SolveYourProblem
Article Series: Shopping
Give Me Some Smart Shopping Tips
Finding
Fabulous Flea Market Bargains
Saturday morning is often a favorite day of
the week for frequent flea market shoppers. The thrill of finding
that special item at a price you can afford can absolutely
make your day. There are a few things you can do to make your
shopping experience fun, especially if you are new to the world
of flea market shopping.
Primarily, timing
is everything when it comes to flea market
bargains. If you want to find the most bargains or those special
hard to find items, sleeping in on Saturday is not an option.
Be one of the first people into the flea market building on
a Saturday morning and you'll have your pick of the premium
items. If you show up after lunch many of the antique or specialty
items may already be gone.
It is also important to do a little research if you plan on
buying a particular item at a flea market, especially if you
are antique hunting. Know the average price for the item you
are hunting for and unscrupulous vendors won’t take you. There
are many places for you to research specific items including
the Internet and books that are dedicated to your collectible.
There are price books on everything from Depression glass to
Star War collectibles. Do your research and you'll be happy
with the merchandise you buy.
Flea
markets are not always places to find antiques. Many
flea markets feature local artists who are selling their wares
as well as people selling items from stores that have gone
out of business. For many people, this makes visiting flea
markets fun because you never know what you are going to find
there. Many flea markets feature the same types of items on
a regular basis because they rent out their vendor areas to
the same people for an entire season. If you like finding unique
items every time you shop you may need to go to several flea
markets to find the kinds of items you like the best.
An important aspect of attending flea markets is haggling.
Haggling harkens back to those bygone days when people argued
over the price of a hand woven rug or piece of pottery. Nowadays,
it is expected in most cases to haggle over an item that is
for sale at a flea market. There are several rules to follow
when you are haggling. The first is that you need to be respectful
to the seller of the item you are interested in. If they don't
automatically respond to your lower price offer don't get upset;
this is part of the haggling process. Telling a seller that
their item is a piece of junk is a sure fire way to make sure
they won't sell you anything now or at any time in the future.
Second, offer to buy more than one item and ask for a lower
price that includes all of your items. Sellers are more likely
to make a deal when you are purchasing several items at once.
Third, if your seller doesn't accept your first offer you can
always walk away and come back at the end of the day. Sellers
often will make a deal when faced with packing up an item that
hasn't sold that day.
Finally, set a limit on what you will pay for an item that
you are looking for. It is easy to get carried away at a flea
market when there are so many good deals to be had. One way
to do this is to limit the amount of cash that you bring with
you to a flea market. When you run out of cash, you'll know
it is time to quit and take your fabulous flea market finds
home with you.
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SolveYourProblem.com
: 2008
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