Guide
How to price items for an antique booth
A good booth price covers what you paid, the rent and the commission, and still looks like a find to the shopper holding it.
Published · Updated
1. Start from comps
Look up what the same piece is listed for now, and what it has actually sold for. Asking prices are the ceiling; sold prices are closer to the truth. Price Check shows live eBay asking prices from a photo in seconds; eBay's own search can filter to sold items when you want to check what things went for.
2. Cover rent, commission and card fees
Work backward from what you want to keep. If you pay a 10% commission and a 3% card fee on most sales, a piece you want to net $40 on needs a tag of about $46:
Tag price = what you want to keep ÷ (1 − commission − card fee)
$40 ÷ (1 − 0.10 − 0.03) = $45.98, so tag it $46.
3. Price in tiers and mark down on a schedule
- Price fresh, desirable pieces at the top of the comps; they are what regulars come back for.
- Leave room to negotiate if dealer discounts are allowed where you sell, commonly 10%.
- After 60 days, take 10% off. After 90, 20%. After that, list it online or pull it.
4. Write tags that sell
- Say what it is, the maker or pattern, and the era: "Pyrex Butterprint bowl, 1960s".
- Note flaws honestly; it builds trust for everything else in the booth.
- Print tags instead of handwriting them: QR price tags stay legible and ring up the right item.
5. Put the slow pieces online
A piece that sits in a small-town booth may sell in a week to a collector online. VendorSnap for antique booth vendors keeps the booth and eBay, Etsy, Facebook, Vinted, Depop and Poshmark listings on one inventory.
Put this into practice
Questions and answers
How much should I mark up antiques?
Many booth vendors aim for at least 2 to 3 times what they paid, then check that the price is in line with comps and still covers commission and rent.
Should I put prices on everything?
Yes. Shoppers rarely ask, and an unpriced item usually goes unsold. A clear tag with the price, name and era sells better than a bare sticker.
VendorSnap for iPhone and Android
Listed before you're out the door.
Snap it in the aisle, Price Check it against live eBay listings, and list it on eBay, Etsy, Facebook Marketplace, Vinted, Depop and Poshmark, all from your phone. Free on the App Store and Google Play.
