Posted by I always have high hopes for the start of the fourth quarter–all of us who sell things do. And after a darn good year so far (a darn good year), I was all set for a volley of cha-chings and anticipated a busy time packing and shipping.
But so far October has been a roller-coaster plummet. My store is typically a sale a day and so far I’ve had a shocking 10 days this month without a sale. Ten days.
It’s been a head-scratcher since I’ve been doing all that I usually do. Then, I got three good sales in one day and another the next day. So maybe I’m inching my way back up the track. Maybe.
But the truth is I don’t sell things people need. I sell the extras. Fripperies. Quirky bits. Still I reminded myself that even though I haven’t sold a lot so far this month, some of the sales were particularly satisfying. The vintage heishi shell necklace was a 50-cent purchase from three years ago that sold for $48. The Italian RODO clutch purchase was a recent $12.50 purchase that sold for $125 and the Remy Martin ice bucket purchased for $4.80 sold for $95.
Not all sales have those kind of profit margins, so, yes, these were particularly satisfying. I just need to figure out if there is anything I should be doing differently to encourage sales.
On the fun side my eldest spotted a ginormous bag of Uline packing peanuts out by the garbage dumpster at her condo building and snagged it for me. This bag is at least 4 feet tall and will be so helpful for shipping those breakable bits. Should last me a while!
On the sourcing front I found this Ceskci crystal bud vase from the Czech Republic the other day at my neighborhood thrift store. I’m not buying as much clear glass these days, but this heavy vase with its simple, elegant ribbed design was one to buy. And everyone needs a few good vases! (It looks more striking in person so I’ll have to play around with my photography.)
So it’s been a bit of a strange month store-wise, but overall life has been good.
Wishing you happy hunting,
Karen
