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Holy Cow!! As soon as I saw this I ran out to the storage area and went all the way to the end and dug out of a few odd left over piles from where we closed down those 6 antique booths. We have a Singer machine just like this one, with that floral pattern and all AND it is even older. The serial number is 6740352 which the Singer web site lists all it’s serial numbers and says ours is Circa. 1885. We have had it at the booths from July 2013 until last fall when we pulled everything out to transfer everything to online venues. I left it out there because it is somewhat oily,certainly dusty and is heavy so I figured I would leave it until we got through all the “smalls” from the booths.
To dirty to handle and photo right now, but looks like this is something we will be cleaning up tomorrow to get listed.
What a coincedence that this conversation popped up. Thanks for the $1,000 reminder tip. LOL 🙂
Mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
Linda.. I see you finally got your Icon-Avator changed. Great to see you as something other than a checkerboard pattern. 🙂 Did you or your husband figure it out. Glad you got it accomplished.
mike in Atlanta
I am with Jay. Just a super story. Also, like Jay I am full of questions, but know time must be a premium for you but am interested in the “process” of how you or a helper-employee handles each new item you purchase.
You buy an item, walk into your facility and set it down. Now what happens to that items as it goes through your “system” each step of the way until it gets placed on it’s spot in your inventory.
You must have a streamlined process to handle over 200 items per week [800 ++] a month.
We set an item in our office, open a spread sheet and enter on a numbered line, the date bought, where bought, what paid, short description and then hang a tag on it that has the same number that is on the numbered line we just used to enter it. Now we can track that item throughout our process. It is then placed on the need to photograph table, then photographed as we get to it. When we are ready to do a photography day we take each item, inspect it, clean it as needed, the place on table and photo. On the item tag we attached when we first brought the item into the office, we write the date photographed and then the item is moved down our line and placed on the waiting to list table. At the end of the photography day we take the San Disk card and move all those photos over to a folder we create in our master pictures folder. That folder is titled just photos 17-02-22 and all moved there.
Next as we decide that a day is going to be a listing day and as we get to it, we grab the tagged item of our choice and open a listing form and start the listing process. We create the title, then copy the photos from that photo folder into the listing form then weigh, measure the item and fill in the item specifics areas and do some price research on the items we don’t know prices on. Now we finish the listing form and hit submit to Ebay.
Next that item is placed in a plastic bin in our office to be later transferred to the storage area. When a bin or two get full we then carry those bins down to our storage shelves area. I place the bins on a rolling cart. Then I roll / walk up and down our isles of bins and pop a top on any bin that I think will hold an item. I call that bin number and item number out to my wife and she edits the spread sheet and adds the bin number into the cell for that item. Now we move on item by item. Once done, we can now just forget it. When it sells our sku number shows both in our Ebay listing and on our spread sheet [ a dbl back up] where that item is, we go pull it and ship it.
We have run a stop watch on each of these processes. Since we create tags and SS entries all at one time, then we will photograph for a whole day, and then list on another day we have total times for a “pile” of items. So if we photograph 30 items [360 photos] in a day [that includes, inspection, cleaning placing on photo table, shooting 12 photos, writing date on the tag and moving to the need to list table, then transferring the photos to desktop into that days folder, it totals out to about 6 hrs for 30 items which is about 12 minutes on average per item.
Now we have done these time studies on each aspect of the process we use and have found that we avg. these numbers: [all approx.] 5 minutes to log in, 12 minutes for clean-photo-pix organize, 10 minutes open listing form, entry about 15 various lines of item specifics-descriptions-condition-category selection. 5 minutes to weigh & measure each item and place into the appropriate item specific area along with the colors, if price research is needed add another 5-7 minutes but for this exercise let’s skip this, 5 minutes to carry the items to storage, find and place item into an appropriate bin, call out that bin and have entered into the spreadsheet. Then go back upstairs. This all totals out when aggregated into a total number then averaged out comes to approx. 37 minutes per item. For ease of comparison here if we were to do 30 items per day that would equal 900 minutes per day or approx. 15 hours a day. So you must have one heck of a system and I am so curious as to exactly what it is so we can modify and / or edit our system, streamline our process and become capable of listing more than we can at the present time.
So, if you would please, provide an outline of your process that you utilize from the point of acquisition through to the point you let go of the item and walk away. An explanation of your system would be of great help to us and also many of the members here on SL. Even if you have others doing / working the process for you, you had to be the one that worked out the work flow for the process and those steps are the key. We can run our own time studies on that process if we choose to adapt it and compare those numbers to our process and see if it is quicker.
Anxiously await a reply if you can find the time or are inclined to do so..
Respectfully submitted and requested..
Kindest Regards,mike at MDC Concepts, Inc., MDC Galleries, SmartParts and Spray Foam and More divs. all in Atlanta
Here you go.
You are right on. It is a “trinket box”. Used for small ear rings, bobby pins or straight pins, little jewelry, etc., etc. The price on the this link shows sold in 2014 at $17.70.http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-disneyland-hotel-vintage-1497940613
mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
This is pretty much what we do, only with a slight modification / customization. But basically the same. Since we use WonderLister [a database instead of a spread sheet] we keep everything within that database. All our current listings, all of our sales, every bit of data Ebay has to offer is saved on our own hard drive for as far back as we want to keep and their new inventory module has allowed us to do what we used to do in Excel only now within WonderLister and have abandoned the spread sheet totaly. No more duplicate data entry. Everything comes from just one form that is used to do our listings.
Just printed out all of our unsold items still in our warehouse inventory for Cost of Goods purchased and handed to our CPA.But the inventory system is about the same as dwb states above. Best system we have found so far and have tried many.
mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
Hey Ryanne… you sure about this? I usually make it a point to only ship to “verified & confirmed” paypal address or at least an address that is on the order page or shown in PayPal. I do this because I thought I remember reading that PayPal won’t provide the seller protection if the address is unconfirmed.
I have also had customers do this and I message back, that they need to go to PayPal or Ebay and change their address there and re-confirm or get it to show on the order form somehow. I don’t think an email [even if through Ebay Messaging] will hold up in the end if something goes deep south. PayPal has a place to do this easily on there form, unsure about Ebay. Several customers have done this. A couple did not so I only shipped to the “confirmed” address and the rest was up to them.
Oh… here is what I just found about this from Ebay…
“As long as you ship to the address found on the eBay Order details page or the PayPal Transaction Details page, you are eligible for certain protections under the eBay Money Back Guarantee.
While you’re not required to ship to a confirmed address, address confirmation is useful because it provides a way for a seller to verify a buyer’s identity.”Guess it is open to some interpretation, but I always play it safe and ask that they change. They made the error, I think they should have to do a “little work” to make it right, IMHO.
Mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
Thanks for the reply S&S. Will pack this way in our minds when we are previewing.
mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
Good morning:
Completely understand your “pain”. Hope you don’t have thousands of items, but it is what it is.
The best way in my opinion for anyone just starting up with this, want to do it the fastest way, don’t want to create the spread sheet themselves and write all the formulas is to use a spread sheet already created. I suggest you go to the following link and check out their spread sheet. It is called easy auction tracker, but is really an inventory spread sheet combined with an Ebay Sales record.
I will spare you the details except to say it runs fairly automatically. It is a purchased solution but only a one time purchase each year for each years fresh file.
In essence [after a short set up], it pulls down automatically every thing you sell from Ebay and logs it. But the beauty is that one of it’s “tabs” if you understand what that is, is it’s inventory tab. Click on it and there is already built for you an Inventory system. To use this whole app all you have to do is fill in the few columns that are shown in the Inventory Tab.
>>> Date bought, short description, price paid, where bought [this is for IRS] and enter a SKU number. This SKU number can be as simple as your item number. Start at 101 and then just continue from there entering every item you have. It has a couple more columns but you don’t really need that data but it is usual if you many similiar items and then the size and color columns can be helpful. But you need something fast and you need to hit the ground running and this will be a quick to learn and use way. It then calculates your total inventory costs. Start Jan. 1st and then get the total on Dec. 31st.
If nothing else go to their web site and look at their great videos. About 5 to 8 minutes each about everything it does. Then look at the Inventory Tab demo, freeze the screen at certain point and study the sheet in that view. If you undertstand spread sheets, know how to create them, format them and create formulas then just copy what you see your self. But the neat thing about Easy Auction Tracker is that all the formulas are already written and debugged and it runs on MACROS which automatic everything. It also then provides a monthly, quarterly and annual P&L statements, has a consigner tab and much more. Several members here on SL has used EAT for years and their only method of inventory control. Personally we used it years ago but have now progressed to more robust database type programs. But for ease of use this is fairly straight forward.
Just enter the data on every item you own and also on all items you buy, as you bring them home.Check it out and think you will find this most helpful.
mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
Will drop this quickly on this forum instead of S&B but we have a walkout basement in the Atlanta Suburbs. Jay probably knows Gwinnett County and the other side of Lawrenceville is Dacula, GA [where we live], near the Mall of Georgia. We have a full time renter for the last 3 years down there but they may be leaving this June. It is 1,200 SF, Full bath, 2 bedrooms, living room with gas log fireplace, dining room and fully equipped kitchen and separate parking, fenced yard, covered patio, etc. We would only have to furnish it for AB&B rentals.
Do you think it may be an idea to explore the AirBnB aspects of this. We get about $8k rent per year and that includes the space and all utilities. In quick math we may be able to do much better than that at only having it occupied 6 months out of the year!! Any thoughts? If you think a good idea, I will transfer further discussions over to S&B forum.
Mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
J&R: We started back to hitting our old Auction Trial two weeks ago. We have laid off buying new inventory during the transition from closing down all of our antique booths and transitioning a ton of inventory to our online venues. But it was time for us to just get up and “air oursleves out” after all of the months of listing and culling junk. So we hit our favorite auction haunts.
We have the exact same situation and experiences as you stated. Almost identical. We have couple that are “nice” and higher resell items and then the local, country type auctions. We have gone to these venues for years and spent lots of money with all of them.
We have certainly learned though to not buy from the seat of our pants. We do go to the preview day the day before or of. We have an spread sheet form and we log the lot numbers, dealers or items we are interested in. I always carry a small LED flashlight on my belt, a small tape measure and a 10 power loupe in my pocket. We make sure we discover flaws, flea bites, etc. prior to auction time. Then we go to lunch or early dinner and stay there while we eat and look what we can find on our databases we use. We can check about 4 different sources for Sold prices. We do this for what we can identify. Somethings we just don’t know what to call them. 🙂
We use the sheet to write down the avg. sold prices and then in the last column what our max. bid will be depending what gross margins we may be willing to accept. This helps us during the Flurry of the Auction Chant to not over bid. We know our cut off point. This has helped us a whole lot. Also helps us to ward off all the crazy buyers that, like you said, don’t know what they are doing, newbies just buying to get their new booths stocked up and those that just have no idea of what “real” profit margins should be. We win about 2 item out of ten. A list of 24 items will yield 5 or 6 “wins”.
It wa sfun to get back into the auction race. We always enjoy auctions of all types. One of the callers at our high end auction house is the state champion caller and she is lightenting fast.
If you want to see what we mean, Google Auction Chant Champions and listen to how the USA Champions call an auction. One is a 9 year kid. Man oh man, you have to pay close attention. They went through 164 lots in 90 minutes and that includes a description, bringing the items to the podium, holding it up selling it and then carrying it off. My wife has thought she has bought a tea cart in the past and when we went up to carry oit off, they handed her a old chest of drawers. I laughed so hard. Susan said what about the tea cart, he said that was sold a few moments ago, before this dresser drawers you bought. LMAO 🙂Any way they did have a bunch of rugs. About 12 or more each week. Nice ones too BUT we didn’t buy. YET!… Ryanne or other SL members.. what is a laundry list of what you look for as you preview the rugs up for auction or you find at Estate and Yard Sales? I have heard you mention a few things here and there in different podcasts… but would you list just exactly what it is that will make a rug up for auction go on your I want to buy this to resell list?
Things like material, thickness, colors, type, weave, selvage, condition [I know prayer rugs with holes are ok :-)], brand-mfg., shape, sizes, etc., etc. We skipped over 24 rugs in two weeks until we got the load down on what we should be looking for. We like you, will and can ship anything so that is not a criteria to filter out a rug. Really would appreciate it.Thanks guys…
Mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
Ryanne is correct but you can zero in a little bit more from there. First thing that came to my mind was Fuller or Ransbottom but then I looked at one of our older sold pieces and discovered we had found Shawnee [McCoy] we listed. Seems they were the ones who used the USA a lot. There is more detail as to the reason for this below, but if you stay generic as Ryanne suggest there also may be some good keywords or partial description within this.
If you are familiar at all with pottery, you will notice a large number of pieces that are marked with only “USA”. There is not a USA Pottery Company that produced these wares. For a sufficient explanation of why pieces are marked like this, lets start in the 1800’s. Back then, most pottery was created to be used in everyday life by an individual that probably lived near you. The makers rarely marked these pieces because beyond there usefulness, the items weren’t much to look at. (imagine an old, brown stoneware crock) As pottery techniques matured around the turn of the century, many larger potteries were formed. (think industrialization) Many produced artistic works that the creator would want recognition for his efforts. Anyway, every company had their own rules about marking their wares. Marks would sometimes include company name, logo / symbol, an artist signature, mold number, initials, country, state, city, what they had for lunch, etc., etc. Many companies would include no mark at all. Or, they opted for a simple paper / foil sticker instead. The stickers rarely stayed on the pieces long, and they’d wind up unmarked. Around the time of WW I, many businesses felt a patriotic need to include USA on their goods. This may have been also due to their exporting items overseas. Later on around WWII (I think?), the US government passed a law that all imported goods had to be marked with their country of origin. Some American companies saw this and decided that they no longer needed to include USA mark, because the imports would be stamped “Japan”, “China”, or whatever and people would know an unmarked piece was made here. Other companies continued to use the USA mark. Others continued to use it, on some types of pottery. Other businesses decided to use it sporadically. Some potteries were only going to use it on Thursdays. (you get the point! 😉 Basically, if you are going to find out who made your nifty green planter, your going to have to do some research. To start off with, the most prolific of the USA markers was Shawnee & McCoy.
Also maybe visit the Kovels.com website. They have a lot of information on old and antique items of all types. We have had a subscription for years.
mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
Take a look at Easy Auction Tracker. It is a spread sheet inventory program and P&L sheet and logging of new incoming purchases. It does everything for you except enter the incoming basics which you have to do. When bought, where bought, a short title / description, and what paid. From there it handles all your sales, COGS, shipping, expenses and produces reports automatically. Very cheap. One time $50 charge for the whole year. Downloads all your sales and associated costs and itemizes it all in the spread sheet, produces several graphs and business total summaries. They have several video demos on their site and also a full download trial.
Better hurry though because it pulls everything from Ebay and Ebay only keeps 90 days of data. So when you download and do the quick set-up, the Easy Auction Tracker spread sheet it allows you to go gather all of your data for the last 3 months. But after the end of March (90) days then you won’t have all of this years data. It still works just fine, but your Annual figures will be off until you start 2018 over, next Jan. But all of the monthly and quarterly reports will be OK.
It is called Easy Auction Tracker. Several other SL members have talked about it and state they use it.I have used it in the past but now, personally I use a more robust, higher end program but what I use is a monthly subscription and is more complex and has a steeper leaning curve.
link: http://www.easyauctiontracker.com
Take look, many seem to really like it.
mike at mdc galleries in atlanta
Definetly one to run past your CPA but you maylso be able to include the square footage into your calculations as part of your office. We have a full garage with shelves and half the basement where we have an art studio and area for wood working and repairing inventory items. the basement is 12×40=480 SF, the garage is 22×20=440 SF and our upstairs over the garage office is 14×22=308 SF for a Total of 1,228. And it is all used exclusively for the business so that SF along with that portion of the heat, electricity, mortgage payment, taxes, etc, are all part of our office deductions. Along with mileage, raw inventory costs, shipping and other items included in our chart of accounts.
But yep.. get all this set-up with your CPA and also E-Commerce1 here is a memeber of SL and has a strong financial background as does Mark Tew and they may chime in. But since you already have a CPA they are the go to guys.
Mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
