great day..

i had a great day and bought a whole box truck full at an auction.... tons of things i can easily make money on.... the theory at a cheap auction is buy by the pound and sell by the ounce....and it was a lot of the basic things i do sell... thats the kind of buying i got to do.... with a few exceptions..... a few just knock out things i paid dearly for and will loook great in the store....

also went to a church sale and got some big furniture that sold in a day....

also might consider a lot more old christmas for the store this year....and not so much new ..im getting over trying to get 9$ for a cheap china resin figure....

not real sure what my christmas options are....im getting catalogs already...i have a lot left....

reinventing....

reinventing....thats how we have survived...

IM HEARING THIS A LOT..from other stores ..AS IN IM REINVENTING RIGHT NOW.....meaning coming up with plan b i guess..a plan that will work...

THATS SURE WHAT WE HAVE BEEN FACED WITH ...trying to make our business work without being MOSTLY WHOLESALE..just 10 yrs ago we were way over half wholesale and now its barely a fourth....

i was pretty good at wholesale.we were pure antiques then ..all i had to do was find it and give a price....dealers flocked to us.... we did huge amounts of business with hardly any help ....and had wonderful customers who spent 10...20 30,000 a year....thats each!!!! .

well all thats mostly gone, they quit, the antique world pretty much tanked, and now we have had to reinvent to be a lot more retail ....im so thankful that we were able to make the transition....the guys left are the cheapest ones....and they are the richest ones too...but there arent very many of them...my new retail customers are mostly young and on budgets....DANG!!! but they are keeping us going and still like cool stuff....

BUT I SURE WOULD LIKE TO GET BACK TO MY ROOTS.....when people loved what they dealt in or collected and were out hunting antiques ....people in big trucks and lots of money.... it was so fun...

and back then....before jon had 4 kids, we could go places and do shows..

now im very swamped at the store and locked in there..with employees, dealing with companies, open 6 days a week. no manager,,, ..so im out there mostly over my head doing stuff im not really good at...

and i sure miss what im meant for....running around finding stuff in all kinds of cool places....we were only open 3 days a week at the start...

this summer im going to try and reinvent myself ..and get back to my roots..and just see how our new customers respond..... get out more, buy more antiques, go to more auctions, and maybe steal jon away more for a show or 2.....and buy less new stuff...and still be open 6 days a week with 4 people working each day...

i would love to see kane county.... or at least go to shipshewannae once in a while...

i knew the old customers so well.and they had so much more money to spend......now my base is younger women and families....im barely cut out for retail....but what the heck!!!!

the scary part of this reinvention is that we are going to lower our sites for money coming in....and make more on what does come in....losing over half our income , the wholesale, in the last few years is a lot for our new retail to make up....weve done it but i sure dont see how...and in this economy i dont see how we can keep doing it...

it was a lot easier back then...big sales out of the barn or from the end of the truck....no fluffing needed.....then if they made money they came back for more....it was pretty simple...

if you ever come in and the store looks like hallmark with no piles or junk and see me in good hair, decent nails, and a clean dress you know ive failed!!!!

garden party numbers

dh and the bubble machine...

WE ARE ALL READY FOR THE garden party .....its our annual spring event....its always been great with 6 to 800 coming ...who knows this crazy year....but we are totally committed and prepared for THEM AND HOPE THEY DO COME .

to put it on we have spent ABOUT $3000

3500 stamps

3500 post cards....we printed

FOOD

20 FLATS OF PLANTS ... each customer gets a little 4 pack...

PAPER AND RADIO ADS

WE HAVE FLUFFED UP THE STORE AS WELL AS POSSIBLE,

... ITS A STOREWIDE SALE, ABOUT 20% OFF,

...WEVE USED OUR MAILING LIST...WHICH WE DO 4 TIMES A YEAR..

...AND OUR EMAIL LIST.....

..AND WE ARE PACKED FULL OF SPRING AND SUMMER INVENTORY....

THE GARDEN IRON REALLY LOOKS GREAT AND ITS SOMETHING THAT ALMOST ANYONE WOULD HAVE A PLACE FOR....

im so convinced on mailing list and events...its sure worked for us.... we have people griping if they dont get their invitation..i blame dh of course.... the thing is, the event has to be worth coming to....and i think this one hits the season just perfect...

i never go for spur of the moment events.... or sales .....and i dont go for coupons,,,somehow our customers never respond to them...and i sure wouldnt personally...

i hate the money and work of the snail mail....but this has worked so well i am very leery of changing anything...

this year has been pretty scary ...people just arent spending right...so i will be so glad if we reach last years sales...

DAY ONE....it was our best friday ever with about 100 sales.... so that felt good.. the biggest days are usually sat and sunday, sometimes monday..so if that follows thru we will be happy campers...

several problems.....we dropped a small blookcase on the way to someones car.....we missed some parts to something for our biggest customer of the day....it was for his new store...

my workers feel horrible when this kind of thing happens , or at least act like it...lol.. but we all hate it ... i have a pretty big problem with one of them ....it would be a lot easier if you didnt get to know them...and care about them...and how bad they need the job etc etc...

the free plants were popular.......2 of the big signs 6 ft signs we made this winter went to a big fancy store.

..worst of all , one of jons kids got a broken arm , trampoline accident, and has to have it operated on this morning.....he was in the hospital all night....

fun customers of the day....she told me about chatting in a funeral line with another antiquer about have you been to greenoak? thats kind of sick....but natural junker talk....

my nicest phone call was from an old buddy seeing if i had anything for him..hes called me about once a month for over 2 decades....oh dear.......i get him antique gold and he gets me junk , to him anyway, useless watch parts..... we had a laugh on that one....hes over 80 and into the good stuff....he wouldnt understand my etsy...lol... http//:www.gypsymarket.etsy.com where i sell old enamel watch dials.. ...ive sold to him for 28 yrs, im trained to save all the good victorian jewelry for him....this year i got him a 4500$ pile of antique watch parts... so i have a lot of brownie points with him.....

he drove 2 hrs on the spur of the moment when i called him and said do you want to see a big pile of watches and parts..you have to come right now..? he said yes... ....i was with the owner and didnt want to invest that much..i knew it was good but not that good from my knowledge level on antique watches........ he came and i remember him asking his wife, do you have 4000 $ on you? she said well no...almost tho.....i guaranteed his check so it worked out great....it was about 60 boxes of parts...

im rambeling, but hes what business is about to me....active, successful and still loving it into any age he can get t o.... and the nice part, hes in his 80s and im in my 60s so ive always felt kind of young and perky around him....

Day 2.....great turnout but no big sales....120 sales....nicest comment,...everybody loves greenoak..i know thats not reality...but it was so sweet of her to say it.... .we really do have wonderful customers....

a good day but no oldtimers spending hundreds ....

a couple of things i stocked up on because they sold so well last year havent sold well at all.... go figure..... i do keep a detailed record of these events....

2 old ladies griped becasuse we didnt have the wonderful amish flowers we had last year....

saw our little grandson in the hospital....sickening....hes ok but wont have the summer he thought....no sports or swimming for a long time...

Day THREE...... CROWD UP SALES DOWN..... we had about 120 sales..... at about 50$ each....what hurts is no big wholesale buyers and very few furniture buyers..... thats the big hurdle we are facing.. retail is holding back a bit....and wholesale is about gone ...

we did great on smalls and garden iron...and im needing to reorder quite a bit...the texas trash to treasure, neat junk art flowers, and not cheap!!!! from the springfield show has been a big hit...

last day about 100 sales....and a couple ofver 500$

probably 6 to 700 people thru...

final numbers....down about 5% with hardly any wholesale or big buyers ..

thats a yippie....maybe there is hope for this year yet....

some good signs.....

WORD ON THE STREET......
some good reports this week;;
HERITAGE IN FORT WAYNE... I TALKED TO A BUYER WHO SAID IT WAS REAL BUSY WITH LOTS OF GOOD VENDORS....its a wholesale cash and carry show...in other words shops can go there and buy right on the spot..... its a place you hope you can find some new start up companies with new and exciting merchandise..... we have several of these shows in the midwest....in columbus ohio there is heritage and offingers....and in pennsylvania there are others ...including market square....and heritage...

AUCTIONS GOING HIGHER.... there are more buyers out there ...so i take that as good..even tho i much prefer the depressed prices when im buying!!!

GOOD REPORT FROM A GOOD BUDDY .... her store is in a good town in ohio and doing just fine..SHES HAD IT 8 YRS, SO OVER THE START UP ISSUES...ive known her at least 6 yrs and always listen to her ideas....we used to be on country business retailer forum together......her store is very fresh and full of well displayed merchandise....shes one of the few stores i know who is doing great still........she carries, vera, creative coop, lots of nice high to middle range companies... she has a baby and mom department, a garden department, and lots of all about me stuff..and home decor ...and GREEN OAK FURNITURE!!!! and some clothes ....just a nice young mix..with plenty for any woman interested in decorating..... not much country and not much super high priced.... i would say a good upscale look with reasonable prices...part of her recipe is great fun events and definitely getting input from her college age daughters..... it w as good to see someone doing so well amid all the depressing reports from all around....
and also read a GOOD VENDOR REPORT from the big springfield flea market
so lets hope things are picking up for everybody...... .....

road trip.....

we got to go to the SPRINGFIELD EXTRAVAGANZA in ohio....i was on a budget....which i hate....but necessary this year, apparently....still i was able to mostly fill the big truck with goodies for the store..... seed boxes, garden iron, fun junk art flowers, a nice big china cabinet, 20 chairs, fun architectural parts.wire baskets, and lots more....

half the fun is seeing old buddies and hearing the news from around the country.... one dealer i know told me about thenew store she is dreaming up....she said she wanted it to be like a party....with a big wheel for the customers to spin to see what surprise they get....and a big gong....for her, if someone gets out of hand.....

also got to see a beautiful shop in pickerington ohio....feather your nest....see the owner, denise, above with a cool green house...

we saw lots of white shabby cottage booths....i dont know how well they were selling.....they looked busy...

...the vendor areas were down a little.... but it was still a great show....i love going there... we go every may and september....

shrinking inventory ....not selection....

this winter has been pretty scary....with sales down a bit ..and expenses at the highest of the year......meaning seasonal heat costs....taxes and some big insurance bills which seem to come early ....oh, and the economic disaster our state and the country is in.!!!!

besides all that, we are naturally hurting this time of year because of the garden iron.,..which is bought now and earlier and doesnt sell until later.... we have about $$$20,000 bought and paid for and ready to sell.... so its good...but not this week!!! i hate to sound whiny but did i mention the weather? which has actually hurt us too....

.but one plot is working...and has brought in quite a bit of money........we do have a huge messy inventory so this might not work for all stores....but we have looked hard at the inventory and simply marked down a lot of items....i prefer marking down to a big sale.... sales all the time seem bad to me...this has brought in a lot of money that was just sitting there....

we've marked down

• old stuff i wont be reordering....both the bad and the tail ends ...


• things that are too high by the customers judgement....lots of this i probably realized were losers when they first came in.... stuff from catalog pictures.......why let it just sit there looking boring and overpriced?..


• any damaged...


• any that i priced in haste when it was just in and looked better than it really was...this has cleared out lots in the rough room....

we've dug deep:

also we have dug into the corners and the storage places and into the hidden spots that hold some of the things that are in limbo....

like parts meant for projects we never got around to... .....i want anything we have bought to be out and for sale...im kind of a pack rat and son jon is really bad in the packrat department as well, especially with the architectural parts and all his hardware ...so i have found lots of little piles....

doing this has helped a lot, bringing in new money and also it really shows how some of our buying choices worked out.......and also shows you who your best companies are..and of course it spotlights waste....as in when you realize half of some order is still around and in bad shape...

i want to always have a huge and varied inventory....its our good thing....and this spring, cleaning it out a bit has really helped us pay some bills....

on the other hand, im definitely buying lots of

new fresh merchandise!!!

i dont want to look full of last years leftovers!!!

the best thing i hear from the customers is ....you never know what they are going to have...and this place just goes on and on......

so i know they want our big inventory ....

its our big draw....

and being able to thin it down a bit and turn some of it into cash has helped us get thru this spring and made the store a bit leaner and hopefully stronger.....and with more money to buy more stuff!!! which i always love to do....

some business places on line are talking about monthly budgets....i dont follow this , we dont sell much in march but i have to buy tons of spring and summer things then.... i cant relate march buys to march sales....and i have to get lots of things in big bulk....to save on shipping and to get a better price.... and in the case of the garden iron , i get 2 huge loads , because thats the only way i can get it delivered....

so i guess its a continuing

wandering not lost situation....

a good thing....

i think a good thing for us is that we dont depend on one fad or age range to keep us going....if shabby fades we have french and country going.....if crows fade we have sentimental plates...... i never want to put all my eggs in one basket!!!!
same with age ranges, i have things for grandmas and for new mothers..... like in our foo foo room...the grandmas can afford a whole set of placemats and everything they like for their table etc at 100$ a visit and the new girls can get one nice love sign for the babies room for under 10$....and look at some small furniture too...
niches are great ....but to hinge the whole business on too narrow of a niche would take a heck of a location..
..here at greenoak we have chosen to be fairly wide and general within our target market.....in new york or on the Internet i could maybe deal with just my true loves...