I'm selling the Cabbage Patch Dolls my grandmother has collected for years. There is a whole truck full, I'm talking a semi truck full. They are all in the original packaging and some have birth certificates. I have accessories in the original packaging as well. My question is what are they worth how much do I sell them for? Where do I sell them?
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You have a few choices to sell them. Considering you have so many of them I would consider selling them locally. You can list them on Craigslist, hold a garage sale using an app that can be download and installed on your phone, or you can try your luck on eBay. Before taking the next step to sell them I would contact an appraiser first.
Ohhhhhh Ive been looking for years for my original childhood one! Wonder if its in your truck
Ohhhhhh Ive been looking for years for my original childhood one! Wonder if its in your truck
You are so lucky too have so many. Take pics and sell them on eBay or the market place on Facebook
U must first figure out what you have. Where they were made, what year they were made, and the condition means so much. Check their tags for letters that are circled and check the back of their neck for info on them.
WOW!! That is a whole lot of CPK if you have a semi truck's full of them. That is huge and amazing!! I would love to see them all as they are so much fun!!
My question for you is are you an experienced seller (either on eBay or Etsy or Facebook Marketplace) and do you have 6-12 months to sell these off on your own?
If not, I strongly recommend getting a professional estate sale company in and having them sell off the lot for you.
Yes, they will take a percentage of the sale for their time and they do this because of what's involved which is:
--their time
--researching to make sure you have no dolls that have a higher value (most sell for less than $10, but there are a few (NOT MANY, but a few) "ringers" out there that are quite valuable
--listing the items or holding an in person sale
--if selling online, they have to take photos, find boxes and packing materials, and then when the item ships, wrap it, take it to the post office and tell the buyer it is on the way
--then if the buyer isn't happy, they have to process a return
--YES it is A LOT of work--I know because I used to do this for a living, now I am just a hobby seller
The above is why I suggest having a professional estate sale person hold a sale for you and sell them. First, they can probably get it all done in a month or less (depending on their schedule and how they work their sales) and second, it will get this off your plate and you will still get some money back for the items.
You need to assesss if there are other things of your grandmothers you need to sell too and do this as one LARGE estate sale--probably best over 2 days or if you truly have a semi worth of dolls--2 different weekends or 4 days.
Estate sales are not just for people who have died...people who are living and moving or downsizing have estate sales also...really the biggest differnece betwen and estate sale and a yard sale is that an estate sale is usually INSIDE someone's house or a hall where a person's belongings have been moved and are being sold off vs a yard sale which is held OUTSIDE or in a garage and is just a small selection of person's stuff.
Where I am, estate sales get huge crowds and a lot of antique and vintage dealers and pickers come out, vs. yard sales where people who need something may stop by to see if you have the do hickey they need.
Ask friends and family for recommendations for reputable estate sale companies in your town and get 2-3 bids from them before you proceed.
They should give you an easy to understand contract.
The contract will tell you exactly how the sales will go and what percentage they get and you get and when you get the money.
They will also need to tell you what happens to what is LEFT from the sale, because there will be a lot left no matter how big or long or good the sale is. I have never held or been to and estate sale where everything was gone--ever--and I am not a spring chicken in age.
In the contract you will need to work with them on how they will "clean up or clean out" after the sale.
Be aware that estate sale companies that charge you to remove items after the sale are doing so for a reason--again--it is their time and energy...here is a little behind the scenes of why they do this....
So first off, YES, MOST take the unsold items and sell them on their own and YOU DO NOT GET the money from those sales...BUT, what everyone forgets is you got their TIME UPFRONT to clean out the place and take all the stuff away.
They had to get people, trucks, then a place to store the unsold items. Most good estate sale companies also offer to do minor repairs (like pull up ratty carpet or paint the walls), most also do a physical cleaning of the place at the end--meaning vacuum carpets or broom sweep non carpeted areas, leaving the place empty and clean.
They charge you a fee to do this because they have to pay all of this upfront (people, supplies, trucks, dumpsters, etc.)
So yes, they make up the balance of their money if they sell the items off on their own
An example of the math is a clean out costs the company $3,000 for everything (see above)--they charge you $1,500--take everything left and hope to make the other $1,500 to make the $3,000 cost back at the end. If they make a little more, they are happy, but most barely make back the money needed to GET TO that $3,000.
You can help have a successful sale and less left for the clean out if you work with the estate sale company to promote the sale IN ADDITION to how they promote it.
For example, you can post about the sale on your social media, you can join Facebook groups that allow self promotion and promote the sale there, etc.
If you need help understand the contract when you get one with an company, post back and I can help you!!
Wishing you all the best with your sale!! I think you will feel much better about things if you leave it to a pro!!
Otherwise, you are going to have a full time job selling these that may last a year or so and not give you a really good return on your investment of time.
Best wishes and prayers for success!
WOW that's incredible. In your case, I feel they would sell better as a huge batch to a shop that prides themselves on vintage dolls. I've seen them sold individually around $25 but I think you can go further by doing the above. Good luck. That's so awesome.
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