RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH DELIVERS THE BIG BUCKS!
When packing an estate for auctions, I learned to separate what I knew to be the better glassware, jewelry, pottery, clocks, books, and knickknacks, which are called fine collectibles in this industry, from the everyday item. Because of my research, I learned what items were fine collectibles and what weren’t. This knowledge helps me tremendously with estate sales in that I still separate better items from mundane everyday items within each setup. All small collectibles are placed on tables surrounding the checkout table where I reside most, thus preventing theft.
After separating the collectibles to sell at a special auction, I’d rent out a local recreational center to sell the moderate items once per month, saving the finer collectibles for a more defined, higher-end auction. This, in turn, meant I had to set up a special sale, which I did every six months or so, and these special auctions meant I needed to advertise on a larger scale to bring in the big hitters. If, and only if, you choose to buy an estate and sell perhaps at another venue, then this process is one to follow. However, once I stopped handling auctions, I no longer purchased estates, which meant I now handled the sales on-site in each client’s home for a specified commission.
One such auction was at a local banquet center. I bought the entire estate here in St. Louis for $5,000, which is what the owner wanted out of it. Most of the items were packed in boxes, so I took a risk at this price. However, I was able to see just enough in this very, very packed three-bedroom house to note that $5,000 would certainly cover what I could see. Little did I know I’d uncover a ton of Anheuser-Busch beer mugs or a beautiful ornate cash register, or fabulous vintage furniture nestled under boxes and boxes of beer mugs. There were so many things to separate for a finer sale, which is where the banquet center came in.
Note the actual flyer I created to dispense at previous sales, thus whetting everyone’s appetite for this sale. This is important to do, if possible, even for estate sales.
Pro-Q Auctions By Victoria
Sunday Sept, 29th
&
Monday, Sept. 30th
Estate of R....... D.......
Location: Banquet Center
1111 S. Lindbergh
Directions: From 270 (S) to Gravois (E) to
Lindbergh (S) to 1111 S. Lindbergh
Sunday: 2:00 till 6:00 pm – selling a beautiful 9’ x 6’ ornate back bar, plus outstanding collections of beer steins, mugs, beer signs, electric & neon beer-related pictures, and Wild Turkey decanters, i.e., Austin Nichols Wild Turkey decanters, Warner Bros. small decanters, Wild Turkey decanters—#1-1979, #2-1980, #2-1983, #3-1981, #1-1986, #1-1983, #2-1986, #4-W.T. & Eagle, #6-1985, #7-1985, #8-W.T. & Owl, #10-1986, #5-1985, plus President Decanters, several A. Busch collectors’ truck and van banks and numerous other memorabilia.
This collection varies from the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s, & ‘90s.
Monday: 10:00 A.M. till finished. Sellling Theo-A-Koch’s Company Chicago Barber Chair, Gold Ornate cash register, 5-cent one-arm bandit and any remaining beer items and miscellaneous furniture, toys, memorabilia, etc.
Terms: Cash or check with proper I.D. When paying by check & unknown to estate sales company, must have bank letter of credit.
YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS THIS SALE!
You may need newspaper ads, too. A sample ad (make it short, which is less costly) under the category of Estate Sales or Auctions (whichever I needed) would read like this: 4444 Somewhere St.—Sat. 4/5 & Sun. 4/6, 8 a.m.–3 p.m. Antiques, collectables, linens, misc. Victoria 314-601-1899. Victoriagray.net.
With online ads, you may or may not need a physical newspaper ad. But I always place my phone number in every piece of advertisement. You want everyone to call to ask any question they may think of.
My company name now is Estate Sales by Victoria. It’s very important to add your company name to any advertisement. Buyers begin to look for your name to attend your future sales if they are satisfied customers. And with 21,000+ followers to date, mine is the kind of following you want.
I also place in the estate sales ad that there are no previews. Previews means many buyers/collectors want to come before the sale is open to the public, hoping to buy all the great items before the public even gets to view them, possibly the day before the sale. I don’t allow this for estate sales because once they learn you do this, many collectors will not come to any of your future sales. So it’s up to you. I want all to come to the public sale. It’s also a psychological thing if a potential collector has to purchase alongside a neighbor who is just stopping by. The collector jumps quickly on an item and will pay the top dollar you placed on a piece before another is able to purchase it. I have a lot of fun watching people and how they react at my sales. So enjoy!
By placing your ad in this way, you hit a wide range of people. Many also want to see what type of job you do at your sales, just in case they want to use your company for their future estate sale. I’ve obtained many, many sales this way.
I placed a similar ad for this particular auction in a mid-western auction paper, bringing in numerous collectors. Note: At an auction, it only takes two people to bid against each other to raise pricing. Thus the audience count need not be large, just filled with collectors, and this auction was filled with them.
I have to tell you, this was one of the most profitable auctions I ever handled! Just the items we sold at the two-day sale at the banquet center brought in $23,000! Of course, the advertisement costs and employee wages were taken out of that. Now, it got better. After this first round, my crew and I went back to the house to sell the first-floor items, then the basement items, then a final sellout of the remainder items, which we did in place, meaning on the premises. By the final sale at this small three-bedroom house, the front and backyards were still packed. Even so, we sold it all! This, as stated, was an auction, but estate sales can be very profitable as well. It just depends on what’s there and the research you do ahead of time. This continued research allows me to know what’s selling currently and at what prices and what’s dropped out of favor.
That sale did almost $50,000 total! Sure, there’s always a risk in purchasing anything when you can’t see the whole estate, however this is where research, knowing, and believing there’s so much more than meets the eye comes into play!
Plus, I can’t stress this enough—research, research, research! Gain all the knowledge you can about any and all items. Search online, of course, but don’t leave out glassware, collectibles, antiques, and retro-/contemporary-focused books at the library or bookstores.
The owner of the estate I mentioned had already sold the house, and all had to be out within three weeks, which we were able to do with utter thankfulness from the owner. It took a bit of scrambling, but how grand the scramble was.
I always add a note of thanks for allowing my company to do their sale, along with several of my business cards. When they tell their friends, they can then give out my cards. It’s free advertisement, so utilize it!
Another terrific estate sale I handled took place at a tall, narrow three-story house in the hub of St. Louis city. It was clearly the best hoarder’s house I’ve been privy to sell via an estate sale to date! It was amazing the items that rested there waiting for eager buyers to rush through the doors!
After the client signed the contract, I began figuring out how to handle this huge, filled-to-the-max house. It was so packed that when my brother and I unlocked the front, oval Victorian door, he had to push it open bit by bit with his shoulder so that we could squeeze inside to the parlor and beyond.
The widower told us that his late wife and he used to live there for a few years until she filled it to the max and he couldn’t stand it. He actually bought another home across the street for him to live in! She, however, stayed in this packed house until she died a few years later. Astonishing, indeed! But I see and hear these stories all the time. Sure, some are less ostentatious, but all are interesting to me.
I decided to set up the first floor the best we could to have one sale within two weeks. This allowed me and my crew to sell as many items as possible from the first floor. Then we carried down items from the second floor, handling a sale two weeks later for the first and second floor. After we finished the second sale, we were then able to get to the third floor, which was filled to capacity with vintage toys of all kinds, including a wide variety of Tonka trucks, which are still sought after. I learned three sons came from this marriage, which meant three times the toys, all of which were from the early and mid-fifties. Added to this, there were Roy Rogers play guns, holsters, and so many items to sell.
When the sale opened, I was on the third floor with a cashier on the first floor. Oh my, the collectors swarmed that floor! I was actually pressed up against the wall as the masses grabbed this and that. I felt so pleased that I had advertised this sale to the max, and the collectors and all others were so tickled to find what they call a virgin sale, meaning it had never been viewed by any of the public before the sale. Pretty cool!
Thus, the third sale, which was on the sixth weekend, brought in a great deal of money that we tallied out at over $20,000! Of course, I paid the workers out of that and the client got his portion. Was he pleased? You bet! He couldn’t believe his late wife had gathered so many great items, much of which she had scoured from the Dumpsters in the alleys behind their home. She may have been a hoarder, but it certainly helped him and me out.
Not all sales equal these amounts, but it’s icing on the cake when one is delivered to me on a silver platter like this one and the others mentioned. Most estate sales range from $3,000 to $6,000. During my early years, I had to learn how to price things and how to factor in the commission, which was 20 to 25 percent. Now I maintain at least $1,000 minimum up to $3,300 or 30 percent, whichever is greater. This assures I make something while paying my crew. I take smaller sales all the time because it keeps my crew and me working, and my name is out online on an ongoing basis.
I did auctions for 10 years until I had to let the auctioneer go. Sometimes these shifts turn out to be a wonderful positive experience in one’s life, as it was for me! And I have to say, I was tiring of the auction business. Thus, I decided to only handle estate sales and still do through this day. I just love them!