One of our members, Mikey, recently asked:
Hi, I was reading your starter guide and you said that you would rent a commercial property to sell your items. I was hoping you could elaborate on this. Was this a empty parking lot of a business that's not open on weekends? Or was this a flea market type setting? I have no place to sell anything I purchase and would like to keep this venture separate from my house & personal space. I don't want to become a hoarder. Lol. Any help or suggestions you could offer would be greatly appreciated. Mikey
Mikey,
I used a few different commercial locations. At first, my garage sales were held in front of the Morningstar mini storage that was close to my home. I rented a personal unit from them and one day I found out that they will let their tenants hold garage sales in their parking lots. That facility could handle parking for about 18 cars. Our garage sales became so popular that we were having parking issues so we decided to look for another location. The last time I checked, Uncle Bob's mini storage also allowed their tenants hold garage sales at their facilities. You can check with the facilities in your area, I'm sure the policy varies from one location to the next. Flea markets are also excellent places to resell your merchandise.
I also rented a used car lot on the weekends. It was a auto consignment lot that was turned into another business and didn't have any cars on it. It worked out well for quite some time. Vacant commercial land is everywhere in our city, just track down the owner of the land and ask if he or she is interested in renting it on the weekends. I have found that most of these land owners are happy to have some extra income on their vacant property. Here is a tip to make your garage sales successful: Find a location on a busy street and put up a very large double sided sign. This will get you plenty of attention and if your prices are reasonable, you will quickly develop a following.