Garage saling today was a little more productive than yesterday but, with nearly fifty sales starting this morning, the results could have been a lot better too.
At the first sale I stopped at I purchased a Hamm’s Beer glass advertising ashtray for $.25. In the past, buying a glass Hamm’s ashtray meant an almost sure $80 to $150 profit. However, it’s been close to a year since I picked my last one up, and the market seems to have mellowed some. I’m guessing a final bid of $25 for this one will be doing well.
A few sales later I was able to buy fifteen Hazel Atlas pheasant cocktail glasses for $.10 apiece. They should sell for somewhere between $15 and $30, probably in the lower part of that range.
At the same sale, I picked a Marlboro “Towns, Trails & Special Times” cook book out of a “Free” box. With no investment in it other than listing fees I’ll happily take the $10 or more it should bring.
A while later I bought two motivational cassette sets for $1.50 each. One is Brian Tracy’s “The Psychology Of Achievement” which should bring $20 or more. The other, “The Secret Of Letting Go” by Guy Finley is one I’ve never seen before, and I’ve never heard of Guy Finley, but I’m hoping it will find at least one bidder at the opening bid of $9.99.
At another sale I picked up eight issues of “The Decorative Painter” magazine from the early 1990s along with thirty-one issues of “Annie’s Attic Newsletter” (about crocheting) from the 80s and 90s. I paid $.10 each for them. Each title will be listed as a lot on eBay and each lot should bring $15 or more.
At the same sale I bought a centennial history book of Manvel, North Dakota for $1. I’ll start it at $19.95 and it may only get one bid or it might get into the $40 to $50 range. I’ll just have to wait and see.
A sale to raise money for one of the local high school’s band provided two Dayton Hudson Miss Santa Bears - one for 1993 and the other from 1996 - for $2.50 each.
Similar to the Hamm’s Beer ashtray, these two bears are a great example of how the market for an item can change on eBay. As little as a year ago I would have had no problem getting $60 to $70 each for them. In the last year though the market has pretty much died for Dayton Hudson Santa Bears and if I get $25 each for them I’ll be doing the happy dance.
At the next sale after I bought the bears, I picked up bound copies of the 1996 and 1997 issues of Handicraft Illustrated magazine. I paid $1 a volume for them. I’d never heard of the magazine before, but I have a soft spot for bound magazines. I’ll start each at $9.99 and hopefully they’ll attract at least one bidder each.
What may turn out to be the find of the day was bought at the second to last sale I went to after spending 4 hours at sales. It is a boxed dealer information packet for the 1996 Dodge GTS Viper. It includes two small booklets and several color slides. I gladly paid the man sitting behind the card table $2 for it. I’m guessing it will bring somewhere between $75 and $150 on eBay motors.
There’s no question that garage sales are beginning to wind down for the year in Grand Forks. They will continue for another six to eight weeks, but the number each week will decline pretty steadily after Labor Day weekend.
Beginning shortly after Labor Day weekend, I’ll be starting to get back into the “buying-trip” routine and buying more inventory at antique shops and malls around the five-state area.
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