The Next Generation of Vintage Shoppers

The discussion among online sellers these days revolves around how to reach the next generation of vintage shopper. There is a generation of creative talent out there, a group that uses vintage items to “re-purpose” and “re-create”. That notion often sends a collective shudder through the vintage community. There are some purists (I count myself among them) who have a heart wrenching moment when they see beautiful pieces of vintage costume jewelry, pottery, glass, or porcelain torn asunder and turned into something “re-purposed.” It is not that the finished product does not hold beauty, or is not of value – it is the destruction of the old to create the new. 


Today’s online community, the very people driving the marketplace and the creativity and the new and exciting ventures, have used computers since they were in diapers (think Leap Pad). They have been on the internet since pre-school. The internet is their learning platform, it is their creative platform and has become their social platform and their networking platform. It is where they go to shop, first. Want a new widget? Well, let’s go online and compare prices before we even leave our house. Let’s see who has the best widget for the best price. Let’s go online and read reviews. Let’s go online and see who has the one I want in stock. Let’s order it online and have it delivered to the store, or even delivered right to our front door. 


Today’s shopper carries the internet in their hand 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in the form of their smart phone, or their tablet device. They can scan a barcode in a store and find reviews of an item, and where to find best price within a reasonable driving radius – or where to purchase it online. I attend auctions and estate sales and wander flea markets in search of treasures and delights. I’m a collector and I’m a shop owner. When I look around at the auctioneers, the people running the estate sales and the vendors at the flea markets, the majority of those people are my peers. Once in a while I will see a vendor at a flea market who is in their 20s or 30s, but the vast majority are 50 plus. I’ve met only met a few auctioneers under 40. 


In a recent discussion with my favorite auctioneer, their concern was the aging auctioneer community. They had recently attended a convention of their state’s auctioneer community – and looked around the room to find that the attendees were all of the same generation. Where are the new faces? Where will the new generation come from when his generation is ready to step down? How do we as sellers reach the next generation of vintage and antique collectors? Those who love vintage and antiques for what they are, as they are, and appreciate them for their own beauty rather than something to be re-purposed or re-used. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for going “green” and reusing and recycling. But there is a lot to be said for the treasures of our past and keeping the beauty of the past generations alive. How do we as sellers communicate with the generation that thinks something made in 1970 is an antique? 


I’ve been working with a group of sellers on The Vintage Village, and we’re asking ourselves how we use today’s tools to reach that next generation of antique, vintage and collectible shopper. There’s a group devoted to Ruby Lane, and another devoted to Ruby Plaza there. We’re exploring adventures in Facebook, where there is a community working together called “Got Vintage?” We help each other learn the new marketing techniques online that will keep us in the emerging internet marketplace. I’m learning to use online platforms, like Pinterest, to build momentum forward and reach that next generation. I’m using Twitter, and learning the value of tweeting. 


As online sellers, we have to move forward with change and we have to learn how to use it to be effective for our business model. I was delighted to see Ruby Lane add a Pinterest button right to each listing! It allows our customers to pin items of ours directly to their pin boards and create a buzz on Pinterest about our vintage and antique items! We can use them to pin our own items to boards. This is in addition to the buttons for Facebook and Twitter. It’s growth, it’s change, and it’s good for us! Now we just need to learn how to use these tools effectively to grow our own business and to build a new generation of antique and vintage lovers.

So, you think you wanna sell online?

We travel frequently, and are always meeting new friends. Many of them have approached me about selling online– it seems so effortless and so easy ... just have a widget, take a picture of it, put it on an online selling site ... then sit back and wait for someone to buy it.

"It’s simple, right? Tell me what you think! Should I sell online?"

Here are some things I recommend they ask themselves when trying to decide if selling online is right for them:

• What will you sell?
• Do you have an area of expertise? Something you are passionate about, that you collect?
• Is there something that you have ready access to in large enough quantity to keep a viable online presence in your “shop”?
• Do you have an inventory of items built up so you can keep your online presence strong?
• How much time are you willing and/or able to devote to building your online business? Are you available every day to answer questions from potential buyers?
• How much time will it take to acquire items to sell? Do you have a local source for items to sell?
• How much time will it take to: research your items, clean them, repair them if necessary, photograph them, upload and edit your photographs, write your item listing, and post it on the selling site.
• Where will you sell your item? Research online selling venues.  What kinds of items are sold on those sites? What are their rules for selling?   What are their selling fees?   Can you sell your item for a profit based on their fee structure?   Does your selling philosophy align with theirs?
• Where will you store your items?  Do you have space in your home to store the items you are offering for sale? Do you have space to keep that inventory for an extended period of time while you wait for it to sell? Do you have space to store “seasonal” and “holiday” items (such as Christmas, Easter, Valentine’s Day) to reserve them for the appropriate time to sell?
• Do you have an area to photograph your items? If your items are large, do you have a well-lighted area to photograph your item? Look at the photographs of other sellers on the site you have chosen. What do their photographs look like? Can you produce high-quality photographs of your item? Photographs need to be clear, in focus, and show your item at its best. 
• Online sellers have to be prepared to ship their items. Do you have an area to store shipping supplies? (Boxes, bubble wrap, envelopes, packing peanuts, wrapping paper) Do you have a good printer?  A reliable scale to weigh your items? Do you have a space to safely package items for shipping? Do you have easy and regular access to your local post office?
• How are your computer skills? In today's marketplace, an serious online presence is required. Online sellers need to understand search engine optimization, tagging, analytics, etc. Social networking is the next big thing. Are you comfortable with sites like Facebook, Twitter, Kaboodle ... sites where you can effectively market your shop and your items?

As an online seller, I work every day. Every single day. Days off reduce my income. Every day I check my email, and respond to any requests for information. If a purchase is made from my online selling sites, then I prepare items for shipping. I visit all my social networking sites. I work on this blog. I try to list at least a few items every day, or at least tweak existing listings to keep them fresh and current.

While it may look easy from the outside, it feels rather like the scene from the Wizard of Oz ... "pay no attention to the (wo)man behind the curtain" ... because behind every online shop you frequent, there is a hard-working person pulling all the levers and turning all the dials.