Car Boot Sales: Turn your Trash into Cash

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Not only is it a fun day out, car boot sales are great way to make money from all your unwanted items, and you can pretty much sell anything you like! It’s the perfect opportunity to get rid of everything you no longer use and turn it into cash.

People are trying to save money wherever they can which means that car boot sales have had a great swell in popularity, take advantage of this and get down to a car boot sale to start making some extra cash!

Step one: Dig deep

You’ll need to raid all your cupboards, drawers and boxes to see what you’ve got stashed away. It really is a great way to declutter your house, especially if you’re a hoarder, so check in the attic and trawl through the bedrooms to see if you’ve got any hidden gems. If you find that you don’t have that much to sell, consider sharing a pitch with a friend or neighbour, just make sure you’re agreed on whether to split the profits, or only take money for your own items.

If you’re a bit arty and crafty then car boot sales are a great place to sell things that you’ve made. If you’re handy with a pair of knitting needles then selling scarves, hats and gloves is a great idea, look at our how-to guide on making money from knitting. Probably though, the easiest homemade items to sell are cakes, sweets and jams, have a look at our steps to cake selling success.

Homemade beauty products are also very popular, especially if what you’re creating is 100% natural. So why not put your kitchen to good use? Make money from soaps and scrubs as well as cakes and sweets to maximise your profits. Read our guide on how to make money from homemade beauty treatments to get you started.

For the more adventurous among you, you might want to try making and selling your own perfumes. It’s actually easier to make than you might think – find out how you can do it here.

Step two: Find a place to sell

Use a search site like Carbootjunction or Your Booty to find your nearest car boot sale or check the local papers. Once you’ve organised a place to sell make sure you arrive extra early to get the best pitch. It’s a good idea to phone ahead and get some advice from the organiser.

Step three: Do your homework

Visit your local car boot sales to see how other people sell their goods and what sells well. For bigger items you’re planning to sell look on eBay and Amazon to see how much they cost there. This will give you a rough price guide. If you think an item may be a collectable then it really is worth having a look at the collector’s pages on these sites to see if you could sell it for more.

Step four: Be prepared

Bring along a table – a decorating or trestle table is perfect, if you don’t have a table, or need more than just one, see if you can borrow from a friend, or double up with them. If you can, take along a chair or stool so you’re not on your feet all day. Also, remember to take lots of loose change and refreshments. You’ll need plenty of both!

Take lots of carrier bags and a few small boxes for buyers to take their goods home in. They may be put off by a larger item that they have to carry in their hands.

Make sure you’re prepared for all kinds of weather. Bring a plastic sheet to cover your table if it starts to rain, and make sure you’ve got something waterproof for yourself as well. Likewise if it’s set to be a hot day remember that you’ll be sitting out in the sun for a long time so take plenty of water and suncream.

Step five: Keep the pricing really simple

Perhaps choose three amounts and label the smaller items the night before. For example you’ll have things that cost 50p, things that cost £1 and things that cost £5. It keeps it easy and straightforward for both buyers and yourself when trying to remember prices.

If you’ve got anything particularly special you might want to leave them unlabeled, then you can see if you can get a little bit more for them.

Remember, people love haggling and they love a bargain. It might be worthwhile marking up items slightly so that if people want to haggle you’ll feel more inclined to lower the price.

With an item that you know is worth quite a lot then it’s probably worth sticking to your guns, you can always sell it on ebay if nobody picks it up. On the other hand if it’s getting towards the end of the day and you just want to get rid of your things, then it’s a good idea to lower your prices and be more flexible with buyers.

Some dealers may make you an offer early in the day HOWEVER only accept it if you’re satisfied with the price they’re offering. If you’re not sure, or think you could get a bit more for it then tell them to come back later – if they’re serious about it then they won’t mind doing this.

Consider copying some supermarket tricks towards the end of the day to get rid of the last items. Try buy-one-get-one-free offers, or dropping the price of everything to one pound. It should bring in the last few customers still searching for bargains. Be prepared for major haggling by the end of the day and remember that 20p for an item you no longer need or want is better than leaving it to clutter up your house!

Step six: Presentation

Position your most eye-catching and attractive items at the front of your display. Take the time to make things look as appealing as possible, and try to place similar items together, for example, toys, kitchen utensils, decorative pieces.

Lay everything out on a clean, colourful cloth to attract attention. Items that are less likely to sell can be put into a box at a set price per item – for example 50p. People like a good rummage and if you put toys low down where kids can see them they may be more likely to sell.

If you’re selling clothes try to bring along a mirror with you. People will be much more inclined to buy clothes if they can see what they’ll look like.

Step seven: Get some help!

Rope in your children, partner or friend to help. An extra pair of hands is indispensable and makes the day much more enjoyable, plus it’ll mean that you can wander around to find any bargains yourself!

Best sellers

Perfume, smellies, plants, children’s toys and kids clothes always do well, so take as many of these along with you as you can. Homemade bread, cakes and biscuits always sell really well at car boot sales, and they don’t take too much effort or money to make. They’ll draw buyers in and encourage them to have a look at your other items, so it’s well worth doing a spot of baking the night before.

Remember, your perfumes/toiletries don’t have to be unopened. As long as there is a decent amount left and the packaging is in good condition you can still sell them at a reduced price.

Safety first

Keep expensive items near you at all times. Car boot sales can be magnets for thieves so be careful and always lock your boot after you’ve unloaded your items.

When you first arrive be aware of people trying to view the items before you’ve taken everything out of the car. This is a prime time for quick hands grabbing things without you noticing. Be firm and explain that you’re not ready to sell yet as you’re still setting up. This is where a friend or family member comes in really handy. One of you can unload the car box by box, and the other can stay at the pitch and set up the items.

Know the law

In brief, as a one-off car boot sales do not need to be declared as income. However, if it becomes regular, or you start selling items that aren’t your own personal property it’s very likely that in legal terms, you would be considered a trader. Check out the general advice section on Your Booty to find out a bit more and read our full article on paying tax on extra earnings here for more information.

Alternative ways to make cash from your trash

If the car boot sale doesn’t work out, or you simply don’t have the time, then you can always sell your things on eBay. You’ll need to register as a buyer and there is a small fee to list items for sale. Read our full article on selling things on eBay here.

Another useful way of getting rid of unwanted items is to post an ad on Gumtree in the ‘stuff for sale’ section. It’s a free website and really easy to use – simply click on the ‘post an ad’ tab, choose ‘stuff for sale’ and the category that’s most applicable. You’ll need to fill in a few basic details (location, price, description, etc) and then all you have to do is wait for people to get in touch!

Got an old phone lying about? Use our comparison tool to find the recycling company who’ll pay you the most for it.

Useful links

Want to make more cash? Then have a look at…

10 ways to make quick cash

Online Surveys: make money taking paid surveys

Make money recycling your old gadgets

Make money selling vintage clothes

Best money-making websites

Make over £200 a month with ads on your car

Ways to Make Money

20 Responses to “Car boot sales: Turn your trash into cash”

Lisa Salter says:

March 14, 2012 at 2:13 pm

You could always try and sell your left over car boot items on adsere.com a new free classified ads web site – buy, sell, swap, donate or find what you are looking for locally, nationally and within your own communities! 100% FREE!!!

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Mose Stinar says:

March 13, 2012 at 1:07 pm

That’s sounds interesting. BTW: Did you know that mispelled is one of the mostly common misspelled words?

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sophie says:

February 7, 2012 at 9:44 pm

I dont care about grammer here, just usefull info about car booting. There is certainly a few good tips, so thanks to the people who gave a valuble contribution. I cant wait for the car boot season to start ….

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ads'ere says:

February 2, 2012 at 2:19 pm

We would love to see anything left over from your car boot sale listed on our new free classified advertising site adsere.com and let us help you to make a bit extra cash. We are 100% free to use, with no hidden costs!

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Robert says:

July 21, 2011 at 8:43 pm

the best tip i’ve ever had for a successful boot sale is to use bootsalestickers.com

they do make a huge difference !

Rob.

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Chloe says:

May 20, 2011 at 6:52 pm

I have done really well selling my unwanted stuff. I find the best Boot Sale is at Taplow Maidenhead which is open on Sundays or Bank Holiday Mondays. It’s really busy and I found that the kids toys and clothes flew out and some good stuff of mine. Also I got rid of loads of kitchen items that I have replaced. Certainly worthwhile and I am now collecting more stuff from round my house so I feel de-cluttered!

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Jill says:

May 17, 2011 at 4:43 pm

I have found that the best way to get a reasonably decent price for larger or more valuable items is to advertise them in the local paper. Usually items under £100 can be advertised free, and sometimes the advert will go in two or three editions of the same paper, and on to its website as well. There’s an added benefit in that people who might want the item don’t have to travel as far as if they’d spotted something they want on Ebay, or can pick it up and save themselves postage. The seller doesn’t need to go to the trouble of packaging up the item and taking it to the Post Office either.

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Marty says:

May 3, 2011 at 2:59 pm

For Wren: On the whole, you’re still better using Ebay or advertisng in a Free Ads paper. Most Car Boot sales attract folk who have an “under a fiver” mentality or 50p to a couple of pounds whatever it is you’re selling. Your stuff doesn’t sound like a pile it high and sell it cheap proposition !

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Marty says:

May 3, 2011 at 2:27 pm

Car Boot Gimmicks that Work:

1) Have a dog bowl full of water by your stall, pet owners then have no choice in being hauled over to your wares when Fido spots it and fancies a drink !

2) Freebie sweets and soft drinks passed round for the kids is a surefire bet in luring mum , dad (and kids) over to peruse your stall.

3) Display Books neatly in a bookcase, with each title spine easily visible. Ditto videos, DVDS, cassettes etc. Random heaps tend not to move ; customers can be lazy and don’t particularly want to bend down or rummage. “File” comics and magazines upright in a strong box so each issue is visible.

4) Clothes rail/ coathangers or just standard airer rack for clothes displays. Failing this, a colourful blanket strewn by your stall to display them on – each garment neatly folded ( washed and ironed) and displayed in linear arrays.

5) Sponge panscrubs/discloths and some form of kitchen/bathroom cleaner spray to polish up goods grubby from several handlings.

6) A tube of wood glue to fix up tatty/ loose spined books – this method is apparently actually used in the publishing business.

7) An old large biscuit or chocolate tin to be used as an “Everything 50p” container for bric-a-brac odds and ends. There is a certain type of customer who is only interested in finding 50p bargains. Look after them and the pounds will look after you !

If selling cakes/buns/jams etc. traders need to be aware of Govt Food health and safety regs . A free guide booklet and food hygiene DVD may be obtained by phoning 0845 606 0667.
and asking for the SFBB Fact Guide and going on the website:
helpline@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk

9) Seasonal instant surefire sales – In winter many customers come out having forgotten their hats, gloves and scarves. Have plenty on your stall to sell off cheap for use there and then. In summer the same for sunglasses, light hats, chilled cold drinks in a freezer bag, juicy fruit, fans. Umbrellas and macs also sell well when it pours down !

10) Plants: early Nasturtiums, Petunias, Geraniums etc…single seeds in a mini degradable card plant pot showing their first bloom, can easily bring in £1 a time.

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Tina says:

January 16, 2011 at 11:28 pm

I have lots and lots of toys & stuff…we are relocating from the country shortly, have a small kid and dont have much weekends left to clear them in a car boot…is there any agency/helpers you can suggest so that i can atleast sell them for a least profit ( atleast)

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helen says:

January 9, 2011 at 9:56 pm

I find it best to try to sell expensive clothes and jewellery through dress agencies. Its hard to get good prices for these at car boots. Ebay is hit and miss. homeware and other odds and ends sell at car boots . People will rarely pay over £10 for 1 item and usually want something for nothing.

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Alison Ouchterlony says:

December 10, 2010 at 3:55 pm

Please tell Aron that I see 2 very common grammatical mistakes in his comment ….
1st Para, 4th line, he writes … “then they’re clearly not worth the price YOUR asking …” This should read YOU’RE, as he means YOU ARE, NOT, for example, your coat, hat etc.
2nd Para, 3rd line, he writes … “of IT’S original value” … This should read ITS, as when an apostrophe is applied, this signifies an omission – meaning IT IS. The ITS he requires here is like his, hers, theirs, etc., so NO apostrophe needed. Hope he gets my drift! Why is English SO badly taught these days.

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- helen says:
  
  January 9, 2011 at 11:04 pm
  
  I like good grammar too. I didnt notice that this forum was an english lesson. How rude to criticise Arons minor mistakes in a thoughtful , useful entry.
  
  Reply
- Carly says:
  
  April 26, 2011 at 11:50 am
  
  Erm, Alison… “Why is English SO badly taught these days.” requires a question mark at the end, as it is a ‘question’!
  Why can’t people who are SO bent on ‘grammatical correctness’, get it right themselves?! ;o)
  
  Reply
  - Rachel says:
    
    May 17, 2011 at 3:00 pm
    
    You are wrong about it’s. There should be an apostrophe because it is possessive, i.e. the value belongs to the item. So ner to you smarty pants.
    
    Reply
    - Victoria says:
      
      May 24, 2011 at 12:04 pm
      
      Sorry to be pedantic Rachel but Alison is right in this case. Only ever use’ IT’S’ when it is short for ‘it is’ or ‘it has’. The possessive rule does not apply in this case. I learned this a few years ago from a reliable source and it has (or it’s) been very useful.
      I’m interested in car boot sales, but even more interested in good grammar!
      
      Reply
Aron says:

September 24, 2010 at 3:36 pm

Car boot sales are full of people looking for a bargain, if you want a decent price for your stuff there…forget it! You can get rid of it for some sort of money but your best chance is on ebay. If the items didn’t sell before then they’re clearly not worth the price your asking for to someone else.

The most I’ve ever made at a car boot from all my junk (including designer clothes) is £40. Whatever you paid originally it’s likely that the people you’ll find at a carboot will pay around 5% of it’s original value for your items. So, for example, a designer pair of jeans that cost you £100 – will probably sell for £5.

My best advice to you would be if you no longer use it then part with it for the best price someone will offer you.

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Anthony Taylor says:

December 28, 2009 at 5:08 pm

It is very important to get yourself tax registered if you are buying at car boots and then reselling online for a profit.

Although you will have to pay tax on your profit, you can claim expenses for anything you use for your business – internet, laptop, petrol and in some cases, heating and electric.

Kind regards,
Anthony

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Toni says:

August 20, 2009 at 4:34 pm

I think this depends on the area in which you live.
Where we are people do not want to pay a decent price for a quality item.
You need to go along to a few and see if similar items to yours are selling for reasonable prices.
People seem to be willing to pay far more in Charity shops for lesser quality than they would at a car boot sale……human nature!
Have you tried dress agencies to sell your items? They take a small percentage of the price you require or may even buy the item outright.
Good Luck!

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A Wren says:

August 14, 2009 at 10:59 am

I am interested in selling at a car boot sale and have a lot of expensive items ie: designer clothes perfumes jewellery ect, will these things sell at a car boot sale as i would want a decent price for these things? i have tried ebay but it is so oversaturated with items very often my items dont sell,

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