Michigan - ALL CITIES
The following is a blog article written by DeAnn Nightingale, Sale Organizer & Founder of Three Bags Full Children’s Consignment Events. This article was originally published on her blog and has been reprinted here with her permission.
I was recently involved in a great conversation with a few local moms who had been selling their kids’ items on a local Facebook selling wall. Because it was such a great conversation, I thought I’d discuss it here too.
We were sitting at the park chatting and they noticed my daughter’s Three Bags Full t-shirt. They asked what Three Bags Full was all about, so I explained that it was a local group of moms that get together to buy and sell from each other. Kind of the epitome of shopping locally.
One mom mentioned she sells her things on Craig’s List and another mom said she uses a Facebook selling wall. All viable options. They asked how Three Bags Full was different.
So, how is Three Bags Full different?
There are many ways but for the sake of this conversation the primary difference is something you may not think a whole lot about: anonymity.
Why is that important? Well these moms were scheduling “meet ups” with people they don’t know (yes, strangers) to handle the transaction. They were smart moms, agreeing to meet up at a public place, in the daytime. Is that as safe as we think? I’m not so sure. There is a lot of information that can be gathered by an innocent transaction such as this. For example- they now know what you look like. They know your car make, model and license plate number. They probably glanced in your car- oh, you have a carseat? And you’re selling a size 3T girls jean? So- you’ve got a baby and a little girl most likely. Maybe your work ID is laying on the front seat- so now they know where you work, and chances are, that your shift isn’t at the time of day or day of the week when you’re meeting up. And don’t forget you’ve emailed them or messaged them on facebook….. Hmmm….
Let’s face it- most transactions probably are simply another family looking to buy used clothing or toys inexpensively. But, unfortunately in today’s culture, there are many instances that look safe and simple but the reality couldn’t be further than the truth.
How is Three Bags Full anonymous?
You’re assigned a “consignment number” that represents your family. No one knows that number. When people are shopping, they don’t know what is yours or someone else’s. You don’t even have to be there. You have priced your items at home, you’ve brought them to the event location where we sell them. You aren’t sitting in front of a computer, emailing or facebooking to strangers, then scheduling meet ups. All for the sake of a few bucks.
We’re all looking to save a little bit of money. We’re all looking to make a little bit of money on stuff we don’t need. While there are a lot of online options, or local re-sale options, none provide the same monetary return, and none provide quite the same security and anonymity as Three Bags Full.
We enjoyed our day at the park. I love chatting with other moms. Maybe we swap recipes, or relate funny stories of things our kids have done. In this instance, as a law enforcement family, we are all too aware of the “hidden” dangers that most of us don’t think about and it was nice to know these moms were informed of another option – a local option- one that can earn them good money without the security risk.
Something to think about.
For more info visit www.threebagsfull.info or www.facebook.com/threebagsfull