Effective Ways to Coordinate a School Rummage Sale

If you've been put in charge of coordinating your school rummage sale then you'll have come up with a solid plan of organizational strategy. A rummage sale is a great way to get rid of those things you either don't need or don't want anymore and replace them with cold hard cash. Planning a rummage sale for your school can also be a great way to bring the community together for a school fundraiser.

Try to reserve your rummage space early in the school year as other school organizations might be considering a similar event. Your best bet is to mention your idea at the very first PTA meeting. This can just about guarantee that you get any date within reason. Planning a school rummage sale almost certainly means having it on a weekend. Saturdays are generally more preferable than Sundays. Additionally, try and keep the date you have the sale consistent from year to year so people start to become familiar with your event, which can increase the likelihood that people will show up. For example, you could have the sale the second Saturday of every March.

Involve as many people as possible from your organization. By doing this you increase the amount of money that can be raised. Be sure to plan drop-off dates for people who have things they are donating. One drop-off date per month is enough if you give 3-4 months leading up to the sale. Curbside pickup as an option might be a good idea so that people don't have to drive their items to external location.

Maximize the amount of money you can make from a school rummage sale by hosting it a few months after the holiday season. People have a tendency to want to get rid of lots of extra stuff after the holidays, making this a perfect time to solicit donations for the rummage sale.

The organizational aspect of the sale will require more than just one person in charge. Appoint people head up certain aspects of the process. One person can be in charge of getting the space, another can oversee that drop-off operation, and another can make sure set prices for the items. If you have enough stuff to sell you can even divide up the clothes and furniture, toys and video games to different department heads offering your potential customer a better experience likely resulting in more fundraised money. An important department to create for this sale, if the manpower allows for it, is a hospitality department. People can get unruly at a rummage sale, so if there is someone staffed to pay attention only to the customers needs, then you'll have a much more pleasant event for people to attend.

Organizing a school rummage sale can really help to raise some money for your school or group, so take the organizational side seriously and you'll see some great monetary returns. The more organized the sale is the more the parents will be likely to want to be involved, further increasing how smoothly the event will go.