How to identify automotive boot sale bargains – DAN HATFIELD provides his prime suggestions

We’ve finally have sunshine and with the hot weather, more people are out and about enjoying themselves, looking for things to do. 

So rather than my usual Modern Treasures valuations, I want to give you my top tips and tricks to bag a bargain at one of my favourite places in the world… the car boot.

While I was born in Sheffield, I was forged at the car boot. 

Some of my earliest and happiest memories were created here. I vividly remember my parents loading up their Ford Fiesta the night before. 

Waking me at the crack of dawn to get to the car boot site. We’d take anything that had a chance of making us some much-needed extra cash. 

On arrival the smell of fried onions permeated throughout the site as car after car arrived to take up their pitch. 

My early years attending the car boot is where my passion for unique objects and the art of selling and buying was born – to this day, I love the drama, hustle, and bustle of it all. 

I attribute most of my knowledge to what I learnt in these formative years – watching my mum, in her element, as she balanced the greatest combination of charm and politeness with her unrivalled determination to secure the very best deals possible.

But, the car boot isn’t just a place for you to flog all your unwanted goods, it’s also an ideal place to bag yourself a bargain which you could flip for a healthy profit. 

I often have clients who have bought jewellery at the car boot for a few quid which can sell on for a few hundred pounds. 

Only last week, I was doing my Trash or Treasure phone-in for This Morning on ITV where a viewer called in with a signed Tony Hart book she bought for just 50p at the car boot. 

I valued it between £50-£100. Two days later she messaged me to say she’d sold it for £80. That’s a staggering 160 times more than her original outlay.

Wherever you’re based in Britain, you can find a local car boot. There are over 30,000 conducted each year, generating billions in turnover – they are more serious business than you may have thought. 

But there is a skill and art form to bagging yourself a bargain at the car boot so that you can leave with loads of treasures that can make you decent profit in the future.

So, follow my top tips below to help make you a profit making, car boot king or queen…

1. Buy in haste, repent at leisure

Unless you are an expert already, I strongly advise that you start off with a small but perfectly focussed plan. 

You need to do market research to understand which items can be sold on for a profit, and which items will simply burn a hole in your pocket and catch dust in your wardrobe back home.

I suggest picking one category to start with, say children’s toys. 

Then research which toys sell well, make notes of the brands and the prices they sell for on marketplaces like Facebook and Ebay. 

As your experience and confidence grows, you can take on more categories to achieve greater profit.

2 .Cash is king

When a seller can see that you have cash to spend you can secure a deal quicker and often cheaper. 

I was at a car boot the other month and managed to secure an item which was marked up at £15 but I got it for a tenner. 

This is because I showed the seller that I had a crisp £10 note ready to spend and that wasn’t something they were prepared to walk away from.

3. Rummage for Riches

Don’t just browse from afar at the car boot, if you want to find the hidden gems, you’re going to have to roll up your sleeves and dig for them – well, not literally. 

Get involved, look through the boxes, sift within bargain bins and make sure you are exploring everything on offer.

4. Become a treasure detective

If you think you’ve found an item that you can sell for a tidy profit, you must make sure you inspect it thoroughly. 

Items at a car boot are sold as seen, so once money has been exchanged, you’re stuck with the item. 

It’s up to you to ensure it has no defects or problems. If you want to buy something electrical, proceed with even more caution. Asking the seller if they have a power supply so you can test the item is a must.

5. Secure seasonal savings

Buying things that are out of season can really help you secure a bargain. 

Most people attending the car boot are coming with the necessity that they need something. 

So, in the heat of the summer, few will buy a winter coat. Therefore, you are in a better position to offer low and bag a bargain as most people selling at a car boot don’t want to take any of their item’s home. 

You can store out of season items at home and flip them for a decent profit when we get to the season they are required for.

6. Be happy to haggle

Britons lose out on billions of pounds each year because we are too polite to haggle. 

In fact, recent research found that 80 per cent of us don’t think we have ever, even tried to haggle on prices but you’ll have done it without ever realising. 

Whether you’ve negotiated a better mobile phone contract, or tv subscriptions. 

All you need to do is be charming, polite, and kind. Don’t be aggressive or confrontational, have some fun and deploy some banter. 

Remember you are in an arena where haggling on the price isn’t just accepted but is expected.

7. Be first and last

As the proverb states, the early bird catches the worm, and this is certainly true at a car boot. 

The earlier you arrive, the better pick of the crop you will have. 

Rarely do bargains hang around for long, so you need to be decisive and focussed – having a ‘think’ about an item will likely result in someone else getting it.

The flip side of this is staying last. As mentioned earlier, sellers do not bring items to the car boot that they want to take back home. 

So, there are decent deals to be done at the end of the day when people are packing up to leave.

8. Go posh to make more dosh

If you want to bag yourself a bargain that can be flipped for a decent profit, I suggest heading to an affluent area. 

I love attending the Chiswick car boot sale in West London because the locals sell some wonderful treasures such as original paintings, designer clothes and general household items at a fraction of the cost.

9. Tricks of the trade

If you come across something outside your wheelhouse but curious to take a punt on it, download the Google lens app. 

With this you can aim your camera at the item, and it will tell you what the item is, and how much it is being sold for online at that very moment. 

You’ll be able to ascertain instantly whether it is worth the punt or not.

10. Don’t rain on your own parade

Remember, this is the UK, and the weather is unpredictable. So, make sure you check the weather reports the day before your car boot. 

Not least to be prepared but more so to ensure that the event is still going ahead (in severe downpours they can be called off) or to make a call as to whether you think people will turn up.

There is treasure to be found at the car boot, all you need is patience, tenacity, and some knowledge to understand what items can make you a profit.

If you find yourself at a loss one weekend, I strongly advise taking yourself to a local car boot to see if you can make yourself some money with your finds. 

Not only a great day out but you could easily turn someone else’s trash into treasure, earning yourself extra cash, something we could all benefit from.

Great categories to look out for

Jewellery – many of my clients have bought gold and silver rings for little to nothing at the car boot. Learn your hallmarks so you can check what might be worth a mint.

90s toys – anything from this era is selling like hot cakes right now. Look for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Action men and Barbies which can all be sourced cheaply at the car boot. Some Polly Pockets are now reselling for £4,000.

Baby items – we spend on average £6,000 on our first new-born. So good quality baby items will be sure to make you a profit.

VHS & DVDs – nostalgia plays a massive part in consumerism so classic films and albums can make you loads of profit. An original VHS of Back To The Future, recently sold for £8,000.

Books – as a nation we throw away 150million books a year, but first editions can be worth hundreds and sometimes thousands. Harry Potter first editions re-sell for tens of thousands, so keep an eye out.

Tools – as a nation we spend £20billion on tools per year, so cash in on DIY mania to make yourself more money.

Furniture – as we become more sustainably conscious, what would have once ended up in landfill can now be sold either as is, or for upcycling. Mid-century and 80s pieces sell well.

Where to sell your loot from the car boot

Ebay – a great all-rounder to sell your items, but it isn’t the only platform out there.

Etsy – I find this a fantastic option for vintage jewellery and crafts. With 40million buyers compared to only 2 million sellers, you can expect quick sales on this site.

Gumtree – Furniture and sports equipment do particularly well on here. It’s long established, free to use and boats 8 million visitors to the site a month.

Facebook Marketplace and groups – great option to sell things quickly and locally (no postage costs for you) but be prepared for some serious hard bartering and the odd tire kicker.

Preloved – great for selling general household items. Relatively new to market but in recent years has grown to around 10million users, so it is very popular. Also free to sell on but there are pay for upgrade which can increase your selling potential.

Shpock – fun and lively platform with 12million users and a legion of loyal fans.