When reselling items in any market, it is best to know when to resell antiques when they will be hot and when the timing is right to sell that item for big bucks. For instance, in the art, antiques, and collectibles market, certain items will sell well at a particular time of the year.
The reason why there are better and worse times to resell items has a lot to do with the seasons and the press. Whenever you are reselling something, having word of mouth working for you helps you get more money for your offering. The final sale will be better if you sell items that are in the public eye at the time. In a phrase, when you are reselling an item, no matter what type of items, you want to ride the press wave at the time. The press focuses on topics seasonally and if you set up your selling calendar to take advantage of what is in the public eye at a certain time, you will resell more items and sell those items for a much better return on investment than if you just sold that same item whenever you wanted to sell it.
Ride the press wave and get your listed item noticed. That means it is a plus to be mindful of what hot topic is in the public eye at any given time to know when to resell antiques. Don’t only consider the current season of the year and what people are thinking about at that time like skiing in winter or swimming in summer but also recognize anniversaries of important cultural and public events—annual fairs and festivals, anniversaries of births, deaths, etc.
Knowing when the Time is Right
The color of your items can help you decide to know when to resell antiques. And, there are other clues to let you know when a market is ready for you to capitalize on selling success.
Here are some tried and true examples that might help all of you resellers and serious shoppers out there. The resellers want to take advantage of a good selling season and the shoppers want to be careful not to be taken in by tactics that attract you to items when they are in season and selling for the highest prices of the year.
Fact: Red and green items sell well at holiday time during the months of November and December of each year. Of course, anything that is associated with the year-end holidays are of interest to both sellers and buyers. Red and any item that is red is automatically associated with Santa Claus’s suit, Rudolph the reindeer’s nose, and a long list of other things that could be marketed online during the holiday season. Green items recall the beauty of nature toward the end of the year like evergreen trees, poinsettia plants, and green foods. Around November 1st, when the holiday shopping season officially begins for many sellers, red and green items get highlighted front and center in online shops, on eBay and others online auction platforms, and in traditional brick and mortar stores. Look for it and sell using these colors once the Halloween decorations are put away and the holiday shopping season begins.
Summer Reselling Season
Fact: White milk pressed glass bud vases from the 1950s-1970s sell very well in the month of June. Why? One word: weddings. That’s right, most weddings take place in the month of June and it follows that white items—which is often seen as the color of weddings for many—may be used in a wedding’s decoration scheme as most wedding decorations are based on the color white. Simple white milk glass bud vases, circa 1950s, can be used to liven up a table at a wedding or make a causal wedding seem more regal. Many resellers note that when they see sales for the mid 20th Century white milk glass bud vases, they know it’s time to try to market all things associated with weddings, couples, and love.
And, just like the traditional milk glass bud vase, wedding season is also the time for memorable items to be listed for online sale like heirlooms jewelry—both fine pieces and costume jewelry examples. That’s also true of china and crystal and silver. All keepsakes sell well during the period when weddings are planned. And of course, if weddings are in the planning stages, that also means that gifts are needed for the guests to give to the happy couple. This is why many resellers work tirelessly to get their online stores in order and their wares ready for sale in the month of May just before the June shopping rush takes place.
Selling Based on Activity & Tradition
What specific items will sell well at certain times of the year? You need to know when to resell antiques. Consider what types of activities you partake in during certain times of the year. For instance, high end, elite items that relate to entertaining will sell better during the November to January shopping season than at other times of the year. If you have some item—a work of art, antique, or collectible—that is used in the service or entertaining others, then the best time to sell that item is when most people are entertaining, at year’s end.
Silver serving trays, barware, high quality works of art, compotes, centerpieces, chandeliers, fine china, crystal stemware, etc. all sell better during the last months of the year as these items are most needed during the time when more people are entertaining or inviting others into their homes. Items that make homes look fine and fancy sell well during the holiday shopping season too.
Conversely, the summer season is not the time to sell such items of entertainment which are used for entertaining. This is because in summer more people are focusing on casual activities and living life outdoors. In the summer, items like matching glass lemonade sets, picnic baskets, sporting equipment, military memorabilia, and other items sell well.
Some buyers purchase the same type of items every season as they have for years. This is when smart sellers decide that they should take a look at the previous years’ sales receipts and transaction logs. What? You want me to actually look at, assess, and use the data that I have about patterns of collecting, patterns of sales, and customer likes and dislikes as a way to increase sales. In a word: YES! I want you to use the info that you gained from previous sales.
If you saw that sales for something unusual like small fascinator hats increased after the royal wedding of Prince William or Prince Harry in your clothing and accessories category, it may be time to figure out if that is a one time fluke sales experience or if you should be trying to source and sell more tiny hand made hats that are perched on heads and highlighted at weddings. If you think that this is a one time thing, then look at your data to see what other items sold well at the same time last year and try to market some of those items in the current selling season.
The Sellers and Buyers Timetables
Timing is also crucial for your potential buyers. For instance, depending on where you live and when graduations take place in a given area of the world, super shoppers particularly women of all ages may be busier at one time of the year than at other times of the year. For instance, the season from Mother’s day in the USA –around early May of a calendar year–to graduation season in late June will have the most devoted shoppers –women—so very busy that you may want to have some of the tried and true products out and ready for sale by mid April so these busy bees can buy what they need before they are occupied elsewhere. Listing items at times when potential buyers are online or are ready to shop will benefit the seller and your bottom line.
Also, if you are an online reseller with an ebay.com or etsy.com shop, it is a good idea to offer discounts or coupon codes at times of the day when your best buyers may be online browsing. Advertise that a buyer can get double the bang for his/her buck by using a coupon code at a certain time, like after 9 pm when kids are asleep and the house is quiet.
Don’t offer a sale at the busiest time for online sales, that is on a Sunday evening. Sunday nights are when most people are online surfing or shopping. It is the time to start and end your 7 day online auction where you are trying to sell that Northwood piece of Carnival glass or costume jewelry bracelet, necklace, or earrings from Ben Amun, Trifari, Vogue, Miriam Haskell, or Kenneth Jay Lane. Why start an online auction on a Sunday night, so a possible bidding war can take place and attract many potential buyers driving prices up.
Whenever you are trying to sell your stuff online or elsewhere, remember that timing is everything. I can also help you with identifying and valuing your items and helping you know when to resell antiques. You can show items by scheduling a video call or you can send me photos. Watch videos on my YouTube channel as I show you how to identify and sell your thrifting finds.
