We scour Craigslist daily, hoping for that ultimate find; the movers, the hoarders, the people who don't know, or see, the real value in what they have and are selling it for way to cheap. That's our holy grail, the ultimate finds!
Then, there's the process of trying to resell on Craigslist. It's tricky. Timing of your posts and pricing is key. For example, I've learned that posting ads around 7pm works best, and also Saturday mornings around 8 or 9. That seems to be when most people are browsing. Also it's important to come up with your bottom line price ahead of time, and then list the item around $20 more than that, to account for the hagglers. However, they still have to be "Craigslist friendly prices" because keep in mind, people search Craigslist for cheap furniture, that's the entire point, so you have to make sure that you're conveying to people what a great find they've made by coming across your piece at that price. Then, you wait. Patiently. It's hard sometimes when you get stuck with pieces for a few months, but in the end, it's luck. Finding the right buyer, at the right time, with the right price.
Along with that comes the inevitable copy cats. Maybe I'm being too egotistical, but on more than one occasion I've had a piece listed for a few months and then, along comes the copycat. Someone who has probably seen your listing because they are Craigslist junkies like you, refurbished a piece almost the exact same way, and listed it for half of the price. It's frustrating to say the least. Though I must ever so humbly say, my pieces are always better....
So, we forge onward in the Craigslist war, while our houses slowly become cluttered with awesome furniture that we have no where else to store. And we wait. And hope for a sale on Etsy and for luck to be on our side.
My first piece, the antique end table, took me over a month to sell. But it did sell, and my war began....
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