Antique Shop Booth Renting: Here’s What to Look For

Selling is the only way I can keep painting furniture, one piece per week, more or less, depending on what life throws at me. The selling landscape where I live in lower-mid Michigan is competitive. I’ve experience different shop management styles, rates, and philosophies. 10 years and 5 different shops later here is what I’ve learned to avoid and what I’ve learned to seek.

Consign vs. Rent

Booth renting is higher risk than consigning. Time is money. If a piece or two doesn’t sell within the month then rent comes out of the pocket.

Consigning is basically storage on display, which is nice to have no concern about coming due any rent, however, consignment is more expensive. Consigning is less risky and less pressure. There is no need to pay a dime except when a piece sells. This fact alone may settle the question but there are a few draw backs to beware. A consignment deal with shop owner can cause severe heartburn if you aren’t getting a good enough return. I consigned once in an upscale furniture resale shop with a 50/50 deal. My stuff sold so-so but I lost money even at higher sticker prices. Even 60/40 (I get 60%, shop owner gets 40%) is a stretch to make profit. I could be persuaded to do a 65/35 deal in a top notch, high traffic home decor boutique if there was one nearby.

Join Similar Vendors

I love arranging and filling my own booth. It’s decorated the way I want and it gives me great pleasure to display my furniture and smalls. I’ve learned. First, painted furniture, as the main theme of the booth, is not enough. Second, booth sales are better when among other similar vendors. For painted furniture, the more booths containing painted furniture, on-trend decor and good styling, the better. No painter is the same as the other like artists. There isn’t as much head-to-head competition as you would think. Choose a shop that has other vendors categorically like you and has high traffic. Being the lone ranger in a shop is not an advantage like I once thought.

Does shop owner have a booth or sell merchandise?

Assess the shop owners dedication to promote vendors merchandise and the shop as a whole. Shop owners that sell their own merchandise are easily tempted to focus a majority of promotions highlighting their own stuff. In that position, vendors are stuck completing with the owner for sales. They sometimes get unequal promotional air-time plus they get a distracted leader.

When vending with a shop owner who doesn’t sell his/her own wares, I feel I am getting my fair attention, promotion but more importantly, my stuff isn’t unfairly competing with the owners stuff. My rent should be the reason they work their business. I feel some shop owners get vendors for the soul purpose of paying rent so their booth is free to them.

Does the shop take all credit cards?

If you can choose, or have any say in the matter, take ALL credit cards. Some shops won’t take American Express, for example. That’s like saying “I want your money but only my way“. As a previous shop owner, I don’t like sending that kind of message. My message is “I want your money any way you want to give it”. So what that it costs more. I’d rather adjust the commission rate then say no to a paying customer. Local shops must make this choice, like it or not.

Blended vs. Booth space

A few shops exist where the owner rents ‘space’ to vendors without defined booths. The shop owner is responsible to accept your merchandise and display it in any fashion that they feel works. Painted furniture is placed anywhere in the shop with anything, and possibly everything, on top. This can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on shop owner tastes and styles. And, because you have no control how it’s handled, there is a slight higher risk of damage.

Be sure to keep a written inventory of items when stocking and selling because your merchandise can be anywhere in the shop. Selling small things in this business scenario is a nightmare if it’s scattered around the shop. You might loose your stuff. This is what happened to me. My furniture sold well and I was pleased with the outcome, but I lost on small stuff that somehow grew legs and walked away. Some small stuff is probably still in that shop tucked away somewhere behind other merchandise hard to find.

Space here is not well defined. Rent is based on it but no one really knows, not me or the shop owner, how much is being used with my merchandise. It can be sticky if the shop owner feels you’ve used your space allowance, but you feel differently. I was able to narrow down my space allowance with the owner agreeing to a number of pieces. I was allowed so many pieces for a set rent. That worked because furniture is large and easy to count. I didn’t care for having no control how it was displayed though.

Facebook and Promotional activities

The best shops are focused on customer service and have creative promotions. An active shop is the more successful for all parties. Does the shop have several activities through the year? My favorite shop has events to draw customers without offering discounts – that is the best of the best. They have Valentines Chocolate extravaganza, Halloween Witch competition, and live curbside music in the summer, for example. The have 4 store wide sales in the year actively advertised with advance store signs, FB posts, direct email lists, inside sales and flyers.

Speaking of Facebook, the best shops understand how it works, ruthlessly build a following, and posting often. It’s free, for Pete’s sake. And there is no sin in spending a little to boost store posts. Shop owners that complain there’s not enough income from commission need first to assess promotions, not to raise the rate. Every new customer is a potential frequent shopper.

I’ve participated in 5 different locations none of which was successful without my personal Facebook Marketplace postings. About half the furniture sales comes from customers that my personal posts have driven in. Yeah, sometimes I wonder if it’s better to sell them off my porch and be done with rent and smalls. Then a store customer comes along a buys a piece from my booth. I used to hate smalls but in the last year since I’ve HAD to have them, I’ve come to enjoy picking – a lot!

Hours of operation

The best shops are open 6 or 7 days a week period and they have easy to remember set hours. I’m leery of joining a shop that has different hours on different days, is not open past 5 or is open not open earlier than 11. It’s a shame any customer shows up expecting to browse and finds a closed sign, especially when neighboring shops are open. Shops on the block should match hours.

There is a strange logic that some shop owners believe reducing hours during slow times is the right thing. Not only do I think it sends the wrong message to customers but as a vendor I’ve just been robbed. I make sales only when the shop is open. When it’s closed, I’m paying for storage. It’s not fair to vendors that enter an agreement with a shop open 7 days a week to then be stuck having to pay the same for 6 days, or worse 5, which has just happened to me. Changing hours is just confusing to everyone. Penny wise, pound foolish.

Found What I’m Looking For

There is a place. 45 minutes away. No shift work. No commission but direct credit card fees for vendors. 7-days a week. Great parking. Quality vendors. Great rent rates. It is well known in the region, visited by shoppers often driving an hour or more. I just signed on the waiting list and as it should be, it’s one year long. It will be worth the wait.