I am so with you, I LOVE and CRAVE to thrift (and go to estate sales, and flea markets, and browse Marketplace and auctions). It’s why I got into this business. It’s what I wish I was doing 24 HOURS A DAY. I dream about it in my sleep (no joke it’s been going on for well over a year) and I dream about it when I’m awake too. It’s fun, it’s thrilling, it’s stress-relieving, it’s up there with sex and chocolate (okay okay, it’s way better), it often gets us out of the house ALONE and man do we need that more than ever right now.

It can also be costly, not just because all those seemingly quick thrift trips do add up on your bank statement (do you actually keep track of how much you spend each month?? YIKES), but because all that time spent thrifting and sourcing is less time you’re putting towards actually working on getting the giant pile of fabulous vintage items listed online or in your booth, a.k.a. getting PAID for all your hard work. You’re literally sitting on a gold mine and you don’t even know it because you’re always out looking for the next hot thing that’s going to make you a big buck (or a quick buck). Well guess what? You have a GIANT pile of money sitting right in front of you but you’re always using the age old excuse “I don’t ever have enough time” as a way to procrastinate from listing it. You’re also denying a customer who may be looking for that very special thing that only you have because you haven’t gotten around to it yet. Whomp whomp. Sound too familiar? Hate me yet? Please don’t. I’m doing this for US. Keep reading because I’m here to help!

It may sound harsh but it’s the reality and you know it. And when I say you, I mean ME as well. This is a battle I’ve been fighting for years. Unhappy in a corporate job and needing to blow off steam - I ramped up the thrifting. I snuck around. Nobody needed to know and it became addictive. I was using it as a way to cope and put off the inevitable - taking action on WTF to do about the career that gave me the Sunday Scaries my entire adult life. Hunting down vintage was a coping mechanism. A way to procrastinate, to get a quick dose of dopamine, to delay taking action on my future and finding a fulfilling career.

Example of my inventory that’s taking up space in my office and brain. Most of it sat unlisted for over a year and ended up in the donation pile. :(

So the vintage piled up - art, dishes, scarves, napkins, vases, planters, books, jewelry, office supplies, anything that was cool and different that I’ve never seen before, anything that was $1-$3 and too special to leave behind, anything that tugged at my heart strings. You name it, I bought it. And not surprisingly, I ended up falling out of love with a lot of what I had sourced because it sat there for years, became misaligned with my brand and because of course, I didn’t have time to list it. Thanks to a good friend who really helped me figure out what was worth keeping over a series of organizing sessions, I ended up donating hundreds, probably thousands of dollars worth of vintage in the last few years. Bye bye cash money, bye bye time and energy it took up in my brain saying to myself day after day “Oh I should really list that. I’ll get to it when I have time…someday.” What a crock of sh*t I was telling myself and what a freaking waste. Live and learn though, live and learn.

Okay let’s get to the good part because the purpose of this post IS NOT to make you feel terrible (I may be in the corner crying right now BRB), it’s to encourage you take control of your thrifting habits and help you come up with a more practical routine. One that gives you more time to list and actually pays you CASH for your fabulous collecting abilities. We can do this together, you and me. You’re not alone!

Just like I hate extreme diets and don’t think they work in the long run, I don’t think quitting thrifting cold turkey and giving it up for a month or however long you think you need to catch up with listing is going to really do you any good. I’ve tried it before and IT SUCKS. It just made me have the worst FOMO ever and basically backfired because when time was up, I was back at it WITH A VENGEANCE. The point is to create healthier habits around how you source vintage and run your business, habits that are more likely to stick over time. And thrifting makes us happy, it’s what we love to do most. We shouldn’t deny ourselves of pleasures in life, and definitely not this point in history when we are all suffering enough!

So here are my suggestions on how to tackle this little frequency problem, take it or leave it! I’m here for you no matter what!

Tip #1: Super simple but not as easy as you think - cut back. Allow yourself ONE trip a week or every two weeks or say you are currently going 20 times a month, cut it to 5 or 10. You may thrift once a week and consider that too much already, or you may thrift every day. Choose a new frequency that will work for you and if you need to gradually get there, ease into it. It’s okay! Baby steps are steps in the right direction. Put this into practice and watch all that free time add up. How many more listings can you bang out each week now? The increase in sales will keep you highly motivated to list more!

Tip #2: Keep a log of dates, amounts and most importantly TIME spent per sourcing trip. If you’re not consistent at keeping up with your spending and bookkeeping then this may be eye opening for you. How many days a week or month do you go thrifting? How much are you spending each month vs. the revenue you’re bringing in? How many hours a week is it taking up? Seeing these numbers on paper may shock you into making a change (see #1).

Tip #3: Set a monthly budget and once you reach it, you’re done sourcing for the month. Again, if you’re not on top of your bookkeeping, you may not even know where to start with a budget but try to come up with a number and STICK TO IT! This may stop you from sourcing out of boredom or as a form of procrastination from listing or dealing with something else you don’t want to do.

Tip #4: Set listing goals and reward yourself when you reach them. You’ll start to see your sales increase as you list. Well, wouldya look at that! Here’s an example: List 20 items before you step foot in another thrift store (if you have a massive backlog, that number should be much higher!)

Tip #5: Only go thrifting when you’re already out running errands. This may not work for you as that may be one of the reasons why you go so much (like when the grocery is next to Salvation Army and you just have to pop in!) In other words, don’t walk into a thrift store unless it’s paired with another activity and that activity is close to the thrift store. You’ll save on gas AND time!

Caroline at Savers Thrift looking as happy as ever — Me at Savers Thrift with a sparkle in my eye doing what I love to do the most - THRIFT! Don’t deny yourself completely, thrift in moderation!

These tips really only have to do with frequency and I’m not going to get into being more selective about what you’re sourcing, that’s a different conversation! The key here is to figure out how to repurpose time during your week so that you can spend it listing, marketing, SELLING and whittling down the hoard of inventory that is taking up your precious head space and physical space.

Keep this in your head at all times: IF IT’S NOT LISTED, IT HAS NO CHANCE TO SELL.

Shift your mindset, shift your habits. Take baby steps, start cutting back. List more of the vintage you already have before you accumulate more. You’ll feel lighter. Freer. More organized. And richer.

Try it and see what happens! Message me on IG or send me an email and let me know if this helped you!

Happy Selling!

Caroline

XOXO

If you’re looking for some motivation and accountability when it comes to listing or streamlining your sourcing practices, then the Etsy Vintage Mastermind Monthly Membership may be for you! You’ll be inspired by listing challenges with prizes twice a month, be given tips to help you optimize your listing process so you can list more FASTER, all while being supported and cheered on my me and your vintage-slingin’ pals. We meet once a week live over Zoom and connect daily in our private Facebook group. Email me or DM me to see if it’s a fit or sign up today! Open to new and experienced Etsy Vintage shop owners.

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