Before I start with the day itself, I cannot let this opportunity pass without giving some mention of the enormous effort that goes into a) getting all the canopy items to the canopy in the first place, and b) sorting through all the items we receive. With regards to point a) you can see from the photo at the side the large van we hired and all the trestle tables we used on the day. The van was completely full before the photo was taken, with books, clothes, records, pictures and assorted bric-a-brac, which all had to be sorted, washed and priced up once received, in advance of the day.Thanks to those Lion members who help with this (you know who you are), it is a monumental effort.
Moving onto the day itself, the fact that everything is sorted and priced, means that the 'front of house' - see the picture to the right, can bring their advanced sales techniques to the fore!!! Seriously, it is much easier when negotiating with the customer when you have a price as a starting point, particularly if you are not sure what the item is!
Whilst the day was cold (not unusual as it was March) and the customers slightly thin on the ground, there were still plenty of opportunity for sales to be made and for bargains to be purchased.
One lady was looking for candle holders for her daughter's wedding, as she had been given an exhorbitant figure to hire them. She gladly purchase half a dozen of these from our stall, and was intending to give them all back to charity after the wedding, that's what I call the 'Circle of Life'.
I also made a purchase on the day, which explains the title of this piece, in the shape of a space hopper stress ball, which cost only £1 and resides on my desk at work, I think it has already paid for itself!
Thanks to all those Lions taking part, and the people of Bolton for buying our wares.
Lion John Crompton
24th April 2012
