After shopping and talking to many with booth operators, it is my conclusion that most folks with an antiques mall booth are simply spinning their wheels and not really making a good return on investment and in some cases in the hole
Love all the tips my daughter and I recently rented a booth at the Antique Mall in Mesquite Texas. We thrift and recycle. Paint and refurbish home decor. It's a lot of fun but also a lot of work. It was an impulsive decision on my part, I have a full time job, and recently lost my husband. So this does fill a void, I wish I would of seen this video before I signed the lease, but I am having a lot of fun with it right now and I am going to try and make it successful. I know that things take time. Thank you for making this video.
Great advice on Antique Mall booths - a step by step 'how to' and 'what to look for' video. You've obviously spent a lot of time going to and interacting with these. Thanks for all the insight.
I had a successful vintage furniture and accessories booth in NC from 2012-2014. My monthly rental fee was $150. I closed the booth because I relocated to another part of NC (career related, so no choice.) I recently looked into renting a space and restarting my side-gig. I was shocked that most standard booth spaces are now renting for 400-600 per month (Charlotte, NC, for the curious). Is this standard in 2023? It seems a bit high.
Wow- you've gotta sell a lot of stuff every month to make the rent! That does seem like a lot of money, but I know rent prices have skyrocketed lately in residential and many commercial areas. The problem is, if you find a cheap place that gets no traffic, you feel like you're throwing your money away every month. Hope you find a solution that's worth your time. Good luck in your venture!!
Just got my first booth at a mall near a large tourist town and I couldn't believe how good I've been doing the first couple weeks. A lot of your points are what I did when I decided on location. Location is definitely the key to secess or failure in my mind. I probably walked 25 malls many times. I think I walked the mall I decided with 15 times before I moved in. I waited out for a very good window booth.
I have a booth at the antique gallery in Lewisville Texas. It is a busy mall but it is my first booth and I’m having to learn the hard way what sells and what doesn’t. I’m having to source differently as I learn what sells. Only certain new things sell at my mall. I now try to source more vintage items, new items made to look old, new art of old scenes or photos and unique items. I am not into diy and painting so totally curating my booth would make sourcing difficult. Thanks for the video!
Oh yes I see your point- sometimes you gotta put in whatever you can source lol! Best of luck with your new booth- if I make it to Lewisville any time soon I'll try to find it :-)
Thank you for all your info on booth space. It is so true about location and making sure the location you choose is the right one. I wanted to get into a booth mall and they didn’t have any space. So I picked one that was available at the time which was wrong for me. I went back just recently to the one I wanted to get into 6 months ago and they had space so I am now moving to that space in Pt. Pleasant, NJ. Thanks again. I now have to brand myself because I do a little of everything and want to break away from that.
Several years ago, I had a booth of mostly dancer gifts. It did well until Christmas, and then sales dived. But I have made some lovely small purchases at antique malls.
Yes, I am considering a booth at the Lakeland, Fl Antique Mall. It's about 30% Disney items for sale there (which I am not). There is a 14 page waiting list, so I have time to create a niche and work on upcycling and gathering booth shelving and display racks.
I really liked what information you gave. I have always been around antique malls and parents who went to outdoor auctions frequently when I was a kid. My Mom who is an artist and I've followed in her footsteps. I've sold in consignment shops but never had a booth of my own. I've moved since then and the area I'm in now, the towns are small of about 1600-2000 and surrounding towns which are larger you drive 40 minutes to of population of 15,000. People always ask me where can they come see my items and I've always had to tell them I don't have a place. Recently a store across from the courthouse closer to me has a little pizza and deli eatery and have opened up the extra space into booths. I checked it out and reserved a spot just so I can get in. This owner has never done this before and wants to make this part of the store for local artisans and gently repurposed items. The unfortunate thing is she isn't open on the weekends. I know it is almost non existent if you aren't open on those days. I have also heard many people asking what the hours are and I can see the people are polite but can tell that there is a disappointment. So far it's only been a half of a month I've been in there and I've already put alot into this I don't want to see it fail. I have asked other places that do have an antique mall how to get in them and right now one has over a year waiting list and the other larger place is filled up with weekend outside booths that you would have to provide a pop up tent at 25.00 a day until weather no longer permits. I do sell my hand crafted items on an Etsy store. Any other type of suggestion you might have would be appreciated Thank you.
Hi! My space is Sea Monkey Revival at the Peachtree Peddler in Georgia. I am an eclectic, boho-inspired booth as well as a chandler who offers small batch, hand poured 100% soy candles with cotton wicks and clean fragrance oils.
Wow! You totally saved me from myself! You sure nailed the “creative type” making decisions on impulse. Watching this video made me understand that nope, I am NOT ready for a booth. Thank you thank you and thank you!
Hi Amy, I pretty much jumped into a small shoppe in McGregor, TX. (May 2, 2023) My first thought was to do vendor fairs. I am upcycling mostly vintage items and creating one of kind home decor from some new things with a garden inspired theme. i.e., pillow covers, sm. Cutting boards. Also, in this short time I have become a Dixie Belle chalk paint retailer. A paint retailer was already at this store location so I just took it over. With this adventure just starting out for me I am having all the doubt feelings but I am doing my best to get seen and trying to find ways to make that happen. I appreciate your video. I was excited to see the ACM in your video, I love that mall.
I really appreciate all of this great info. I've been a vendor for over a year, and I'm just not making my sales. I think one reason is that I'm not niche enough. I'm pulling out, at least for a while, and maybe I'll come back to this type of work later. You're so right--as an artist, it is sooooo hard to be disciplined enough to pick one niche and stick to it. Especially, when I find so many great deals at yard sales and thrift stores.
I rented a booth at a new antique mall in Ocala which was open every day except Monday. Then the owner decided he wanted to take time off on Sunday and closed on Sundays. That's a huge shopping day locally and it really hurt sales. Then he would just open late or close early or take a day off whenever he wanted and almost all the vendors moved out. Because there's a waiting list for booths everywhere, more vendors moved in and one of them ended up buying the mall, but by then it had a bad reputation and vendors are not doing well. I am glad I got out early and have booths in two successful malls which are open 7 days a week.