The best of all worlds, that’s my goal when I set out to find good resources for my family. After spending an afternoon with Lisa Knudson, the new owner of — a children’s and maternity consignment store at 79th and Foster — I now understand what “the best of all worlds” means in a family consignment store.
The whole concept of a consignment store is pretty straight forward . . . You bring in your highest quality goods: toys, kids clothing, maternity clothes. The staff lets you know which items they can take. The consignment store sets a price for each item (less than the item would be brand new and a little more than it would be at a garage sale or thrift store) and puts each item out on display. If and when your items sell, you build up an account with the store that you can cash out or spend on discounted merchandise for yourself.
Just like here at our Swap Shop, people coming into a consignment shop don’t know for sure that the item they are looking for will be there. It’s a potpourri with ever changing inventory.
So, if I were opening a consignment store, you know where I would put it? Exactly where Small Wonders is . . . right across the street from a large Fred Meyer’s store. I am forever telling people to check the swap before they shop. Now that we all know where Small Wonders is, we can check the swap, then check the consignment store and then, if we still need it and haven’t found it recirculating through community, walk over to that big box store and add one more item to what we will be swapping and consigning later.
The second thing I’d do, if I were setting up a small consignment store that I want families to enjoy visiting, is be near a fun park so everyone can make a morning or afternoon outing out of coming out my way. Conveniently for Lisa, Small Wonders is just a few blocks away from Mt. Scott Community Center at 72nd and SE Harold– a wonderland of indoor and outdoor fun for all ages. If you check out the listings, you can even time your visit along with family swim hours for the super cool indoor aquatic play park.
So what items do you bring to the swap shop to share with other co-op members and what items to you bring over to Lisa for consignment? Before I answer that question, I want to let you know much I like and respect Lisa’s approach to consignment. There are consignment stores that only take high end brands and cater to image conscious folk that want a boutique shop experience. Lisa has many of those same items but works hard to strike a great middle ground with her store. She’s not overly picky or a collector of lots of junk. She can always find at least one thing in the items you bring that she can take so you will definitely not be wasting your time by dropping by.
Remember that “best of all worlds” idea? Our swap shop space is not well set up to take large items. We can only hold a stroller or two and a handful of other large things. Small Wonders is a great place to take car seats less than five years old, changing tables, baby swings and the like. Also, I don’t need to explain why toys with a complete set of pieces don’t fare well in our play areas. Our high shelves keep puzzles intact but that great Little People play set with all its characters and cars or a shape sorter with all its shapes, gets much better play bagged up on Lisa’s shelves ready to become another child’s best birthday present.
How much money can you make consigning your items? Lisa has families with as little as 40 cents in their account and others with $250. It all depends on what you are consigning. All the details on how to consign are on her web site
I know we all need to be conscious of money, but, as with most things, it’s about more than the money. Swapping and consigning and trading with friends is about the economy and the eco-mommy (or daddy) in all of us that wants to see joy in our child’s faces without so much paper, cardboard, Styrofoam and plastic being wasted on packaging and shipping around the globe.
And, in the case of Small Wonders, it’s about reclaiming the Lents neighborhood for families. Her store is part of a series of business renovations funded by the Portland Development Commission. So, don’t be surprised by the scaffolding, swing by now and swing by later to see the transformation and in the mean time, add one more resource to your family’s choices for living green and buying local.
Lisa Knudson
7979 SE Foster Road
Tue-Fri 10am-6pm; Sat and Sun 10am-4pm
(503) 772-1920
