I was trying to figure out how to wrap up my blogging week and reading the comments left on this weeks posts gave me my topic. Yesterday, Phyllis wrote:

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The end result is my motivation to start the process.

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I so hope that I did give you a bit of motivation this week. Maybe to clean your desk (like I did!) or re-think your inventory system, or implement an inventory system, or just a couple ways to make your business slightly more organized. Once the motivation strikes, I find it’s easy to get a task done…..sometimes it’s finding the motivation that’s so hard.

I’m going to leave you with this thought….

If you’re motivated, make a change now. Maybe start with something small like a quick desk clean or putting a calendar in your car.

One thing I can say for sure is if you get organized now, you will be more prepared for the great challenge that Rebecca has in store for us. Gear up now, so when all the details for the 2.28.10 challenge are revealed, you’ll be ready to dive in!

Thank you all for your comments this week and for sharing your ideas!

Filed under: Listing Challenges, Motivation by jmk_akk
2 Comments »

You know that children’s book “Popcorn”? The one where the kids pop so much popcorn that it fills the whole house and even comes out the chimney? Well, sometimes I feel like my house is taken over by receipts and I wouldn’t be surprised to come home some day and find receipts spewing out of my chimney.

I’ve been blogging all week about my organizational systems for inventory, mileage and keeping track of cash purposes. I’ve been showing you select little snippets of my office to illustrate my posts. But the truth is, even though I do have a good inventory system and I do keep track of my mileage and cash purchases, I’m not immune to the clutter that can overwhelm all of us.

All week while I have been blogging, I’ve been sitting at my desk with it looking like this.

Um, yeah….not pretty. Between holiday toy selling and other goings-on, my desk has become a dumping ground for receipts, packaging supplies, scrap pieces of paper, and recently listed inventory. It was not a productive place to work, because every time I couldn’t find something, I had to sort and shuffle, creating a bigger mess and frequently not finding what I was looking for.

So, I owe a big thank you to Rebecca (for letting me blog this week) and Heather (for starting the organizational theme) for forcing me to clean my messy desk. I kid you not, it only took me 15 minutes to go from the mess above to this lovely, clean desk.

(And no, I didn’t just shove all the junk onto the floor….although I did consider doing that.) I still have a big pile of receipts to file (shown in above picture) and a stack of tags taken off clothes from a consignment store that I have taken pictures of, but not yet listed or put in my inventory. But at least the receipts and tags are in their own piles and I don’t have to sort through so much stuff to find them.

When I do get around to filing those receipts, they will go here:

I pulled it out to take a picture, but you can see it in the other pictures that it usually lives under my desk. I don’t label the folders, but I file my receipts by month. At the end of the year, when our taxes are done and all the receipts have been tallied, I paperclip them together by month and put them all in a large ziploc bag and put the bag in a box. I believe the recommendation is to keep receipts for tax-related purposes for 7 years (please double-check this with your tax preparer, though).

And don’t be like me and wait until your house is full to the top with receipts before you file them away.

Filed under: Better Selling Techniques, Organization and Storage by jmk_akk
5 Comments »

For us on-line sellers, I think one of the biggest expenses after inventory probably has to do with our vehicles. We drive around to go buy our inventory, take packages to the post office, sometimes we even use them to go pick up boxes and packing supplies from nearby warehouses.

One benefit to having your own business is getting to turn in those expenses when it comes tax time. But in order to do that, you have to have accurate records proving you used for vehicle for business.

I don’t know about most of you, but I find that my “mommy brain” has left me with precious little space to remember things like how many miles I drove and to which stores on what day. Which is why this picture shows things that are always found in my car:

I keep a mini calendar (typically one I get sent to me free….this one from 2009 was from our local cable company….but I’d buy one if I had to!), a pen and a money receipt book in my van. Whenever I drive somewhere that includes a business related stop, I record my mileage in the calendar. At the end of every month I total up the miles I drove and write it on the page somewhere, so at the end of the year I can flip through, add up 12 numbers and find out what my mileage was for the year.

The money receipt book was an idea I got from a fellow Stork a long time ago. I wish I could remember who it was and give them credit for it. At any rate, I owe that person a huge THANK YOU because this book has been invaluable to me. I use it to write myself a receipt for any time I use cash to pay for a business-related expense that I don’t get a store receipt for (garage sales!). Back to the “mommy brain” syndrome, I can’t be trusted to even come home from a morning of garage sale shopping and remember how much I spent. I jot down on a scrap piece of paper how much I spent at each sale, then total it up at the end of the morning and write myself a receipt in the book.

I think I got the money receipt book at Wal-Mart, although I’m sure a similar product could be found at about any office supply store.

One idea I have (but haven’t implemented yet) would be to get some sort of small receipt file to also keep in my car. I tend to shove receipts in my purse and then have to sort them out between business and personal expenses when I get home. A little file in my van could allow me to at least toss business-related receipts in one spot and then when I get home I would know I had them all and be able to file them appropriately at my desk filing cabinet.

Up for tomorrow, keeping track of ALL those receipts…how to file them and how long do you need to keep them?

Filed under: Better Selling Techniques, Organization and Storage by jmk_akk
8 Comments »

I will start this post off by saying that record keeping is NOT one of my strengths. It doesn’t come easily to me and a good system was hard for me to come by. I’m more of a artistic person and less of a number-cruncher. Fortunately, my husband has been a manager of a retail paint store for a number of years and has been willing to help me with the record-keeping side of my business. I think I’m finally starting to accept (after he’s drilled it into my head for several years) that controlling inventory is important and necessary and will save time in the long run. I really hope he doesn’t read this blog, because I hate to ever have to admit that he’s right…..

The system I use to track my inventory is an item-by-item system. If I’m getting ready to tag some items, here’s what I have with me:

My calculator, a pen, my clipboard where I write down inventory numbers and cost, and my two types of tags. First I have plain marking tags (bought this huge box of 1000 at an office supply store over 3 years ago and still have some left) and I also have a Dymo label printer.

My system is pretty simple, I started with number 00001 and number each of my items sequentially. So every tag gets the inventory number on it and the price I paid for the item.

The picture above shows an example of each of my tags, the clothing item on the left was an EUC item I picked up at a consignment store. I used the blank hang tag to write my inventory number and cost, then looped the tag through the brand hang tag. The item on the right is a NWT item, so I used my Dymbo label printer to print out a label and stuck it on the hang tag of the item.

I usually sit down and label a bunch of items while I’m watching TV, hence the clipboard to write down inventory numbers and prices. Then once my clipboard paper gets full, I sit down at my computer and enter them into an Excel spreadsheet, which ends up looking like this:

When I sell an item, I remove the tag prior to packaging it up. The tags get put in my little “collection area” on my desk and they stay there until a large pile builds up.

Once that happens I go back into my Excel spreadsheet and delete out the sold items. Where I find this comes in handy is when I am forced to do inventory once or twice a year. I can print out my Excel spreadsheet and take it down to my basement and quickly go through my inventory, marking off items. I have ALWAYS caught mistakes doing this….either I made a tagging error, or found some items that accidentally made it down into my stored inventory with no tag, etc. The Excel spreadsheet is also invaluable at tax time. Come January 1st, I just print out a copy of it and that’s my total amount of inventory I have at the beginning of the year.

I hope this is helpful in giving you some ideas of ways to track your inventory. I’m certain my method isn’t the best, fastest or easiest, but it’s the one I use and it’s better than nothing! I’d love to hear comments on how you track your inventory and if you have a faster way of doing it….I’m all ears!

Filed under: Better Selling Techniques, Organization and Storage by jmk_akk
9 Comments »

Hello all! It’s Jaci (jmk_akk) taking over the role has head blogger this week. I loved reading Heather’s organizational tips last week. Her posts gave me a lot of food for thought. I have a good (well, pretty good) system set up for my inventory and shipping, but there’s always room for improvement and anything I can do to streamline a process and save me some time is always a good thing!

I want to continue along the theme of organization this week and I plan to go a little more in-depth on record keeping. I think the only thing that can be more of a time-sucker than looking for an item you sold that’s buried in an un-organized pile of inventory is trying to figure out how much you paid for that item if you haven’t recorded it. There’s probably a million different methods for keeping track of your costs/profits, so I’ll share what I do, but I welcome any comments or suggestions to the process.

At some point while running your own business…..somebody is going to want to know if you’re making any money at it. For sure Uncle Sam is going to be curious, and probably your tax preparer, too. Even your spouse might want to know if you’re bringing in some money or just spending a lot of time shopping and playing on the computer. No matter who it is, having a good record-keeping system will allow you to readily know just how your business is doing.

So, as we approach tax time, if you’re overwhelmed by the receipts piling up on your desk and threatening to overtake your office….

I hope some of the tips I share this week can get that mess under control and make you feel much more organized.

If you have any suggestions for other organizational topics that haven’t been covered or you’d like to be covered more in-depth, feel free to leave a comment or email me at jaci@herecomesthestork.com and I’ll try to get them in a blog post later this week!

Filed under: Better Selling Techniques, Organization and Storage by jmk_akk
9 Comments »

Thank you so much for all of the comments this week!  Your feedback is invaluable to us in providing the kind of content you want – we couldn’t do it without your participation!

So with no further adieu, our contest winners are…

Tammy (4puppydogtails) won the prize pack from Garden Party Teas

and

Cindy (Cindy522) won the office organization kit!

Congratulations ladies, and thank you again to everyone who participated!  Don’t forget to take before and after pictures of any organization projects you decide to tackle – they might come in handy in the future!

Filed under: Freebies, Giveaways and Prizes by BellaBuggy
5 Comments »

My last blog this week will be about maintaining your level of enthusiasm.  I have a tendency to get excited about a project, pour myself into it, and then lose interest.  For example, I did a fabulous makeover in my design studio, got everything organized and looking beautiful, and now I’m unmotivated to actually SEW anymore!  I think I overdosed and burned myself out, so I’m on hiatus right now.  It’s fine to take a break when it’s your hobby, but when it’s your livelihood you can’t afford to lose interest.

If you don’t already visit the HCTS forums now is a great time to start!  Besides the great sales tips and general info exchange, you’ll find listing challenges, initiated by members of our community, to help keep you on track.  I’d also like to work on a weekly goal post.

Starting Sunday, I’ll post a thread where we can list our goals for the week.  Every time you accomplish something, come back and check it off your list.  Think of it as your virtual to-do list; we all know we’re much more likely to do something when it’s on a list we can cross off and brag to friends all over the world!  Just like working out is easier with a friend, working on our businesses is better with support, too!
And so along those lines, Rebecca has a really exciting, get-your-butt-in-gear, motivational challenge coming up! Clear your calendar and plan to join us for the 2.28.10 challenge!

I really hope this week’s series has been helpful to you. I’ve actually had a lot of fun doing it, and I’ve found it motivating to improve the systems I already have in place. You’ve written in with so many great tips! I look forward to implementing several of the ideas you’ve given me, and I hope we can get together again to see how we’re maintaining our progress.

There should totally be a prize for the best makeover, don’t you think? hmmmm…;)

PS) Don’t forget – the giveaways end tonight.  Leave a comment to enter!

PPS) Look for the Daily Listing Challenges in General Chit-Chat, and starting Sunday, the Weekly Goals post will be in Off-Topic.  This is the perfect spot for you to blend your personal and professional goals.  (One of mine is organizing both types of pictures!)

Filed under: Listing Challenges, Motivation by BellaBuggy
22 Comments »

If you’re anything like me, this is your least favorite part of the process.  I find record keeping to be tedious and cumbersome, and a task that I always put off as long as possible.  However, no matter how much you may hate it, this is a necessary evil.  Taking the time to maintain accurate records now will save you a huge headache come tax time – and that’s headache enough on its own!  I have found a couple of ways to make the job a little less dreaded, and I’ve found a couple more than I intend to implement in the future.

The first step you need to take is organizing your desk.  Even this is a daunting task for some of us!

But this is definitely a Flylady clean sink kind of thing – if you get the desk cleared off and looking good, you’re much more likely to stick with it.

Another thing that helps me stick with it is using pretty supplies to organize with.  See that scrolly planner back there?  I bought the entire family of supplies when I found them on clearance!

This is actually a tip I learned in a webinar about organization.  It was a blogger event and Peter Walsh (from TLC’s Clean Sweep program, and a contributor to Oprah), along with Office Max, recommended this.  It made sense to me, and I’m happy to report that indeed it does work.  When all of my stuff is pretty and nice to look at, I actually use it! Revolutionary!

So after cleaning my desk off, I left only the essentials that I know I’ll use every day.  On the right you’ll see I have another small lightweight shipping scale, as well as a business card holder with ‘Thank You’ cards that get put into every package.  In the back I have an Internet address book with frequently used websites, accounts, passwords, and other handy info (so hopefully if I die, someone will come and let you know why I vanished. Yes, I actually think about things like that!)  I also keep a self-inking stamp there for Amazon packages, since we are required to label them as such.  My desk is still a bit crowded for my liking.  I thought I wanted a small desk, but I’ve found that they aren’t as great in practice as they are in pictures!

Another tip I learned from the webinar is to keep personal and professional appointments on the same planner.  Previously I’d tried to keep these separate, but found it to be too much to keep up with.  As a busy work at home mom, I’m lucky to maintain a planner at all, let alone two!  If I write down my kids appointments along with my own work schedule, I’m more likely to stick to it.  I use my planner to keep track of doctor’s appointments, after-school activities, conference calls, meetings, and deadlines.  I also always keep it on my desk, so it can’t get lost.  This makes it easy for me to refer to when on the phone – I can tell at a glance what my commitments are.

I also purchased several notebooks in varying sizes.  I use one for shopping lists, one for items I see in store and want to research later, one for items to look for when shopping, and one for daily goals.  Of course you could do all of this in the same notebook, but separate ones work out best for me.

Another thing I picked up was 3-ring binders.  I filled them with matching folders and use these for organizing my copy of customs forms, postage receipts, and other documents that I need to keep, but only short-term.  I try to go through these once a week and purge what I no longer need.  I’ve also found these binders to be perfect for storing design patterns I’ve downloaded and printed myself, and for organizing coupon fliers.  Again, having everything matchy-matchy and cute keeps me motivated to maintain!

Beside my desk I have a large filing cabinet.  I use this to hold my printer, router, modem, etc and have it convenient but not in the way.  The top drawer of the filing cabinet holds my business records and shipping labels.  Clearly labeled folders for shopping receipts, monthly bills, expense reports, mileage, etc all make it easy to keep track of your business and get ready for the tax season that is fast approaching!

And finally I have a bookcase nearby, which holds the basket of supplies I referenced yesterday.  As Cindy said, it’s very helpful to have multiples of frequently used supplies, so I keep extra scissors, tape, labels, etc in this basket.  I dump everything together and keep it within arm’s reach so I never have to run around wondering where I left the tape dispenser!

So there’s a basic setup, but what about the actual records?  Well frankly, that’s where I fall short!  I don’t know why I have such a hard time with the details, but it’s just not my thing.  One change I’d like to make this year is using the Easy Auction Tracker spreadsheet to track my inventory.  I currently ‘use’ an excel spreadsheet that my husband made for me, and while I’m sure it’s great, it doesn’t upload my inventory from ebay automatically.  That’s why I said I ‘use’ it in quotes - I really don’t!  I need something automated to make it a little easier for me.

Another improvement I want to make this year is keeping better track of mileage.  Did you know that the miles you put on your car as you shop for inventory, purchase supplies, and ship your packages is all tax-deductible?  Grab yourself a handy little book like this and keep it in your car.  Each time you make a business-related trip, write down the location, purpose, and round-trip mileage.  Tally this up at the end of each month, and at the end of the year it’s easy to add the monthly totals and use this for tax purposes.  This is a really great, easy, and perfectly legitimate tax deduction, yet I always seem to forget to do it.  I will do better this year!

So, for those of you that keep better records than I, what else should I be tracking?  Have you found it useful to run comparisons on domestic vs. international sales?  Do you have different filing systems for eBay vs. Amazon?  Leave a comment and let us know what works for you!  Every comment this week earns you an entry for an office organization kit.  Remember that webinar I mentioned?  The prize package includes items from both Peter Walsh and Office Max, and puts into practice the ‘beautiful gets used’ theory, as well as Walsh’s belief that clear storage makes it faster and easier for you to see what you need.

Lastly, I’m humbling myself here.  All week I’ve been reading your comments and compliments on my organization, and I feel like a bit of a hypocrit.  Believe me, I am not always organized!  My inventory looks great but my desk, not so much.  You saw those pretty pictures up there, and it’s true that the top of my workspace does look like that.  But what you didn’t see is that the floor looks like this:

Clearly, we all have room for improvement!

*Note – HCTS does not offer legal advice on taxes or tax deductions.  Please contact your tax professional for accurate information and guidance for your personal situation.

Filed under: Better Selling Techniques, Organization and Storage by BellaBuggy
22 Comments »

So you’ve got your storefront revamped and your storage organized – what next? Sales, of course! When an item sells, you need to ship it, and I’ve found shipping can be a huge time-sucker if the process isn’t streamlined. I’ve been selling online for almost a decade now (wow~what a realization!) and I laugh now when I look back at my very humble beginnings. I was so clueless! The process of selling each item used to take me forever, but thankfully over the years I’ve been able to perfect a few methods and shipping is one of them.

If you have the luxury of space, I highly recommend that you establish a dedicated shipping area for your business. This makes the process go much more quickly, and it’s easier to set up an assembly line to prepare multiple shipments at once. Because I sell a wide variety of items and not just clothing, I have more needs in my shipping area. Packing peanuts, foam wrap, tons of boxes, etc. If you are selling all or nearly all clothing, you will be able to have a much smaller setup.

Here are a few pictures from our shipping center (in an unfinished section of basement):

This is an unfinished wall with pegboard screwed into the wall studs.  As you can see, this area could use a little tidying up, but it certainly serves its purpose.  The re-arrangeable pegs make it very easy to expand to meet changing needs.  We use this space to store tape, priority stickers, customs forms, measuring stick, storage bags, etc.  On the shelf below (again, this was attached to the wall studs) are shipping scales and a jar of pens.

Next, one of the best shipping tools we’ve ever found – foam wrap.  My dad cleverly hung these bars from the ceiling to hold these huge rolls, keeping them up and out of the way, and very easy to roll out directly into boxes or around items.  Honestly, I think this is my favorite part of the shipping setup.  These rolls come from a local shipping supply company and they are 6 feet wide, but they will cut them down for you in any length you specify.  I use 12 and 16 inch boxes most often, so I’m able to have foam wrap in exactly the right width!  (PS – 3 printers on the table, all need a new home – in case you’re looking )  The table underneath was purchased inexpensively at a yard sale and it makes the perfect place to wrap packages!  The height wasn’t the most comfortable for extended use, so we recently purchased risers to bring it up to a better position.  That makes a BIG difference during the Christmas rush, when you spend a lot of time packaging!

This last picture is of shelves used for box and polymailer storage.  This is only about 1/3 of the length, but my camera battery died so I had to snap quick pictures on my Blackberry and it’s hard to get  good ones that way.  At the end of the shelves is a box of packing peanuts with a scoop.  We buy non-static peanuts in huge volume from our supplier, and the bags they come in are taller than me – not ideal!  I find it more manageable to have a smaller portion out at a time, and a box is easier to work with than a bag.  One day I’d love to have an overhead dispenser, but ceiling height in the basement isn’t ideal for a system like that.  As you can see, this section holds primarily priority boxes.  On the other (non pictured) end of the shelves are the boxes we purchase in larger sizes.  Those all stay flattened, but I try to keep a few priority boxes already assembled for convenience.  In busy times, that comes in very handy!

Again, I know that this type of setup won’t work for everyone.  If space is tight and you can’t keep a permanent shipping area set up, I suggest you consolidate supplies in a basket or bin.  In the past I have used a large wicker basket to hold my tape dispenser, stickers,  customs forms, etc, and this basket sat on a bookcase.  It’s easy to pull out when it’s time to ship, and keeps your work area tidy as well. 

If you don’t have a big room, don’t sweat it.  Most of us don’t!  Just because you don’t have a large space available doesn’t mean you can’t do something similar.  You can hang pegboard on the inside of a closet door, for example, to accomplish the same sort of storage system as I have pictured above.  Maybe you don’t have space for a table, but you could still hang a shelf on the wall.  And boxes definitely don’t have to be assembled in advance – you can easily save space by leaving the collapsed boxes standing on edge.

Finally, I find it easiest to create an assembly line for packaging and shipping.  Our process is to print out all of the orders, package them, then print all of the shipping labels.  When packaging, I enclose a packing slip and card, seal the box, and write the buyer’s last name on the outside of the box, where the shipping label will cover it.  I then weigh and measure the box, and write the weight and dimensions of the box on the order form.  Boxes can then be set aside to await a label.  Once I have this done for all of the shipments that day, labels can be printed in bulk from Paypal, USPS.com, Endicia, or FedEx, and I match them up to each package by last name.

This is what works for me!  What works for you?  I’d love to hear how you handle the shipping process, and what ideas you might have to help us streamline and regroup.  I said I’d perfected a system, but of course that isn’t true – there is always room for improvement!  Let us hear your thoughts, and you will be entered to win an office organization kit!  Also, don’t forget to check out yesterday’s post and leave a comment for a chance to win there, too!

Filed under: Better Selling Techniques, Organization and Storage by BellaBuggy
15 Comments »

William Blake once said, “I must create a system, or be enslaved by another man’s.”  I believe this to be true. In my house, this means that if I don’t create a system, my husband will throw it away!  If you have a similar problem, or if you’re just tired of sorting through piles looking for what you need, or tearing through the house trying to remember the last place you saw something, then grab a cup of coffee and read on my friends.

In my opinion, neatly stored inventory is one of the most important parts of my job.  Without this order, every aspect of my business would suffer.  Shipping times and subsequently shipping stars would be affected, which would impact my performance rating with eBay/Amazon.  If you want to be a top-rated seller or a featured merchant, you have to bring your A-game!

I believe the first place you need to clean house is online, in your storefront.  Assess your store layout and categories.  Are there enough?  Too many?  Do you have everything you need, or are a large number of items falling into an ‘everything else’ category?  Buyers need to be able to find your items before they can purchase, so make your store as easy to navigate as possible to encourage multiple sales.  Once your store is organized, it provides a guideline for the physical storage of your inventory.

I have my stores divided differently based on what I’m selling, but for this article I will focus on clothing.  My clothing store sells both new and previously loved items, as well as loveys and personal odds and ends.  I divided the clothing categories into boys and girls and broke them down according to size.  I did not separate new and used items, as I’ve found the majority of my buyers to be more concerned with size than tags.  My storage bins are labeled to correspond to the store categories, making it easy for me to locate a sold item according to size and gender. 

I was fortunate enough to find some awesome collapsable, heavyweight nylon storage bins on mega clearance at Target several years ago.  They have been a Godsend!  They fit together very efficiently, can flatten for storage when they are empty, and are the perfect size for my closet shelves.  The best part?  They were under 50 cents each!

Our current home was new construction so I was able to have closets built to my specifications for inventory, but this DOES work for existing closets – I’ve done it in the past!  The wire shelves can be purchased relatively inexpensively and they are easy to install, I promise.  If you purchase from Lowe’s, they will even cut them to length for you so all you have to do is get out your screwdriver (Important – do not have them cut to the exact length of your closet! Leave yourself at least an inch or two of wiggle room or else you’ll damage your walls in the process!)  Do not install your shelves until you’ve purchased your bins!  As you can see from the above picture, I was able to maximize my usable space by having shelves built to snugly fit my containers.  I have 6 rows of bins (plus floor storage) in this closet alone!

Definitely check your local stores to see if you can find a great clearance like I did.  I also strongly suggest that you estimate how many bins you will need, and then purchase at least 25% more than that.  You will not regret it!  I find it is easier to have a standard system as my business expands – if you need to purchase more storage later it won’t match and might not fit as well.  Also, and maybe this is just my own hangup, but once I have something looking good, I want it to stay perfect.  (Think Flylady and her shining sink!)

A few containers I found online that might be promising:

Kmart clearance – great price!  I’d snap these up; at this price I doubt they’ll last long.

Target – wide selection Target has a lot of good options – I particularly like the Itso’s and the RiverRidge 2-pc set.

Also, I couldn’t find them on the website but I purchased some great, inexpensive plastic bins from Walmart recently as well.  I’m using them in my daughter’s closets to expand their shelf usage, and they were around $4 each.

Another lesson I’ve learned is to package my items before I store them!  I used to put the clothing loose in the bins, and I wound up with this:

Lesson learned – not fun.  I now buy inexpensive, non-ziploc gallon size bread bags (I can get 100 for $1 locally) and I place each item or outfit in a bag before putting it in the bin.  I do not seal the bags at this point; I prefer to leave them open for one last inspection before shipping, just in case I missed a flaw or a spot.  Not only does this keep my bins in order, it keeps the clothes folded nicely and the pieces together as well.  Presto! – No more overflowing bins.

If purchasing new storage containers isn’t in your budget right now, all is not lost.  Consider using cardboard boxes until you can invest in something more permanent.  This is a great way to recycle and re-purpose!

I definitely understand that a system like this might not fit in your space.  Large Rubbermaid tubs can also be used, and they can stack neatly in a corner or a closet.  If you are going to use this method, I suggest that you label the outside of each container with masking tape so you know exactly what is in each.  Also, consider using cardboard dividers inside the containers to make sorting through sizes a faster process.  Finally, consider drilling small holes in the containers to allow for airflow.  Over time, clothes stored in a closed container can become damp and/or develop must and mildew issues.  I know I have received items with that yucky storage smell on them and it is not pleasant.

Some sellers use hanging racks for their clothing.  You might find that this works well for you.  I personally do not care for it (except for a select few very special items) as I find it restrictive in space and in ease of sorting, and I don’t like the clothing to be unprotected for any length of time.

One last storage suggestion I have is clear plastic drawers.  I have two sets of these that I use for blanks for my design business:

These work out well for my needs and I am happy with them.  However, they do have some drawbacks. 

•  They are expensive.  At around $20/set, these can add up quickly.
• They don’t hold much weight without the drawers sagging and not closing properly.
• They don’t hold much, period. You get more useable space with traditional bins.

For those reasons, they would not be my top pick for organizing all of my inventory.  However, they do come with rolling wheels, they can fit together to be stacked, and they are pretty easy to pick up later so you wouldn’t have to buy everything up front, you could expand your system over time.

For a point of reference, the system I am using, including storage bins and extra shelving for 2 double closets, cost less than $100 total.  Yes, it is an out of pocket expense, and I know those can be hard sometimes.  But, it is also a tax deductible business expense.  Consider it an investment in the success of your company – you won’t regret it!

Finally, I promised a giveaway.  Leave a comment here telling me how you organize your inventory, how you plan to organize, or how you’ve been living in disorganization!  Whatever your situation, we’d love to hear about it.  One lucky commenter will be chosen at random to receive a yummy assortment of hot drinks for cold days, courtesy of Garden Party Teas.  Additionally, every comment this week will be entered in a drawing for an awesome home office organization package that I think you’ll really love!  Drawings will be held on Friday, 1/8/10 at midnight EST, so be sure to get your comments in to be eligible! 

The fine print: GPTeas package to be awarded based on comments on this post only.  For the office organization package, only one entry per person, per post – each member can enter up to 5 times by commenting once on each post this week.  If you’d like an additional entry, you can post on Twitter, Facebook, your blog, your website, etc and link back to this post.  To receive an additional entry for spreading the word, please leave a comment showing where you linked.

Whew!  And now, with the details out of the way, I hope you’re inspired to tackle your storage issues and maybe win a few prizes along the way! 

Oh, and one last thing.  If you decide to tackle a makeover project this week, might I suggest you take pictures along the way?  Documenting your before and after will be immensely satisfying for you, and it might even come in handy in the future… (hint, hint!)

Filed under: Better Selling Techniques, Freebies, Giveaways and Prizes, Organization and Storage by BellaBuggy
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