Trunk Treasures

Lately we’ve received a ton of pricing questions.  We’re bumped the pricing guide to give you a little assistance on how to price your items.

We’ve tried to think of everything and put it all in one place for you so it’s easy to find when you need it. A couple of things to keep in mind as you’re setting your prices: What would you be excited to pay for this item? And…are you pricing it with your heart? Be sure you’re ready to part with an item before you price it and then price it to sell. It’s such a disappointment to spend all the time and effort tagging only to realize when you pick up your things that your prices were too high.

Price lowest those items you really don’t want to take back home with you. This is a great time to clean out your closets and toy chests. Don’t let your time and energy go to waste by pricing things too high.

Also, keep the discount box in mind.  We discount items 30% on the last day of the sale if you’ve marked it that way.  Most of the items that cross the registers on the final day are items that are discounted.  Discount it to ensure that if it didn’t fly the first two days, that the final day it will find its way in someone’s purchase.

Also- Keep in mind we can only accept NEW IN BOX carseats and NEW IN BOX cribs Manufactured AFTER June 28, 2011.  Please check the Consumer Safety Product Commission for the latest information on recalled items.  Recalled items CANNOT be sold, or if a repair kit is offered, it must be installed.  (Repair kids do not apply to cribs, all cribs must follow the above standards)

Level 1- Discount Department Stores: Kmart, Wal*Mart, Target, etc.
Level 2- Department Stores: JC Penney’s, Kohl’s, Sears, Burlington
Level 3- Chain Stores: Osh Kosh, The Children’s Place, Carter’s, Old Navy
Level 4- Upscale & Boutique: Gymboree, Gap, Justice, Naartjie,  Abercrombie

Pricing Guidelines (Other Items)

Its finally official! Our November sale dates are carved in stone… the space is rented, registration and tagging are open and we’re as excited as ever for this sale!!!

We’ll be in the same location as our last sale, in the Eastlake Design District. 871 Showroom Place Suite 106. Chula Vista, CA 91914. We’re right next to Eastlake Tavern and Bowl.

November 14th Set Up 11:00 am – 2:00 pm
November 14th Drop Off 2:00 pm – 7:00 pm
November 15th Drop Off 11:00 am – 7:00 pm
November 16th – Exclusive Pre-Sale Day – 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
11:00 am – Double Shift Volunteers
12:00 pm – Single Shift Volunteers
1:00 pm – Consignors + 1 Guest
2:00 pm – New Moms/Grandparents/Military Pre Sale
November 17th – 11:00 am – 6:00 pm OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
November 18th – 11:00 am – 6:00 pm OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
**DISCOUNT DAY – MANY ITEMS 30% OFF**
November 19th – 10:00 am – 1:00 pm Pickup of Unsold Items
November 19th – 1:30 pm Donation to Charity **Anything not picked up at this time will be donated to charity. We have to be out of the facility and cannot hold on to your items.**

We look forward to seeing you (and all of your deals and steals!) there!!

Because savings are always in season, planning is in full swing for the February Trunk Treasures kids AND moms consignment sale! We’re pleased to announce our sale will be in the same space as before at 851 Showroom Place, Chula Vista, just two doors down from Kid Ventures.  The set up, pre-sale and public sale dates are as follows:

Feb 15th Set Up 3:00 – 5:00 pm

Feb 15th Drop Off 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Feb 16th Drop Off 11:00 am – 7:00 pm

Feb 17th – Exclusive Pre-Sale Day – 11:00 am – 5:00 pm

11:00 am – Double Shift Volunteers

12:00 pm – Single Shift Volunteers

1:00 pm – Consignors + 1 Guest

2:00 pm – New Moms/Grandparents/Military Pre Sale

Feb 18th 11:00 am – 6:00 pm OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Feb 19th 11:00 am – 6:00 pm OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Feb 20th 11:00 am – 6:00 pm Discount Day – Most Items 30% Off

Feb 21st – 10:00 am – 1:00 pm Pickup of Unsold Items

If you’ve been to our events in the past, you know the quality of merchandise our consignors bring to our sales is superb and the prices are so attractive there’s always something for everyone!

Did someone mention name brands? We LOVE name brands! As a shopper you can expect to see Gymboree, Naartje, Baby Gap, Janie and Jack, Coach, Ann Taylor, Petunia Pickle Bottom, Express, Hollister, Victoria’s Secret, Step 2, Thomas The Train, Crazy 8’s, The Children’s Place and many others throughout our racks.

As moms we love to keep ourselves and our families outfitted with stylish clothing and accessories. Shoppers at Trunk Treasures find plenty of that along with toys, books, décor items, furniture and lots more all at  70% – 80%  off retail prices. That, my friends, makes mama look chic AND smart!

Check our website for all the details on how you can join in on the fun and finds:

WWW.TRUNKTREASURES.NET
Follow Us On Facebook!

Consignor 101 – Let’s Get Started

Trunk Treasures is a children’s and mommies consignment event that is held several times a year. We pride ourselves in accepting only the best quality merchandise,  which allows our shoppers to find great deals and our consignors to fetch a greater amount of money for their more expensive items. We encourage you to bring your clothing and accessories for sale as well as your children’s – from infants to teenagers!

1)    REGISTER!  To get your consignor number CLICK HERE Once you have your number you can  log in to the system and begin to enter inventory, choose a drop off appointment or sign up to volunteer.

2)    Choose and prepare your items.  – Quality is of utmost importance to us. Please keep this in mind when you’re going through your items. We will kindly refuse any items that are not in pristine condition. Bottom line, would YOU want to buy this item and take it home with you?  Include in your inventory your  designer or designer-ish clothing and shoes (yours and your little ones), educational materials, games, higher end household and décor items, formal wear, costumes, books, dvd’s, video games,  baby gear of any sort, furniture, Christmas and holiday décor during the fall/winter seasons and of course TOYS, TOYS, TOYS!

3)    Schedule your drop off appointment! In order to keep everything as organized as possible we have a drop off schedule to help inspect all items and get the sale ready. This is the day before the actual sale begins. CLICK HERE to select an appt. We ask that you help with this process by sorting your hanging items by size and gender and placing a rubber band around each size. For further instructions on how to prepare your items, CLICK HERE for our  helpful guide.

4)    Enter your inventory. Our system makes it so easy to add items, descriptions and set pricing. This menu also allows you to discount or donate any items.  CLICK HERE to log in to the inventory program.

5)    Print your tags! CLICK HERE to print your tags. You must not block popup windows in order to print them as they come up in a separate window. If you’re a mac user, mozilla is better for alignment of the tags. Please use #64 cardstock and remember to CLICK HERE for further instructions on preparing your items.

6)    If you’d like to gain earliest access and earn 70% of your sales CLICK HERE to volunteer at the sale.

Thank you for consigning with us! If you have any questions, please email me at trunk.treasures@yahoo.com or call me at 619-869-1316.

While visiting family on the east coast a few years back I complimented the mother of a cute little girl on a playground wearing the most adorable outfit. “She looks just precious in that! Where did you find it?” It’s a question moms will ask many times in the normal course of play dates, parties and preschool. Little did I know that little question would lead me on the path to being a mompreneur. She was so excited to tell me how she got it at a consignment sale where she loads up twice a year on designer clothing, toys and all kinds of goodies for her kids at rock bottom prices. She explained that she also sells the best of her children’s gently used items at these sales to get more money than she could if she held a yard sale. What a fabulous idea! I couldn’t wait to find one in San Diego when I returned home.

When I realized there were none in my local area I decided to create a sale for the moms I knew and of course anyone else who wanted to join us. It’s more work than I had imagined when I set out on this venture, but it’s been so much fun to watch it grow, to improve the experience for both our shoppers and consignors and to give back to our community.

In keeping with the moms and family centered theme of our events, we host a handful of local mothers at each event who sell some of our favorite goodies. Hand made jewelry, Scentsy, 31 Gifts, Mary Kay, Pampered Chef and Creative Memories. We’re thrilled to be introducing Tatum Kathleen Photography at our May sale. Anyone who wants a sample of her work can visit her photo booth during the sale and have a free portrait emailed to them.

At the conclusion of each sale we make a donation of any unclaimed items to a local children’s charity. The spring sale will benefit BirthLine, a pregnancy support center for local mothers who are struggling to provide the basics for themselves and the babies they’re carrying.

As I watch the growth of Trunk Treasures I’m always moved by unexpected outcomes. I’ve seen businesses, friendships and children continue to grow. I can’t wait to see what the next sale brings. I hope you’ll join us.

In today’s challenging economy families are looking for ways to make the most of their budget.  We’ve all heard the news about increases in cotton prices, experienced recent pain at the pump and have felt the overall impact of inflation. As a result there’s been significant growth in the consignment sale industry.

So what are consignment sales? They’re seasonal events usually held in the spring and fall and lasting about a week where you can find any of the items you typically buy for your children, from clothing to toys, books, bassinets, strollers, baby slings. You name it and it’s probably for sale. Consignors register with the sale, often times through an online system and price their items to be dropped off at the sale. Volunteers arrange merchandise and help run things during the sale in exchange for early shopping privileges and a higher percentage of their sales. Consignors, volunteers, first time moms and often times military get into the sale during the presale event.

Sellers get higher prices for their name brand gently used items than they would if they held a yard sale while buyers can find things in excellent used condition at a deep discount compared to retail prices.

While most of these events are businesses run for a profit they almost always involve a charitable component, ranging from donations of unsold items to canned foods collected as admission.

Consignment sales help with recycling efforts. According to earth911.com each American throws away on average 68 pounds of clothing per year. These sales help reduce the amount of that clothing that ends up in our landfills.

As more and more people begin to realize the value of consignment events, they become more involved and complex. Then the community, by way of local children’s hospitals, parenting groups, support networks for families and children become participants. The benefit that eventually comes is much, much deeper than good bargains for toys and clothing.

The outreach and connection that these events bring is astounding. It’s the unexpected cream on the top. You see moms connecting with one another about their respective business ventures at first and then they move on to share their experiences and challenges as women, mothers, and wives. You see moms shopping together with their small children and helping one another out as they peruse the aisles. Many times the moms who run small businesses and set up booths at our events network with each other and learn more about how they can grow their own business. Long term friendships are forged from the initial meetings especially among those who volunteer and set up to showcase their business.

When I first began to consider starting a consignment sale of my own, I never dreamed it would be such a place for people to connect. I’ve connected with tremendous individuals, who have helped and challenged my ideas and commitment as well.  It touches me to be a part of what goes on before, during, and after our sale.

It’s the biggest question we get from our new consignors. How do I price my items? We’ve tried to think of everything and put it all in one place for you so it’s easy to find when you need it. A couple of things to keep in mind as you’re setting your prices: What would you be excited to pay for this item? And…are you pricing it with your heart? Be sure you’re ready to part with an item before you price it and then price it to sell. It’s such a disappointment to spend all the time and effort tagging only to realize when you pick up your things that your prices were too high.

Price lowest those items you really don’t want to take back home with you. This is a great time to clean out your closets and toy chests. Don’t let your time and energy go to waste by pricing things too high.

Level 1- Discount Department Stores: Kmart, Wal*Mart, Target, etc.
Level 2- Department Stores: JC Penney’s, Kohl’s, Sears, Burlington 
Level 3- Chain Stores: Osh Kosh, The Children’s Place, Carter’s, Old Navy
Level 4- Upscale & Boutique: Gymboree, Gap, Justice, Naartjie,  Abercrombie

Pricing Guidelines (Other Items)

If you have never shopped or consigned with Trunk Treasures we would like to offer you our “Most Wanted” list of items/brands requested by shoppers. These are the brands and items that tend to bring top dollar.

Brands: Gymboree, Gap, Old Navy, Abercrombie, Hollister, Roxy, American Eagle, Carter’s, OshKosh, Nike, AND 1, Adidas, LL Bean, Janie and Jack, American Girl, Puma, Limited Too, Ralph Lauren, Children’s Place, Hanna Andersson,  Aeropostale, Polly Pocket, Little Tykes, Fisher Price, Leap Frog, PS2, Nintendo DS, XBOX, Little Einstein, Bob the Builder, Dora, Barbie, Hannah Montana, High School Musical, John Deere, Hot Wheels, Scholastic, Usborne, D&K, Thomas the Tank, LEGO, Brio, Disney and Discovery Toys.

And Our Top Three Selling Items By Category:

The Trunk Treasures July 2011 Consignment Sale will be held July 30-31 in EASTLAKE!  We’re so excited to have access to the beautiful facilities at Mon Petit Chateau, conveniently located at 861 Harold Place, Suite 204, Chula Vista CA 91914.

Drop off , pick up and sale hours to be announced soon! Tagging and registration is open!