How Anteekers Become Antique Dealers

Most of us start out as collectors and then we become obsessed collectors of more than one thing. Then the day arrives when we decide that we need to narrow down our collectibles. We want to get our money back….. we want to purge….. we want to collect something else, we are over flowing with great picks that needs new homes.
We must pass our treasures onto someone else. Why not make money while doing it?

When I moved back to the Valley of the Sun in 1998, I came with the largest U Haul Truck Available and it was filled to the tip top, with Antiques and Collectibles I had picked while working and living in Northern California. I also had a storage locker here in Mesa the size of a 2 car garage, filled with collections my Husband and I could not part with when we left. When we moved to California we had no idea how long we would be gone 1 month or 10 years.. It turned out to be 8 years. Yikes!

I had so much stuff when I returned to Mesa I thought about opening up my own shop, but there were no store fronts available for sale at the time. That is when I began investigating Antique Malls, I visited about 5 or 6 Antique Malls in the Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert Area. I made sure to ask some very important questions before deciding where I would locate my items. I had never sold in an Antique Mall, and was a little shy about that type of business venture.

After a couple weeks, I chose the Antique Plaza Antique Mall,

1. Great Location

2. Friendly Staff and Owners

3. Loads of foot traffic

4. Great Lease on Building

5. Reasonable Rent

Only problem was Antique Plaza Antique Mall had a wait list !!

After about 2 months passed I got the call Antique Plaza Antique Mall had a small booth open up ! Hurray I scurried over and signed my lease.

This was a small space and I had to make every inch work because you are paying for it whether you choose to use it or not.

How to find and set up a successful Antiques Mall booth:

Find a good location. If you’re fortunate to have several malls in your area, check on them all. Compare rates, but also compare traffic. I found many malls that had cheaper rent than the Antique Plaza, but they were in low traffic areas, bad lighting and I didnt like their lease agreement with the landlord of the building.
Determine what you are willing to pay for monthly rental. But Remember Cheap Rent is not always best, you get what you pay for.
Be eclectic, don’t specialize and merchandise your items on a regular basis. Once I set up my space, I tried to Educate myself by looking through the mall at other booths. Ask the other sellers questions: Which months are the “slow” months and what type things are “hot” now? (However, this can change in a heartbeat!)
I volunteered to work one day a week to get to see what were the hot items selling in the Mall..

17 years later here I am still selling in the Antique Plaza Antique Mall my first small space has grown to many locations and cases here inside the Mall .. IMHO the Antique Plaza Antique Mall is the Best in the Valley of the Sun! The Plaza has a wide variety of dealers selling Vintage, Antiques, Art Glass, Linens, Books, Tons of Vintage Jewelry and Furniture.. Beautiful Garden and Home Decor as well as Art Work..

Antique Plaza Where Everyday is a Vintage Market. 114 and 120 West Main Street