Our favorite time of the year is summer because it means it’s time to head out for our annual picking road trip across the country where we travel and source items for our reselling business.
This will be our fourth summer doing this; it started in 2018 with the 127 Yard Sale, a 690-mile yard sale spanning six states from Alabama to Michigan. It’s four days long and they have vendors set up similar to a flea market, plus tons of yard sales along the way. They had antiques, collectibles, and more, so it was a lot of fun. We got hooked.
Three years ago my brother-in-law was diagnosed with brain cancer and passed away in 2020. I told my sister and nieces we should do a road trip across the country, and we made plans. We ended up buying a 15-passenger van and pulling an enclosed trailer behind the van because we had my two sisters, nieces and our kids. We traveled and saw national parks, but along the way we also started finding stuff through Facebook Marketplace that we could take home and resell. It’s become an annual summer tradition.
Get The Kids Involved
This year we bought big 27-gallon tubs for each of our three kids, ages 7, 9 and 10. We are giving each kid $100 and we want them to fill it with things they can resell. They will be able to shop at the flea markets, yards sales, and thrift stores that we stop at during the next couple of weeks. When we get back we’ll do an online auction and see who can make the most money with the $100 invested. Our kids are going to be super excited about this.
2022 Road Trip Finds
We’re taking our trailer again this year. Last year we ended up spending $1,600 and we got $35,000 worth of inventory. We’ve sold $23,900 of it. We’re going to see some really cool stuff, come back and sell it, and make good money on it.
Last year we gravitated toward appliances because they’re worth more money and you can pick them up for almost dirt cheap. When people are renovating a kitchen and getting rid of stuff, they’ll sell them really cheap just to get rid of them. The two TurboChefs we sold were $400 each and one sold for $10,000 and the other for $8,500.
The cooktop and double oven we bought for $100 each and one sold for $2,000 and the other for $1,750.
We got warming drawers for $5 at a thrift store and sold them for $400. I got a NordicTrack for free and sold it for $350. The deals are out there. We spent $1,600 to make close to $24,000, which is awesome. We are ready for this year and hopefully we’ll find even more great flips.
Plan Ahead For A Sourcing Road Trip
If you’re thinking about doing the 127 Yard Sale or another sourcing road trip, make sure your vehicle is in good condition. Have spares for the vehicle and tools. Carry blankets, straps, and packaging materials so you can make sure any items you pick up are protected. If we find something it might be in the trailer for several weeks, so it needs to be tight and safe so it doesn’t get damaged on the road trip.
A map is handy in case you’re out of range of your GPS service or your phone stops working. We recommend bringing cash too. You might not be able to find an ATM.
We enjoy our sourcing road trips because we get to see the country, spend time with our family, and also pay for our trip with items we pick up along the way. Follow our travels on Instagram!
Show Notes
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fleamrktflipper/
You can find us at: https://fleamarketflipper.com/
FURTHER RESOURCES
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