Sourcing for treasures during a pandemic

2020 a tough year

The year 2020 has been a challenging year for all of us. How do you go about sourcing safely and how can you keep yourself safe?

 When we were made aware of COVID19 in March 2020 it became very difficult to collect new treasures.  For our safety we stopped sourcing. Opting instead to work on our death pile. A death pile is a collection of items awaiting processing. After our death pile shrank, we decided to figure out how to source new treasures in a safe manner.

What we did

• Our first thought was to check out the local thrift stores. Unfortunately the lack of information or guidance from health and government officials left most businesses on their own to develop a COVID 19 operations plan. Without a guideline for busnesses to follow; we found various levels of COVID restrictions. Often the thrift stores we visited allowed too many people in the store for our comfort level. At times it was impossible to maintain a safe 6 foot distance. 
• Our next choice was to check out estate sales. We found estate sale companies had the same lack of information problem and it was very hit and miss on how well they were being run. Some were very organized with good safety requirements. However every company was different and a few had no rules at all.

A good sale would have rules

• • Wear a mask
  • Use provided hand sanitizer
  • 6 foot distance reminder signs
  • Limiting access to a small group of people and only giving 30 minutes to go through.
  • One estate sale we attended had a person going around reminding people to properly wear their mask and maintain a 6 foot distance. 

Our suggestions

If you pull up to an estate sale, notice 20 plus cars parked everywhere and you don’t see a line waiting to get in to the sale, it may be better to pass on this sale and find a different one. This is preferable to being stuck in an over crowded line or worse yet an over crowded house full of people. 

We found the most comfortable setting for sourcing is local Garage Sales. The typical setup for a garage sale is in an outdoor open air environment and usually it is fairly easy to maintain safe distancing.

Supplies you will need

Be sure to have disinfecting wipes, disposable masks, disposable gloves, a trash container, a permanent marker, and extra trash bags.

Steps to Follow

1} You need to wear a mask. I cannot stress enough about the importance of protecting yourself.  It is often difficult to maintain social distacing in hallways and isles. So number #1 on that list is wear a mask properly fitted over your nose and under your chin. If your mask slips down out of place when you talk or turn your head; you should get a mask that fits you better.

2} Wear disposable gloves.

3} Be mindful of other shoppers. When someone is aready looking at items in a particular area, do not crowd your way in.”Give them their space to be safe”. If you are looking at items, it is okay to remind other shoppers “please keep a safe 6 foot social distance thank you”.

4} Keep hand sanitizer readily available in the door pockets of your vehicle or easily accessible as you re-enter your vehicle.

Do the following as you leave each sourcing location. 

1. Place items purchased into the extra trash bags for storage, 
2. Use marker to write the average cost per item and the date on the bag. 
3. Throw away your disposable mask and gloves in the trash container.
4. Use your sanitizer. 
5. Use the disinfecting wipes on any hard surfaces you touched while wearing your gloves. Things like the door handle of your vehicle or your phone.
6. Remember to keep track of these extra expenses and check with your tax professional. In most cases the money you spend to protect yourself while doing business is tax deductible.

Disclaimer

“These recommendations are suggestions on ways to better protect yourself however, there is no way to be completely invincible from the virus. Even with these suggestions you could still become sick or A-symptomatic. If you get a fever, feel any signs of sickness or Covid, please get yourself tested and quarantine as soon as possible.”

How long do viruses remain active on different surfaces.

According to the National Institutes of Health “Scientists found that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was detectable in aerosols for up to three hours, up to four hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to two to three days on plastic and stainless steel. The results provide key information about the stability of SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19 disease”.

You will need to use your best judgement on when to re-access and list your new inventory. We wait a minimum of 7 days.

We wish you good luck with your treasure hunting and stay safe out there.

Go see our most recent treasures here