My first consignment experience was through a random telephone call from a woman who was in town to quickly disperse her mother’s estate before the home sale closed…two weeks from that day.

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It was a fast and loose arrangement. My customer didn’t expect anything from me except to take a vast number of items off her plate and quickly. There were items in the offering that I wanted for my personal collection so we agreed on a price for those pieces and the remainder came to me gratis which I thought was amazing!

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However, what I learned is that sometimes free isn’t always a good thing. Many of those items, for various reasons, have not made it into my live inventory and have sat in storage for a year taking up physical and mental space. Lesson learned…this is not a favour you’re doing for a friend, this is business and there is no room for sentiment!

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This consignment article will cover my tips for offering consignment, what I include in my consignment terms and conditions, how to build trust with consignors, how to determine value and marketing and advertising.

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Consigning is about picking and choosing what’s right for your shop.

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What to consider before offering consignment as a service

What this experience taught me was that adding a consignment service to my business model sounded like a great way to increase revenue, but there was much more to consider before taking the leap to offer it as a service.

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Here are my top tips:

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1. Know what you want sell. Only consign that type of inventory, the same as if you were out sourcing.

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‍2. Make sure you have storage capacity to take in new items.

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‍3. Agree to consign items that meet your profitability threshold. Ask yourself if something is worth your time and effort for your business and for your ideal customer base. It’s imperative to have general understanding of current market trends, basically what’s hot and what’s not.

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‍4. Be completely transparent with your potential consignor prior to agreeing to look at their items. Ask the consignor to take clear photographs of each item and send by email for initial evaluation. Items must have enough “meat on the bones” for a mutually profitable consignment arrangement.

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Manage the consignor’s expectations in terms of valuing their item. Just because something holds personal sentiment for a consignor doesn’t translate into value or profit. Sometimes it’s better to purchase items outright instead of consigning them.

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‍5. Set boundaries about in-home consultations. Your time is valuable…be brutal yet gentle, especially if dealing with the dispersal of a family estate of someone who has recently passed. Look only at the items of interest.

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Review them in detail to determine if they meet your condition and selling/profitability requirements. Take items that are in perfect or near perfect condition as they bring the most value to your customers.

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‍6. Get it in writing. Having a written contract is imperative. The contract should outline your Terms & Conditions, including a comprehensive list of items. I will cover mine below.
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What’s in my consignment terms and conditions?

When I decide to take on items for consignment, I send terms and conditions to the client.
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Here’s what it includes:

• Suggested listing price per item, which gives the consignor an opportunity to accept or re-evaluate
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• Consignment timeframe (how long I will try to sell the items, which is generally 90 days)
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• How will items be marketed and platforms for listing. Some consignment companies charge a flat fee for photography/listings, so decide what’s best for your business
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• Will items be discounted after 30 days/60 days and by what percentage?
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• Payout timeline
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• Expenses (commission, listing/credit card processing/delivery fees)
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• Payout delivery method (e-transfer/cash)
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• Pick-up timeframe for unsold items
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• Disposal of remaining items

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Continued below

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Continued from above

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Clearly communicating with consignors builds trust

All communication with clients is in writing by email or text. I draft a Consignment Agreement for the consignors to review so that we can agree on the listing price of each item. The consignment period begins once the items are listed.

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I think it’s helpful to update the consignor on a bi-weekly or monthly basis to let them know what has sold and to ask if they wish to discount any items.

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The biggest challenge is an item that holds a ‘sentimental’ attachment to the consignor, but that has no monetary value. It’s difficult to tell someone what they hold dear has no monetary value nor is it desirable to the general public.

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There is no value in lying to consignors. Trust in this type of arrangement is critical so be honest and tactful.

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Also, if an item doesn’t suit my inventory, I am clear that I’m unable to consign it and offer suggestions for other means of sale such as Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji or having a yard sale.

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I use industry services such as Worthpoint and various auction houses that offer their sold prices (fee-based subscriptions), and eBay sold comparable closed listings to determine current market value. It’s essential to research current listings on different marketplaces too.

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For live listings, I tend to focus on Etsy or eBay sellers with a 5-star rating with thousands of items sold…those folks have experience. Using these tools helps to determine a realistic listing price while also checking out the competition!

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Remember that the final listing price must be worth your time and effort because you’ll be giving at least 50% to the consignor after fees (if any).

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Marketing and selling consigned items

All items are listed on my business website, some are cross-posted to other platforms such as Etsy, eBay, Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, Poshmark, Depop to name a few. Another option is to conduct live sales on platforms like Instagram and WhatNot.

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I haven’t done any paid advertising for consigned items. I would certainly consider it for certain items of a higher value where it good makes financial sense to invest in advertising. I do share posts on FB/IG that link to my Etsy or Shopify listings.

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I don’t typically note that something is under consignment but would be interested in knowing how others handle this.

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‍Do you have more questions about consignment that Judy hasn’t addressed? Let her know below!

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Judy Weinberg is a vintage dealer, founder of Jack’s Daughter of All Trades, and member of The Vintage Seeker.

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