Car Boot Sales... Do they work?!

[Boudicca]

* Getting there early.....yep that's me.
* Buying at higher prices.......na I buy at the right price.
* i've bought around 70 computers there or thereabouts of the last 15 years at car boots.

* Some, not all, I've sold for far more than I paid, but then again, I've probably spent more than I've sold and lost more than I've won but that's the buzz. I beat the seller. I win.
 
and your right......can't think of a better way to spend Sat and Sun Morn, breakfast, boot and bargain.....


Where ! ******* STAY THE HELL OUT OF NOTTINGHAM ******

[Boudicca]

Need to send the brother-in-law down your way with a load of PCs and consoles filled with house bricks...

Its funny you say that......

There is new trend at Car boots/Flea markets/auctions and scrap markets. The "Bulk" buyers, its been getting far worse over the last couple of years, the boxes are bought bulk by nefarious buyers who just bulk the stuff and load into a van/truck, god knows where it all goes, mostly tat, but bikes/stereos/tv's/large single person to carry items/just bulk.....a couple of times i've dipped into a box bought by them and I get a "long" stare of "I'll kill/stab you!"......One dealer said its going to container overseas, Africa/Asia....but if it gets any worse not only will you have to get there early, you will need to camp.

[Boudicca]

The sister & brother-in-law get these regular types that show up about 6am every Sunday morning...

The Dealers - who buy stuff for their own stalls, ebay or antique shops...

The Poles - who'll buy mobile phones, PCs, TVs & clothes to take beck to Poland and sell...

The Africans - who buy anything at all as long as they can get it for 50p and again take it back home to sell...

The sister cottoned on to this a few years back and they have a regular supply of old suitcases that they pick up from auctions as the Africans snap these up to make it easier to transport the stuff back home...

Never know which is worse. At least with dealers if you wait long enough, they often sell at almost what they bought it for. When I was a "Dealer" the trick was to keep your stock changing, holding out for a price was foolish as you better to just rotate the stock. Made a few quid but a lot of cold/hard winters did me.

[Boudicca]

We have Flea Markets here too.
The difference between the 2 is that at a Car Boot Sale your stall is the boot(/trunk) of the car.

The difference is most "flea" markets are held in town on the market stalls as for regular markets, and generally if you sell at  more than 1 or 2 weeks of these in town markets, you have to become a member of the market traders federation and the associated membership fees and really are classed as a "Sole" Trader as a business and subject to the rules/tax/income etc around that.

Car Boot Sales are outside these rules and as such a regular seller isn't bound to be a business and not subject to those rules/tax/income etc.

Basically if you want to keep the states fingers off your profits, Car Boot sales is the "Dark/Black Market" whereas Flea markets are were the "dealers" hang out. Although they also do the car boots too.

I was a flea market seller for around two years, I got round the rules by having different people standing and rotating between about 10-15 markets, problem was my "turf" suffered from living around an Antiques trade area where the prices went through the roof in the summer months, due to tourists and I couldn't be arsed standing week in week out during the winter. One thing I take my hat off to are those that do markets 365, hardier souls than me. Went back to an office job and haven't looked back.

[Boudicca]

I mainly look at how old the people are that have the garage sale's if there in
 there 70 or older you have a better chance at finding older computer gear
 that there kids left found a few Vic 20's and 64's no atari's yet..

Chris  :roflmao:

Wow....70 or older is the age now is it. Those old people with Vic20's...I would widen your search criteria fella. My first computer was around that time, and I'm 43 not 70 or older. I think the mass market hit was around my age group 40-50. That's the period for Sinclair/Commodore/Atari/Acorn/TI/Apple/Tandy/Radio Shack/Timex/Japanese and Far Asia brands. I wouldn't be so hasty to rule out those without grey hair yet.