If I were starting a consignment or resale shop today, I'd start a furniture/ household accessories shop. Why?

Everyone's loving their homes right now. And people are much more  attuned to changing and modifying their decor today. 

Besides, there are so many resources to make a shop like this truly "stand out from the crowd": a local crafter who does wonders with silk flowers, an artist with an eye for embellishing abandoned items, a sculptor who does truly original works worthy of an art gallery. 

I'd have a whole address book full of upholstery resources, picture framers, refinishers, and help my clientele have homes that go so far beyond the standard "furniture-store look."

If you are ready to go whole-hog into household, or just want to dabble a bit with a decorative accents area in your clothing shop, read on.
  --- Kate

Follow along as Kate does an Extreme Makeover
in a real consignment shop.

The Manual:

Can household decor/ furniture/ hard goods shops get something out of it? 

Too Good to be Threw, The Complete Operations Manual for Resale & Consignment Shops, has over 200 pages of information about the industry. Yes, much of it is written from the standpoint of clothing resale. But if you can, as you read, think "dresser" instead of dress, or "sofa" instead of suit, you'll have it made!

Dealing with suppliers, store layout, advertising, tracking sales, setting procedures, location, and all the other points are the same, whether you sell coats or CDs, paintings or panties. See the Table of Contents 

Most of all: your customers are the same. The Manual is your investment in the profitable future of your shop.

The One Best Thing

For a resale or consignment home furnishings shop, nothing can beat explanatory tags: those little folded-over like-a-gift-enclosure tags which have the info you need (ID number, coded date-in, etc), basic info (size,  description, price, etc) and suggestions/ temptations for the shopper such as these examples:

Maple roll-top desk, great for hiding clutter!

Use this enamel-top table from the 1940's in your kitchen to hold cookbooks, in the front hall to highlight your Fiesta collection, or in a kid's room for crafts (it cleans up in a snap!)

Tiny marble-topped stand from an old Tidewater mansion built in the 1880's

Idea: this ornate plaster frame would make a terrific decoupage tray if you're crafty, or use it to put your grandparents' photo in for instant ancestry!

Tie these notes/ tags on with your signature red yarn or golden ribbon and watch your shop's sales appeal take an immediate upsurge! Helping your customer envision this new piece in her home will boost sales immediately.

If you have assistants/ helpers who come up with good ideas, include their names on these signs/ tags: Susie thinks this tiny table would be adorable in a hallway, holding family photos. You are giving your shop a personality the public can identify with, and giving Susie credit for adding to your success as well.

The Ideas you NEED TO SUCCEED
Furniture and household accessory shops are one of the fastest- growing segments of resale. Whether your shop is a specialty store or you are adding home items to your wider selection; whether you consign, buy outright or work with donated goods The Resaler's Guide to Furniture & Home Goods will tell you

Why they buy
What they buy
Arranging for Maximum Sales
Props
Fix it up to Make More
Show them why they want it
Advertising & Promotional Ideas
Including the noted AGD and a slew of Quick Tips to run your shop more easily and profitably 

Get your PDQ of
The Resaler's Guide to Furniture & Home Goods
today! 

What's a PDQ?