Used Book Sales In Connecticut 2009

1. Used Book SalesIn Connecticut 2009 Presented by: Carl W. Nawrocki

2. USED BOOK SALES • According to 2009 FOCL Directory • 72 planned used book sales in CT • 276 used book sale days • 52 Friends groups responded to the survey FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

3. Other Characteristics • Admission Prices • About one-half of the groups reporting have preview or early admissions fee • Half of the book sales charge $ 5 and the remainder from $ 10 to $ 20 • Length of Sale • One-half of the book sales are for a single day • Another third are for two days • 3-day and 4-day sales make up 10% • The remainder are greater than 4 days • When • Saturday is the most popular day for a book sales followed by combinations of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday • Some sales are for an entire week FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

4. Categories • Generally, the larger the number of books, the more categories FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

5. Hardbound Fiction Prices • 36 surveys gave a single price • $2 is most common 11 surveys showed a range of prices $10 FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

6. Hardbound Non-Fiction Prices • $2 is most common • 8 surveys showed a range of prices • Wider ranges $10 $25 $1,000 $20 FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

7. Trade Paperback Prices $3 • $1 is most common • 4 surveys showed a range of prices • 21 groups priced trade paperbacks higher than mass market paperbacks FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

8. Paperback Prices • $0.50 is most common • One group charges 3/$1 and there are a few ranges even here FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

9. Children’s Prices Hardback Paperback • $0.50 is most common • One group charges $0.35 and another charges 3/$1 FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

10. DVD Prices • $2.00 is most common • One group charges $0.75 FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

11. Other Items for Sale • Most Groups • DVDs, CDs, Videos, records, games • Less Common • Basket raffle • Magazines • Puzzles • Mugs • Christmas items • Flea market / Tag sale • Stuffed animals • Book bags • Tee shirts • Bookmarks • Plants, herbs, and flowers • Note cards • Decorative tiles • Magnets • Historical prints FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

12. Bag Sales • 38 Groups reported bag sales • Two-thirds • Last day(s) dedicated to bag sale • Half of these are on Sunday • One-third • Conducted during the last couple of hours of a sale • Transition to bag sale by announcement and signs • Bags are handed out by the staff FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

13. Per Bag Prices • $5.00 is most common FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

14. Leftover Books • Sell • About one-half of the groups sell leftover books to a wholesaler – Pro Quo Books is the most often used • Donate • Goodwill gets most donations • Other possibilities: clinics, hospitals, other Friends groups, schools, retirement homes, traveler restaurants, and GOT books • Retain • Selected books for Friends Bookstore, Friends shelf/cart, online bookstore Discounted sales? FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

15. Profit by # of Books in Sales 20,000 – 30,000 5000 – 9999 50,000 – 80,000 10,000 – 19,999 < 5000 100,000+ FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

16. Profit by Population Served 20,000 – 49,999 50,000+ < 5000 5000 – 9999 10,000 – 19,999 FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

17. Questions • Pre-Sale • How do you price books? • What do you do with rare/valuable books? • What publicity is effective? • Do you reach out to dealers? • Where do you sort and/or store books? • During the Sale • How do you handle dealers using scanners? • How do you handle dealers who are too pushy? • After-Sale • ? FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT

18. Q and A

19. Categories by Profit Group 10,000 – 15,000 18,000 – 20,000 30,000 – 50,000 50,000+ 2000 – 4999 5,000 – 6,000 7,000 – 9,000 < 2000 FOCL Workshop – Used Book Sales in CT