This is the first time I've encountered something like this.. A person has nothing better to do but to flag my listings. Granted, many of my listings are "by owner" because I haven't switched them over to "by dealer" because I've been busy setting up my store/trying to sell my products on different platforms.

This guy goes down and flags ALL my listings.. It's quite annoying.. Any recourse? Suggestions?

I know that as a used goods dealer, it's unusual to offer returns. Today I had a DVD player returned because it wouldn't read DVDs. I haven't bought a unit with a working TV since I opened up the shop a month ago, so I can't test the products for operability. If the light comes on, and the tray spits out, it goes on the floor. Because of this, I offer a 1 week return policy on anything that plugs in, even lamps and microwaves, etc. It seems to be a big hit with my customers who are more likely to purchase the item plus others.

Anyone else have a return policy? What are the terms?

If this was already discussed, I apologize. I did a search and got a lot of "tax return" threads.

I found this platter dish in a unit which had a ton of glass from the 20's to the 50's. I'm thinking it's a reproduction, but I just wanted to get some opinions before I mark it $4...

We've advertised lightly for tomorrow's unofficial open as a "yard sale" day. Hopefully we get a big turnout! It's supposed to be hot as heck out there, so hopefully some folks will look at my "yard sale" as an opportunity to stay inside for a while. Really, this post is just a cheap way to get a link for the site out.. peakcitythrift.com

So on 4th of July (Thursday) we moved our store out of the POD flea market into a nice retail space inside a big building in downtown Cary. Took us about 4 hours to move everything out of the PODs and into the store, not a bad move. Spent the rest of the day Friday setting up, part of Saturday was also dedicated to setup because we were anticipating opening on Monday. Saturday late morning the building owner arrives and starts setting up his business for the day. Around 11:30, he calls my wife and I into his little makeshift office...

Apparently, the other tenants are unhappy with our presence. We have 3 boys and they can be a bit noisy.. They're kids! That was one tenant's complaint. Another tenant complained about our "yard sale" stuff and the customers we'd bring in.. in other words "Mexicans and blacks". Notice the quotes.. not my words, his.. Yes, apparently some of us are still stuck in the 50's.

So, we were asked to leave, he'll absolve the lease and pay me back my security deposit which he had already cashed. The owner apparently has no backbone either..

We spend the rest of the day Saturday packing up, make about $200 while packing up just off their walk in traffic coming over and seeing what we were up to. We spoke to 6 people and they were all excited about our store being there. I explained that we were actually packing up to leave because we weren't welcome. The other shops didn't make a sale from these people. 

After our last sale, the owner comes over to our space to ask when we'd be leaving and commented about the sales we had made. To which I had said, "Yeah, you ever have that feeling like you had just made a huge mistake? You should be feeling that now." He chuckled and reiterated that this wasn't his decision.. But the building has his name on it.. So I just left it at that.

Sunday, we meet with another building owner. He has an old strip mall, built in the 60's. Got a space for $700 including TICAM. We moved our stuff into the space, considerably smaller 650 sq. ft. but it'll work. Signed the lease yesterday. Had to commit to a 3 year lease but we are free to move within the strip mall as need and if space is available.

It was a hellish weekend, and we'll end up putting out more money than originally planned with insurance, utilities, etc. But at least we're in a space where we're welcomed!

So today I go to downtown Cary. Home of the posh boutiques, nice restaurants, upscale everything.. Even the Little Caesars is a bit classier here.

Here is the 788 sq. ft. space inside the largest space on the strip. The owner of the building wasn't expecting me, so I wasn't expecting to talk to him. But I did talk to a couple of the other shop owners. There's a very nice decor/flower arrangement (fake flowers) business. They are retiring, as the husband goes to seminary, and are closing their doors after 15 years at that location. I look at their inventory and the lowest price tag I saw on a non floral arrangement was $150. Had a short conversation with her. She said business has been consistent over the last 15 years. Most months are decent to good. But the impression I got was never better than good. Which is okay. One of the best things you can have for a business is consistency.

Second business is a flooring company. He's retiring in October. Has the front space with lots of window. I'm thinking possible move after he leaves. His story is much of what I would think in his business. Busy in the Spring/Summer. Fall off in the Fall and dead in the Winter. Says his busy time more than pays for his down time.

Third business is a olive oil bottler. She combines flavors into her oil. Quite yummy. She is quite new to the space, but reports good results. She makes sales based on traffic coming in for the other businesses. Come to find out, she's the owner's daughter. When I came in asking for the owner, she gave him a call. So now he's on the way.

Other businesses that did not have staff present were a bathroom/kitchen remodeler, mattress dealer (owner's gig) and a wooden bookshelf dealer for a local manufacturer (also the owner's gig).

Realizing I'm at risk of turning this into a novel, I'll cut to the chase. The owner shows up and is excited to see me! We spoke on the phone about my business and he seemed quite interested in having my business in his building. So there we are talking about the space, which he had planned to downsize his daughter's spot to rent to me. As we were talking about the space, I was looking around and imagining where things would go. Things were looking good!

Then he dropped a golden nugget into my lap..

He said "After getting off the phone with you, I was thinking about a way to get you more space for the same price." His proposal is to give up half of his space for his bookshelves and mattresses. My square footage would go from 744 to roughly 875. Same price, and a better layout. I would have a roughly 50 foot wall which is about 30% pegboarded and a 17ish foot wall in the back. Just 2 walls. There'll be a walkway between me and the owner's stuff, and I would have  to cut into my space a bit to allow people to walk through. Same rent. Includes electricity. Need a phone and internet. Magic Jack and cheap-o internet is plenty.

All this has me excited except for one thing. I have the cash to move in, the deposit plus first month's rent is in hand. What I don't have is my "oh crap" fund.. The fund that pays the rent if I can't make it. I don't know that I'm comfortable with the open and pray business model, especially since I'm using auctions to supply my inventory!

Bought 3 units today..

First unit was a bust, some kids toys, but is basically a break even unit.

Second unit had about 20 1/18th scale die cast cars. None in boxes, but all in great condition. It's a very cool collection! BUT.. after I was done playing with cars, I pulled a box and started digging..

Picked up a watch, it says Rolex. A submariner. I know they're faked a lot, no box or paperwork with it.. and I'm not gonna find someone to authenticate at 1 a.m. But I definitely pee'd my pants a bit when I saw it. If it's a fake, it's a pretty good one in my book. I'd post pics, but again, it's 1 a.m.

I'll update when I find out what I've got!