Tip of the Week: How to Become a Great Picker

Wild Wednesday and;

this weeks Tip of the Week presents;

boxes worth digging through.

In yesterdays post Rockland Reveals Deals, I mentioned I would dish out the goods on my latest record collection discovery. I will not take the credit for this weeks’ score.

Who has taught me everything I know about the world of vintage & antiques? My Dad! It has been a long road and around 20 years of watching and absorbing but I think I am getting the hang of things.

I strolled into the family home on Sunday afternoon just to hear,  “Jewel come here for a second and see what I got.” A pile of The Rolling Stones vinyls were flashed before my eyes. He got a wicked awesome deal on a full box of records 10+ of which were just the Stones.

This successful British rock band was formed in 1962. In total, the Stones made close to 30 studio albums, roughly the same number of compilation albums, upwards of 10 live albums and around 100 singles.

Let It Bleed (1969), Hot Rocks 1 (1971), It’s Only Rockn’ Roll (1974), Love You Live (1977) and Dirty Work (1986) were just a few of the albums in the colourful pile.

How does finding a box of records relate to becoming a great picker? There are a few secrets to being a successful picker and getting startling deals on magnificent things.

In most cases you don’t just walk away from a sale with riches.

1. Never let the seller (person you are buying from) know you are just going to resell the item you purchase from them shortly thereafter. Nobody wants to know that you are going to make money off them. There are a small number of people that won’t care if you make a comment like this but it is very rare. You will get the item(s) for cheaper if you steer clear of suggesting it’s going up for resale. Honesty is always the best policy but in some cases less is more.

2. Educate yourself so you know what to avoid (ex. if you know what records are in demand it is helpful as it was eliminate what not to grab) while keeping in mind sometimes it’s worth taking a chance. It is good to take risks sometimes if you are unsure of what you are looking at. Sometimes not knowing something can be because it is rare or not often talked about. I say calculated risks are a good thing. Remember Research and Risks are two R’s that can go a long way.

3. Try not to fall head over heels for the things you buy. When you like what you pick it can be hard to let things go. You may wish to keep your findings. Detach yourself from the object as much as possible, if not your house may get cramped. I must admit sometimes I do this myself but I am getting better as the years go by at saying  – this can go to the auction. Playing some Rolling Stones is awfully tempting right about now hehehe.

4. You may have to buy a large sum to get a small sum. You could spend all day looking at something but the second someone wants to buy it may be gone in a jiffy. If you see a box of records (or large quantity of similar things that may bring hold different value) it is good to look through them but you may not have all the time in the world to be picky choosy. Truthfully you may also get a better deal by buying it all and ridding someone of it.

Whether its listening to music or picking on a Saturday morning I say,

“Anything worth doing is worth overdoing.” – Mick Jagger

Off to clean out my storage locker to make room for…