Preparation
1) Don’t wear any shirts that gives your personal interest away. If you like comics don’t wear an X-Men Shirt. People will automatically think “Nerd Collector” and will assume that you will pay a lot of money for their stuff. Translation = game over for your bargain day.
2) Don’t wear any fancy clothing, jewelry, or accessories. Just comfortable cozy clothing that makes you look like you just don’t give a crap about fashion. Don’t go crazy like Lady Gaga’s, but just a plain shirt, worn out pants or jeans, and comfortable foot wear (If you are in Florida that would be the flip flops even in the winter time). Is the flea market not the mall. If you look like you are broke, some flea market vendors can relate with you and be at times willing to bargain with you a little bit more.
3) If you know you are going to shop a lot, bring with you a big bag where you can carry a ton of stuff without people seeing what you are shopping for when you continue to roam. If vendors see that you are shopping for only toys, they will get a hint that you are collector. Some of them will literally try to haggle you to buy junk toys that you just simply don’t want like the Chinese Flea Market $1 story toys. Yuck!!!
4) Give yourself a budget and bring it in CASH ONLY. Preferably small bills. “Cash is King” at the flea market. Hardly anybody takes cards, and cash in hand can get you some great bargains. If you don’t bring cash you will be stuck paying for a high ATM fee, plus now you need to find a way to get small bills just so you can haggle. Also keep a couple bucks extra for parking, some places charge between $1 to $2 for parking.
5) Set your alarm clock early. Depending on the Flea Market, some of them start around 6 am. and are done by 10 am. Some of the more mainstream flea markets will start later on in the day. If you are not sure try to find out what is the norm from family, friends, associates, or just simply call and find out. In this case “the early bird does catch the worm”.
Extra Preparation Tip
First timers, make sure you plan for at least a couple of hours to roam around... heck...maybe even half a day to enjoy your search in the new flea market. Even if you don’t get anything the first time, you will be ready to bargain shop like a pro the next time you go back for your treasures.
At the Flea Market
1) Make a Plan. If you are not familiar with the flea market you are currently at, explore it first and make mental notes of where you have seen certain items and shops that mainly focus your hobby. If you are visiting a MEGA Flea Market, try to find one of their maps and circle or write down what row things were located, what item you saw, and how much they wanted for it. While it might seem silly to just walk away from the first thing you might really want, you never know if someone else might have in better shape and even at a better price.
2) Be prepared to dig. Depending on how serious of a collector you are, many collectors are not ashamed to dig through crazy bins full of what looks like junk toys. You never know what you may find. To be honest I’ve done this with my husband and it’s just fun. Especially when you find something from when you were a very young child like a kids meal toy. I’ve also seen him pull out a crazy toy, paid $0.25 for it and later on find out it was at $500 figure. You just never know.
3) As you are browsing through the shops, don’t be shy to ask how much the vendors are asking for the items you are interested in. Try not to overreact on the item you are interested in. I know.. I know.. is hard, but trust me on this just don’t do it. Think of it like playing a round of poker.
a) If is an incredibly great deal don’t ponder too long on it, chances are that person doesn't know what it is, so take advantage of it.
b) If the price is too steep, wait until almost the end of the day when most vendors are desperate for sales and you might be able to get a better deal on it.
***Keep in mind, this might not always be the case, but it never hurts to try as long as you are reasonable about it. The worst they can say is “No”, and “at the end of the day there is always more than one in the world” - Tom Khayos.
4) Be friendly with the vendors. You’ll be amazed how far a great personality, a smile, and just simply talking about silly things may come in handy if you are looking for something unique in the future. Vendors remember great customers, especially if you are frequent shopper.
How to behave around flea market vendors
a) DON’T STEAL FROM THEM. NEVER EVER!!!
b) Try not to break anything. Remember this is the flea market, not a retail store, you might not have the option to walk away... at least unharmed from their booth.
c) Don’t ask if they will do $10 for a $100 item. That is just insulting to the vendor. Even as outrageous as it might be, just simply move on. You never know if they might have another item you may want at a great deal in the future.
d) Be willing to pay full price at points. Remember if you always ask for a discount, they will become annoyed with you in the near future. If you are a regular let them offer you a price, then you can work for something more reasonable if possible.e) Be ready with those small bills. If you wanted to buy an item that is $5, and you talked them down to $3, don’t pull out a $10 and ask for change. That might not seem like a big deal, but vendors will remember you as a big cheap ass and might not want to continue future business with you.
f) If they have great product, and great prices don’t be shy to bring them some business by recommending their shop to other people. They really appreciate this. Like “A Lot.”
g) If the vendor say price Plus Tax, please don’t be mad. Is literally not their fault. In certain counties it is mandatory to collect tax on all their items. If they are caught not asking for tax is a $5,000 fine. Is just crazy. Just be understanding OK.
*** WARNING --- You will run into the occasionally socially inept and just plain over priced asshole who thinks that their dirty toys will someday make them a millionaire. In this cases, literally make of note of them and simply never shop from then if you can avoid it at all cost.
After the Flea Market
1) If you got to eat after the Flea Market hunt, WASH YOUR HANDS before you eat. After digging through old dirty toy bins, trust me wash your hands.
2) If you go home after the flea market, take a shower before you do anything else. Long walks in hot flea markets + digging through used dirty stuff = very dirty person. Trust me on this.
3) Take a moment to clean all items obtained from the flea market. Depending on what it is you might be able to dip it into a bucket of soap and water, or simply wide it down. Many object that are sold are the flea market are:
a) Hand me downs
b) been sitting in someones car, house, basement, or attic for years
c) been kept or obtained from a storage unit
d) been sitting at the flea market facing the elements on a weekly basis, and being touched by people of all walking life until it made its way to you.
I hope this helps and remember... use common sense... and don’t be a fool or a tool. :D
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