Friday, February 15, 2013

If you pile it, will they come?





I’ve been thinking a bit more about the look of a filled-to-the-brim antique mall space and it makes me wonder if I can be maximizing the real estate in my own little mall space even more?

On one hand, I want there to be plenty of things for a shopper to browse through.




On the other hand, I prefer said shopper not be crushed or lose an eye when a sketchily-stacked mountain of rusty and splintery vintage stuff topples over.

It’s a fine line.




So I’m making a decided effort to really, really (really) fill my space and see if more sells when there’s more to choose from or if it turns into a can’t-see-the-trees-for-the-forest scenario.




Yesterday I learned what selling an item from a packed space means for the fine folks who work at the antique mall where I sell.




Just as I had finalized a total overhaul / rearrange,  a wooden bench that was piled high with a cabinet and shelves (both of which were filled with thousands if not millions of little items) sold ... which meant all that piled junk had to come down in order to extract the bench.




The bench came out and then I started piling it up all over again.




Despite the required re-foof, I’m always happy when something sells and I learned the bench was purchased to be used on the set of Grimm which is filmed in Portland, OR.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!



26 comments:

  1. You're right, it is a fine line. But it looks like you're doing a great job! I'd LOVE to shop your space! So many cute things!
    Erica :)

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  2. What a nice lot of interesting stuff you have displayed, would love to browse through! I love tightly packed spaces, it increases the thrill of the hunt...but on the other hand...l always seem to hook down some item with my elbow or with my handbag! :-) Pam

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  3. I think you space looks great! I am still learning how to stack things vertically. It's a challenge. I also like filled-up spaces, but not so much that you cannot lean in and take a closer look at things. You seem to have found the golden middle road :-)

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  4. I prefer the overstocked booth rather than the understocked. We vintage hunters like to have lots of options! My sister was at an estate sale in Astoria last Summer and someone there was buying old windows for the Grimm set. Crazy world we live in!

    Erica

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  5. You seem to have reached your accessible yet non-eye poking goal. I love a space filled to the brim as long as they keep it fresh and fluff it occasionally. I sort of like finding the things that no one else may have noticed because they didn't dig all the way into the booth.

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  6. Oh Amy, how freakin' cool is that! Your tasteful eye for vintage has reached stardom status! WooHoo.......maybe now they'll keep your booth in mind as a go-to spot for more show supplies.....

    While I feel for the mall employees and them having to dismantle a booth to get to an item, as a shopper, I like a space to look chock-full to excite me and keep me engaged......just as long as a piece is accessible for me to look it over. You're right, it is a fine line.

    It all looks awesome Amy. Keep up the great work. You have certainly found your groove, and you should feel very proud!

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  7. I had that same discussion with myself today. My booth has been a little less full since Christmas, BUT I've sold things that have been hidden under piles of vintage-ness. I'll probably have that discussion with myself many more times! Cool news about your bench being on Grimm!!!

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  8. Wow your bench will be a star! Really I like a booth with lots to look at, but if it's piled too high and I can't 'touch' things I pass.

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  9. Your adopted treasure is going to be a star! Yeah, that's very cool!! I like the piled high look of your space. Good stuff that keeps your eye moving all over.

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  10. Oh, it looks so fun to have a booth! I'd love it. I have not idea about more or less. More seems fun! Those cherry canisters are great....so many cool things! That's so exiting about your bench! How fun to watch for it!
    Karen

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  11. It is a fine line, I think the more the better the sales. Yea on your famous bench!!

    Carol

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  12. Your booth looks so lovely though! I would love to shop it!! :) If a booth is over loaded I just like to take my time and look at everything! :) It's so exciting to me! :) xx Holly

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  13. I don't mind a full booth as long as all items are accessible. If I can't reach it to see the price- I won't ask for help. Maybe a large price tag is the answer for that.

    I'm so glad the Grimm people told about their plans for your bench! So fun!

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  14. i think blogger just ate my comment ... sigh

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  15. How cool that your bench will be on TV and your new title can be Supplier to TV shows. Saw your booth yesterday and you had sold things so apparently packed works. It looks good to me when packed!!

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  16. Looks at all those goodies!! I would love to shop you sweet space! Happy weekend to you!! How is crocheting/knitting going? xo Heather

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  17. Since I'm a huge fan of Grimm, would you mind share a picture of the said bench? Would be fun to try to spot it in the show.

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    1. I looked high and low and don't have a good photo of the Grimm bench -- it's your garden variety green bench. You can see a bit of it in this post ... the Christmas blow molds are sitting on it.

      http://sointovintage.blogspot.com/2012/11/just-another-day-at-office-and-winner.html

      Rumor has it the bench may be used in a campfire scene.

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  18. I'm sure it's a tricky balance - maybe, quite literally, a tricky balance!

    xo
    Claudia

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  19. Wowza! I was over there pre-foof and can't believe how much you have added. I vote for stuffed because I think it draws people in to to your space. When they can stand in the aisle and see everything they have no reason to come in for a closer look.
    Love that your bench will be on Grimm!! I was at Montecello one day and there was a pair in line in front of me with like 20 wooden crates and a few other things you might see in a barn and I wondered if they were for a set because I could imagine someone wanting that many for personal use. Being avintage buyer for Grimm - now there is a dream job!!
    Sorry for the delay commenting. Flu caught me but on the mend now!

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  20. I think that everyone's comments above are great! - even the "larger price tags" suggestion (seriously, not such a bad idea...) As a shopper, I need to be able to get to everything, and deep digging is great hunting fun, but has its limitations sometimes. I learned the hard way, as a retail newbie when I opened my 500 sq. ft. recycled home-goods store years ago, that MORE IS BETTER, and that rearranging (foofing) is an absolute necessity every couple of weeks. More is better, because it keeps people at your booth longer, and therefore more likely to buy. Changing it around is so that your returning browsers stop again and are interested in not only what's new, but I guarantee they will also see things that were there all along but which their eyes missed the first time around. (Hope that makes sense, and that I don't sound preachy, as you know what a HUGE fan I am!) I must also comment: every photo of your flea market and mall booths that I've seen, has made me want to "beam myself over" from here on the East Coast to wherever you are selling ~ with a load of cash in my pocket and a way to get it all back home again. Your innate artistic talents, whether or not you consciously realize it, are definitely being used in your displays. So don't over-think it; do it to please your own eye... and it will always be right. (And the heck with doing the work sometimes to get stuff out-from-under, it's usually not so bad to do.)
    Hey, I'm sorry to be so "wordy" again, people! Back me up with more comments.......
    xoxo,
    kaytee

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  21. I love a stuffed booth- lots of fun to search through! I'll be looking for a wooden bench on Grimm (love that show).

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  22. Ha I found myself questioning this same thing over the weekend but ultimately decided to take the opposite path. I de-piled and took some junk away thinking that maybe if the items were more approachable and there was a wider path through the space, they would come. Who knows. We should all be psych majors.
    Cool about the bench! Congrats.

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  23. I don't care how dangerous your booth might be. I'd still be drawn right to it!
    I love the idea that something from your booth will be on TV. That makes you, and the bench, even more famous-er!

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  24. I think a full to the brim booth is great - just as long as buyers can get all the way *in* the booth. I'm not selling from a shop right now but I do plenty of cruising through shops. If I can't get in the booth I generally find myself skipping it.

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