Frequently Asked Questions
about our Products for the Professional Resaler
There’s so many Products for
the Professional Resaler! Please help me figure out what I need. Not
sure what to choose for your shop? Here’s my best suggestions.
FIRST: You must have the Manual.
Absolute must whether you’re just beginning to think about it or you’ve been in
business for years and want to increase profits. Then, you might choose to
add some other Products to your order:
IS
YOUR SHOP MAINLY KIDSTUFF? Focus:
Kidswear is one of our new Focus reprint files. How
to Compete with Garage Sales helps get shoppers (and suppliers!) into
your shop instead of losing business to garage sales.
Customer
Service Brochures Take-homes to remind a busy parent about your shop
include How to Shop Resale for your Kids, Out Out Darned Spot, The
Harried Shopper's Quickest Recipes, andQuick Recipes that Kids
Love.The cheapest and most effective store give-away! Staffing your Store Tips to do it Well.
Many kids' shops staff are mothers of young children, so it's especially
important to deal with staff fairly, professionally, and with dedication and
warmth.
Shop-Sizzle Easy, effective, economical ways
to make your shop look as great as your selection. Especially important
with the variety of merchandise in childrens' shops!
109
Promotion Ideas Especially for Resale. Special events are a sure way to
draw families in.
HARD
GOODS, FURNISHINGS, DECOR?
Focus: Home Furnishings is one of our new Focus reprint files.
You
need more advertising than clothing shops, so Words that Sell! and
Short-Stops Collection 4 will be useful.
I also suggest you have a shop newsletter. Short-Stops
Collection 1 tells you how, and Tips for your Customers gives filler material.
FOR
THE ELEGANT WOMENSWEAR BOUTIQUE: Decor and service are your realm. 10
Ways to Pamper your Customers is a small Conversation with Kate. Frequent Buyer Cards, Windows that Sell!, and Secrets of Successful Resalers
are a starting point to developing your boutique into a first-rate shop.
BUYING
OUTRIGHT?
Focus: Buying Outright is
especially designed for you, as is our Conversation:
Buying Outright. Add The Best of TGtbT, Used News, and anything else: when
it’s YOUR money invested, you need to know every last little thing to make
a profit. Moving merchandise along is vital, so be
prepared with Bag Sales, Dollar Racks and BOGO Deals.
WE’RE
A NFP THRIFT SHOP The biggest thing you have to “fight” is public
perception. Products that will be very helpful are 109 Promotion Ideas, Postcard Layouts (to get you started on the
wonders of direct mail) and ShopSizzle to overcome the image thrift might
have in your area.
I’M
DESIGN-CHALLENGED For you, Instant In-Store Signs, Quick
Coupons, and
Windows that Sell! Any of our Layout
Kits can serve as design inspiration!
I
COULD USE SOME IMAGINATIVE HELP Don’t re-invent the wheel. Read 109
Promotion Ideas, Secrets of Successful Resalers, and
the various Short-Stops Collections in your weak
areas.
I
NEVER KNOW WHAT TO SAY: Words
that Sell, should be added to your TGtbT shopping list.
I
HATE BEING TOLD WHAT TO DO Isn’t that why we’re our own bosses?
Mix and match to your heart’s content. Then phone, fax, or e-mail your
order, 24/ 7. We’ll get your order to you ASAP along with our best wishes!
No,
they are all separate sources of information. In many cases, you can
think of the Manual is Resale 101, the basics. If you want “advanced
study” in specific areas, make your choices from the many Products for the
Professional Resaler designed to suit resalers of every type, size, and
strength. The only Product that is a reprint of material available elsewhere
is Short-Stop #34 about Consignment Agreements, which is designed for the
shop that feels $76.95 is beyond their business investment budget. Once they see how
helpful #34 is, they invariably buy the Manual!
We’re a not-for-profit that sells
only donated items. Will the Manual help us?
The
most challenging part of any retail business is, by far, selling
merchandise. Knowing how to set up your store, gain and keep
customers, add value to your goods, and become a regular resource for as
many potential customers as you can fit in your shop is the key. In this
way, you are identical to for-profit shops... except you have more
potential profit to lose by not running the best shop you can.
Having worked with many NFPs I can tell you: your Board of Directors will
realize that the Manual and any or all of the rest of our Products
are the wisest investments they can make in their mission!
I want to sell something besides
clothing. Is the Manual a help with that?
Remember,
the
most challenging part of any retail business is, by far, selling
merchandise. 99% of the information in the Manual will apply to
ANY merchandise you want to sell. Shop layout, advertising, location,
policies, suppliers... all that's the same as it would be for anything, After
all, every merchant has specific questions (are the pajamas safe? Does the
DVD work? Do my customers want maternity clothes... or coffee tables?) Too
Good to be Threw, The Complete Operations Manual for Resale &
Consignment Shops, has the full info to run your shop. It could be all you
need... until you want to aim even higher, which is where the REST of our Products
for the Professional Resaler come in handy! See what other resalers
say about the Manual.
I want to buy outright, not consign.
Will the Manual help?
The
Manual has always been a big help to shops which sell secondhand goods, no
matter how they obtained these goods. Since the publication of the 6th
edition, the manual's actually been renamed Too
Good to be Threw, The Complete Operations Manual for
Resale &
Consignment Shops
to reflect that it has all the info you need to operate
either type of business. Again, remember the
crucial part of any retail business is selling.
I have an older edition
of the Manual. Do I need to reinvest in the new edition?
It
depends. The areas we have added and enlarged upon in the new edition
include a full chapter on Buying Outright,
which (if you are ready for it) can be a wonderful new way to increase
your bottom line as well as make your daily routine much easier. And if
you are already buying outright, knowing the prices to pay, and how to
manage your open-to-buy budget, are crucial to your profitability. We have
also added info on various fees to protect your net
income, how to accept goods more efficiently,
when and how to switch seasons for maximum impact, and how
to combat the amateur garage-sale market. Interested in a Preferred
Consignors Club? Or open to a discussion on whether
all sales should, indeed, be final? If these things interest you,
and if you think the potential for profits is worth the investment, then
yes, you’re ready for the new
20th Anniversary Edition of Too
Good to be Threw: The Complete Operations Manual for Resale &
Consignment Shops.
Training
helpers, whether they are full-time, part-time, or even volunteers, is
something many shopkeepers overlook. Educate them, and they will feel more
valuable... and be more valuable as well! I’d suggest you start with the
individual Short-Stops that apply to your shop. Place them in a binder and
loan them out, or leave them in your break area, and refer to them often. If
you have staffers with exceptional talents, look for Products which will help
them expand their assistance to the shop, such as Windows that Sell!, Words
that Sell!, and especially Shop Sizzle. Used News is useful too.
Considering whether The Complete Operations Manual, is for
you?
"I
am already in business, and
doing well. What would the manual have to offer me?"
Auntie
Kate replies: Many
shopkeepers enjoy seeing alternate ways of doing things. While the
systems you already have in place may be working well, it is always an
eye-opener to examine other viewpoints. There may be whole areas that
you haven't considered, or you may be doing things which, while they
worked well when you set them up years ago, do not maximize your
current-day investment in time, effort, and money. After all, we can
always be more successful, right?
"I
don't want to sell clothes, like
most shops do, but hard goods/ furniture/ sporting goods/ whatever.
So, should I buy the manual?"
Auntie
Kate replies: Again, as above, there will be sections where you
will have to mentally substitute (for example, our suggested floor
plan shows where to put tops, coats, etc., and you might have to think
about dining room sets or ski poles or crystal vases) to suit the
business you have in mind, but most everything else is the same. You
still need to know how to do direct mail, what to put in your display
windows, how to sell, and on and on!
"I'm
confused! There are so many Products for the Professional Resaler.
Is all that info in the manual or are your
other Products simply repeats of the same info?"
Auntie
Kate replies: The manual is the Big Picture. All our other
Products get into more and more detail and are designed to take you to
the next level of knowledge.
Auntie
Kate replies: Many
shopkeepers enjoy seeing alternate ways of doing things. While the
systems you already have in place may be working well, it is always an
eye-opener to examine other viewpoints. There may be whole areas that
you haven't considered, or you may be doing things which, while they
worked well when you set them up years ago, do not maximize your
current-day investment in time, effort, and money. After all, we can
always be more successful, right?