Guest post from Kim of Thrifty Little Mom
Do you love kid’s consignment sales as much as I do? They give me a bigger shopping adrenaline rush than I get on Black Friday.
In the last 5 years I’ve learned a thing or two about scoring amazing deals at kid’s consignment sales and today I want to pass that wisdom on to you:
1. Get Into the Pre-sale
A pre-sale is when the sale organizers open the doors for a select few before they open them to the general public. The crowd is smaller, the environment is more relaxed and you get a choice of the best priced items in the best condition.
Typically, to get into a pre-sale you have to: be a seller, donate money, or volunteer for a shift.
2. Shop Prepared
Build your shopping list throughout the year. I keep a handy electronic list going at all times, and when I see or think of an item I’d really like my kid to have, I add it to the list on my phone. That way when the next sale comes around I know that I’m looking for.
Whatever the item, I can usually track it down between one or two of these sales and get an incredible deal on it. It’s kind of fun — like a scavenger hunt!
3. Compare Prices
Don’t just buy the first toy you see. More than likely there will be about 10 duplicates of the same toy all marked at different prices. When you find several of one item, compare the prices and condition and take the one marked at the best price.
4. Bring Cash
Often these sales are small businesses or non-profits who get hit with heavy fees for processing credit or debit cards. I always bring cash to avoid having a $1-$2 charge added to my bill.
This also keeps me from overspending. I give myself a cash only budget in order to make sure that I don’t spend more than that at the sale. It’s easy to get carried away!
5. Shop the Half Price Day
At most consignment sales, the last day is also ½ price day. You just look at the tag and if it’s marked “Yes” under “½ price” you know that it will be 50% at check-out. This is typically when I rack up on clothing, yet it often includes toys, shoes and other items at the sale.
Not all sellers participate in the half-price sale but there are enough who do that makes it worth it to head to the event on the last day.
As you begin your bargain hunting this Kid’s Consignment sale season I hope you will find these tips helpful and that you save yourself some big bucks!
Kim Anderson is a house spouse, mom, and blogger at Thrifty Little Mom. Her blog focuses on inspiring others to pursue financial freedom while finding joy in frugal living. She lives in Atlanta, GA with her electrical engineer husband, 3-year-old son and a Beagle named Bit.
Toni @ Debt Free Divas says
I love, love, love the $8 bag days at once upon a child. Especially for little summer clothes. I can stuff a ton in those little bags. Ha! Yes, using cash also helps you stick to a budget. Those $4 finds add up if you are not paying attention!
Tai says
I had no idea that consignment stores had pre- sale events! I will be definitely looking into this now after reading this article. Thanks for sharing.
Betsy says
The presales are for consignment sales, not the stores. Google kids sales in your area. They are awesome.
Tai says
Thanks so much for clarifying that for me. I thought they were all in the same. I will definitely Google as you mentioned!
Kim Anderson says
Consignment Mommies.com is a great way to find kids consignment sales in your area. Lots of sales posts their details on that site.
Jessica says
My husband designed me this cool notepad and had it printed up. It has columns for each kid or size, and then rows for each type of clothing- t-shirts, sweatshirts, jacket, shorts, pants, skirts, pajamas, and so forth. I put the number of what I need in each box to keep track of what I need for my 3 kids when shopping the sales. It’s just a small 4″x6″ piece of paper. It only cost $2 for a pad of 100 sheets.
Kim Anderson says
I think that’s a really great way to plan. When my son was an infant I was obsessed with adorable baby clothes and it got soooo out of hand. I made a promise that I would never own that many clothes for a baby again. If I had taken an invetory and kept track of how many items I needed I would have spent way less and had far more closet space!
Melissa says
I’ve also heard of people bringing either a tape measure and list of her kids’ pants lengths OR bringing along a string with knots tied at different lengths to indicate different pant lengths. Or you could do that with dresses, too, to make sure they’re going to be long enough (because you know you do NOT want to shop with your children if you don’t have to). Just because it says it’s a certain size doesn’t mean it’s automatically a certain length (especially if there has been shrinkage since these aren’t generally brand new clothes).
Kim Anderson says
That’s a really good idea about bringing a measuring tape of some kind! Part of the reason that I love the presale is they rarely allow kids unless they are over a certain “independent” age. It’s so quite and easy to shop!
Siné says
I second this suggestion. I have brought a measuring tape before, and it was really helpful.