or bad stories welcome! Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrashedOutAndBurned Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 At most boot sales, when you first open your boot the pikeys descend like a plague of locusts and try to offer 50p for the lot. After that initial rush it goes fairly quiet for the rest of the day. Don't put unrealistic prices on things. Most visitors want uber-bargains or nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoonLady Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 The best bit of advice I can give you is to either price up your wares before you get there or have definate prices in mind. I have done two and both times whilst unpacking the boot of my car, I was pounced on by a bunch of locusts. I found myself asking silly money for really good stuff. Otherwise it can be fun! Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnionTerror Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 The best bit of advice I can give you is to either price up your wares before you get there or have definate prices in mind. I have done two and both times whilst unpacking the boot of my car, I was pounced on by a bunch of locusts. I found myself asking silly money for really good stuff. Otherwise it can be fun! Good luck Did one on sunday...got their an hour before the gates opened, and was virtually harassed as soon as we got out of the car. Ppl looking through the car windows, seeing if they can spot anything they wanted. Keep a hawk eye on everything, otherwise things could go missing from ppl having a nosy rummage. Best advice...take a taser gun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deflation Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 Some friends of mine do one regularly. It seems to me that as long as the weather's OK, you can offload quite a lot of tat and get more than you would on fleabay. No P+P / timewaster problems either. Cash only too. Don't do it on your own, as noted by others, you need to keep an eye out for TGB*. * Viz reference there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Miyagi Posted May 26, 2010 Share Posted May 26, 2010 Don't do it on your own, as noted by others, you need to keep an eye out for TGB*. * Viz reference there. Thieving gypsy bestards very much a North East term, in Wales we refer to them as Pikeys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rave Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 TBH, unless you're a trader with something valuable to sell, you should really see boot sales as a way to get 1p in the pound for your stuff rather than giving it away on freecycle or taking it to the tip. I'm a regular buyer at boot fairs, but I've only done one as a seller. I'd spent the previous year or so as a recreational bin-raider, taking a bunch of loot from my local charity shop- crap which they couldn't sell within a month of so got binned. When I had a couple of suitcases full of books, and a whole load of other brick-a-brack, I borrowed my mum's car- and my mum- and we took a pitch at Flamingo Park, on the Sidcup Bypass, not so far from Orpington. This was about 5-6 years ago (but it was chocka when we went a week and a half ago, so maybe a good choice for you?) Anyway, we arrived fairly late, and while setting up got interrogated by a geezer who was clearly there for rare vinyl- but I'm a vinyl buyer not a seller, so he left disappointed. Anyway, first hour was a blowout, until my mum pointed out to me that we weren't even going to make our pitch fee back unless I started letting stuff go really cheap. In the end I sold a couple of working tape/radio mini-ghetto-blasters for a quid; a load of other stuff for 50p. The only books I sold were brand new ones that I'd cheekily extracted from the bin of a major high street retailer- and then only for 20p each. A trader took all the crappy romance novels for her book stall; stuff like year out of date travel guidebooks was bought by all and sundry, but only at 20p a pop. I had a big selection of scarves- many with designer labels on, but impossible to prove whether they were genuine. They all went at 20p each too. In the end we made £25, minus a pitch fee of a tenner, and a couple of quid petrol there and back. So total profit about £13, but it was a nice day out and I shifted a lot of crap that would have ended up in landfill had I not rescued it. But as a way of making money- not really. When I can be bothered I'll collect all the rest of my bin raiding spoils and go and do another one- but I like buying at boot sales, so it'll only be as a way of turning a large amount of old crap that I don't want, into a small amount of old crap that I do want Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gilf Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Rave has it pretty much right, don't go there thinking you will make a killing. I have done a few as a way to declutter before moving and basically had the opinion I would take whatever I could get. Every time I have come away with £100+, turned up with a car full and gone away with a small box of stuff. Just like anything there will be a price for everything to sell, just take whatever you can get. When you arrive you will have 50 people looking in the car for medals and Disney videos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyMe Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Check the weather forecast. If it looks like being wet and it is open air, don't do it, wait for the better weather. Take a thermos and food or even better a camping stove. Wallpaper pasting tables make good tables, nice and compact (see if you can borrow a couple from friends if you don't have one, rig up a hanger for clothes if you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saving For a Space Ship Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 CAR BOOT SALES DO'S & DONT'S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winkie Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 Done two or three in my time....was told to park up, lock up, go for a walk, ....come back later after the vultures have picked over the others then set up at your leisure, always at least two of you.....cds dvds do well, childrens clothes in good condition, old trainers believe it or not they all went, none of the jeans did...well named china, pictures and bric-a-brac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahBell Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 You been to some? And know what prices stuff goes for? Round here books are anything from a box full for a quid to 50p each and then idiots who want £4 a book. There's regulars too selling shit and the regular house clearers who's stuff smells of mould and includes old paint trays complete with paint. and then the antique dealers who want £30 for tat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indebted Posted May 30, 2010 Author Share Posted May 30, 2010 Cheers for the replies guys and gals Went to Tripes Farm this morning for a reccy. Had a good look around at the stalls and what people were charging for their tat, sorry heirlooms! Will give it a go in a couple of weeks and see how I get on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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