I made £160 from my first car boot sale, here's what I learned for next time
One man's trash is another's treasure - never has this rung more true than at a car boot sale, where all the unloved clothes, already-read books and weird Christmas presents you've been hoarding can find a new home.
A regular at my local car boot sale, I've always found great joy in rooting through people's unwanted things. And the challenge of seeing what I can get for £20 (last year, two almost brand-new and in mint condition coats) is all part of the fun.
But in the interest of decluttering and saving money ahead of soaring prices this winter, I recently attended my first sale as a seller.
After an early rise (5:30am early!) and a long day of haggling, I was delighted to have sold almost all my things by the end of the day, making a profit to the tune of £160.
If you're looking to make a bit of extra money by selling your clutter, here are my tips for getting the most out of your first car boot sale.
1. Find the right car boot sale for what you're selling
First of all, you'll want to find a boot sale in your local area.
It's worth researching, or even visiting, a few different sites to see what they're like.
Some might be better than others for certain types of products - the one I went to is popular for clothing, while another one nearby seems to be more family-orientated. You might find different sites charge different pitch fees too.
You can find a local indoor or outdoor venue for selling your unwanted wares using the Car Boot Junction website.
2. Declutter (and then declutter again)
A self-confessed hoarder, I spent some time channelling my inner Marie Kondo ahead of the big day.
Sorting though overloaded shelves and rarely-opened storage cupboards, I asked myself: Do you really need to cling onto that dress you haven't worn in two years? Do those shoes still spark joy? And is it time to finally say goodbye to the library's worth of university books you know you'll never read again?
More often than not, the item in question found its way onto the car boot sale pile.
I then assessed whether I could sell some of the items on other platforms. There were a few branded items of clothing, for example, that I thought would sell quickly and possibly for more money on a secondhand marketplace site. I listed these items on my app of choice, Vinted.
Faced with a Jenga tower of unwanted books, I decided to arrange a collection with the resale site, Ziffit, to reduce the amount I'd have to carry on the day. Any books that Ziffit didn't accept came with me to the boot sale.
- Find out more: where to buy and sell secondhand online
3. Set a pricing strategy
I set a loose pricing strategy while packing.
Items I was happy to flog for under a fiver were packed straight away into market bags.
But for other pieces of clothing - a near-immaculate vintage trench coat and an unworn pair of Teva sandals, for example - I attached price tags with my initial sale offer.
I found these price tags really useful on the day when footfall was busy and my fatigued brain couldn't remember how much I wanted to sell things for. I also packed all my nicer clothes on hangers which was a huge time-saver when frantically unpacking at 6am the morning of the sale.
4. Give yourself time to change up cash
I wanted around £30 in change for a kitty - but trying to get cash changed up on a Saturday afternoon before the sale was an unexpected headache.
Lots of banks near my flat have either shut down or aren't open on the weekends, and the one branch that was open said they couldn't change up cash for me. My local Post Office also said it was unable to help.
In the end I took out three £10 notes from an ATM and bought something for a pound or less at three different corner shops - this wasn't ideal and meant a lot of running around my local high street when I was supposed to be packing things.
In future, I'd give myself more time to get cash changed up at the bank.
- Find out more: can cash help you budget?
5. Share your spot with a friend
Splitting the cost of a pitch with a friend is a good way to ensure you don't make a loss.
Me and my friend split the £16 fee for a car pitch which really took the pressure off on the day, as we both felt confident we'd make at least £8 back in sales.
Having some company was also invaluable during quiet periods or when we needed a coffee/snack refuel.
There were also walk-in spots (for a maximum of two sellers with two large bags) which cost £12, and vans were charged £25 per spot.
It's worth looking around your local car boot sales to see how the fees differ.
6. Get comfortable with haggling and discounting
The first buyers on site appeared before we'd even finished unpacking. They seemed to know exactly what they were looking for and weren't afraid to push for a heavily discounted price (someone tried to buy all eight pairs of my shoes for £2).
It might be tempting to sell all your stock for £50 in the first hour and call it a day, but you'll likely get more for your items if you hang on and try to haggle. Car boot sales are a marathon, so you might as well stick to the prices you want for at least the first hour or so.
Me and my friend had two different approaches to haggling. My friend drove a hard bargain and was happy to let potential buyers walk away if their price wasn't right. I was far less strict, keen to get rid of most things as quickly and pain-free as possible (though even I knew my shoes were worth more than a couple of quid).
Finding a sweet spot between our negotiating styles is probably best.
We discounted items gradually throughout the day and reduced everything on our rail to £3 in the last hour, and again to £1 for the last 30 minutes. This tactic definitely worked and we made a flurry of last-minute sales towards the end of trading hours.
- Find out more: how to haggle and get the best deal
7. Don't be afraid to change up your visual merchandising
At first we made an effort to lay out all our stock nicely, hanging items on rails and folding clothes neatly, but we soon realised that people preferred more of a chaotic shop front they could rummage through.
A lot of the boot-sale-buyers were like magpies to cluttered tables and 'floordrobe' style stalls where they could hunt for bargains.
Our table, a jumble of old necklace chains, unworn sunglasses and random accessories, was the busiest part of our stall towards the beginning of the day, while our nicely spaced out rail full of well-known brands was overlooked.
An hour or so in, we changed tack, moving the best bits from the rail onto the floor where more people were gravitating towards.
8. Some things sell better than others
Most of our shoes sold early on in the day and we found menswear sold much faster than womenswear.
My friend was particularly savvy at upselling her stock - if someone picked up an Adidas t-shirt, she'd show them all the other Adidas bits for sale and do them a bundle deal. This meant she got rid of stuff quickly, making space for new items.
People weren't overly interested in buying books, perhaps due to the number of places you can buy cheap secondhand books these days.
Some of our more pricey items also didn't sell. A lot of people picked up a pair of Kickers my friend was selling, only to quickly put them down once they saw the £35 price tag.
Other stalls around us who had more expensive price marks also didn't seem to sell much.
It's worth remembering that people go to boot sales for bargains - so it you're hoping to get a bit more for your items, try listing them on a secondhand marketplace instead where you can charge more.
- Find out more: know your rights when buying secondhand goods
9. Have a plan for what to do with bits that haven’t sold
Although we sold the vast majority of what we took, we did have about two market bags worth of stuff that didn't sell.
We sorted through the leftover items, taking any un-sold clothes to the recycling bank at my nearest Morrisons.
Anything left over - a few books, homewares and accessories - was dropped off at a charity shop.
Alternatively, if you have the space to store unsold things, you could list them on a secondhand marketplace or save them for another car boot sale where you might have more luck.
10. Think of how to pay in your profits
My friend was happy to keep the cash she'd made, but I wanted mine paid into my bank account.
I looked up my nearest bank branch, but actually ended up going to the Post Office instead which was closer.
£160 up and seven market bags lighter, I now consider myself a car boot seller convert.