Hi everyone,

I didn't know where to post this so I'm posting it in a couple of areas. I would like everyone's help and opinions on what I'm about to ask please.

First of all, I'd like to start selling magic supplies at a local fleamarket and I would like to know if anyone knows where to get products like magic books, dvds, tricks, and anything else at wholesale prices.

I live in Ontario, Canada so Canadian stores would be of more interest to me, but I'm open to hear about any sites or stores that sell wholesale.

And also, I would just like to know if anyone here has any tips for me on what to sell and any tips on the magic business at all.

Please everyone, all comments and opinions are welcome as long as they are not negative

If you would like to email me you can do so at shaun@techemail.com

Thanks for your time.

Shaun

Well, if you are selling magic at a local flea market then your market will be the general public. So stick with a stock of easy to do magic that is affordable. Most lay people that buy a magic trick are not prepared to pay $30.00 or more for a trick that they just want to show their friends. Most magic is priced high to keep it exclusive for people who are more serious about the art. If it was cheap, then everyone would be doing it. Anyway, that's my opinion. Do a search on google for magic dealers or magic wholesale dealers and you should find a wealth of suppliers.

Good luck,

P.

Hi Shaun,
I agree with Peter. There is a Flea-Market mentality when it comes to people buying.
If it's more than a dollar they usually walk away. I don't want to burst your bubble, I just don't think Flea-Markets are the way to go.

Carl Andrews has a book and video out called "Making A Living Performing Close Up Magic" where he gives you many ideas.

Usually magic tricks are sold after a show,
to generate sales. Again as Peter said, unless you are serious about magic you are not going to spend the big dollars.

You might want to check out http://www.Thedean.net
It is geared toward marketing magic. It has some great ideas that might help you in their chat room, much like here.

Hope this helps.
David Paul

Thanks.
I'll check out that site for sure, and once again, thanks for replying to my question.

There is a bit of cash to be made at flea markets. You can do a Svengali pitch, magic mouse (or furry worm), My favorite Rope Trick (Professors Nightmare) Ball and Vase, and X-Ray Block and plastic Cups and Balls.

Pitch to the kids and you will find many of the adults will buy. You are only going to make money at the huge flea markets. Don’t expect to make fist's full of dollars, magic tricks are not what people are looking for when they are weekend flea marketeering! Robins Co. sells the slum (cheap) tricks that you are looking for. They sell only to pitchmen and stores. Adams Novelty Company also sells wholesale to pitchmen. There are minimum amounts that you must buy to deal with them.

You can spend a few evenings making your own Svengali decks, My Favorite Rope trick packets, and perhaps one or two packet tricks. Hey hit the craft store, buy wooden beads and macramé rope and make Grandma’s necklace tricks. Type up some instructions and Zap! You are in business. Keep it simple, keep it fast, and have fun. Don’t expect to get rich!

Mumblepeas said it right. There's "gold in them thar hills." But not selling high end magic that would appeal to magicians. We had a local magician do essentially that at a shopping mall kiosk (selling Ammar videos for $60.00, that type of thing.) It didn't last.

The Great Stan Kramien made enough to buy one or two Lincoln Continentals with the
"Magic Mouse" pitch. The mouse, the Svengali pitch, anything that is easy for them to do, and is cheap (especially for bargain-minded flea market denizens).

There are some informative booklets and even videos in the market on pitching magic; some good, some so-so. I can recommend that you find a copy of Kramien's "The Mouse Pitch," available from Stevens, and then you'll need to be able to arrange supplies from a magic wholesaler.

It's a lot of work to get to the point where you make money. As a part-time effort, you can pitch these items as part of your public shows. For private shows, I'd suggest selling the client, birthday party mom, decision-making person, on buying them as gifts or favors for the gathering, including them in goody-bags, etc. If you just pitch magic on the weekends, it's a rough, quick way to starve, according to several skinny friends who've tried it. If you're doing it for fun and a couple of extra bucks, go for it.

Good Luck -er- Break a thread!

Thanks again to all the friendly people in this forum for replying. I am still looking into doing this but if I do, it won't be until the new year. This will give me time to see exactly what I want to do and gives me some time to read up on some books I need to read first.

If anyone has tried to open a magic store or a magic booth at a flea market or mall or anything please PM me your experiences and how you liked it and so on. I would love to hear from anyone that has.

Thanks
Shaun

I know of one Magic shop, that also sells Clown Props and T-Shirts at a Flea Market.

They are open on Saturday and Sunday and have a "demonstrator" I will call HuDanni (His name is really Danny, but whenever he tells people his name, they say "Who Danny?"...<rimshot>) on Saturday afternoons.

But they sell less magic than anything else.

And we don't really even have a Real Magic Shop in our town either. (We do have a couple costume/joke/magic shops but they leave plenty of room for competition by being overpriced and not having anyone who can actually demo anything.)

I have seen guys (I actually got started in Magic by seeing one) selling tricks at a table in the mall. And he did pretty well and went on to be a substantial manufacturer and distributor, for a while......

To me, it is about the quality of the traffic, as much as the volume. At the mall, you get a little higher quality as well as more consistent volume.

I think the mall (And Jim Pace's White Rabbit Magic is in a mall) is a fair way to go if you have a good deal on space, and a good inventory, and a good mall and lots of money to support the effort to keep inventory levels up, and can pay your rent until you develop a trade.

I also am a firm believer in growing your own market. So I would start offering low cost lessons, include simple tricks as part of the price, (You have to be there anyway, so why not teach people about magic and indirectly sell products too) and offer higher cost on going training with advanced lessons and more expensive effects included.

You probably would also receive bookings, and maybe private lessons form your presence there.

But Mall space can be pretty expensive, so maybe doing all the above at a flea market might work....

Just some thoughts....

BroDavid

Some great ideas from everyone.

Good luck with it.

P.

Ok guys, If you want to have some fun and sell at Flea markets you can do this and make some money. I used to do this years ago.

What a great education. First you find a local flea market that has a lot of traffic.
This is very important!

Choose your product line from items that will sell to you, wherever you live. This may vary from place to place. Why, I don't know but if you can figure this out, You can make some money. How much, that depends on where your flea market is.

I would recommend, Svengali pitch decks, as mentioned, Best source is Fun, Inc. to buy your own. You can find them at: http://www.hamptonridge.com/home.html

Tell them what you are doing they will set you up for buying wholesale. You are going to have to place your first order at $250.00. This should not be hard if you are serious.

Also, I recommend, "Nickels to Dimes", people love money tricks. Then work your way up to "Scotch and Soda".

You might even try their "Coloring Book".

Give them a call, they will give you some suggestions and ideas for product.

They are great people to work with and they are dependable. If not, let me know.

Also, if you are going to work Flea Markets, offer to work with the promoters to do a Free Magic Show as trade out for part of your booth space. They are always looking for entertainment to draw crowds to the Flea market.

If that doesn't work, figure out a way to do your own "magic show" in your booth. What a great way of drawing crowds, selling, and getting exposure.

Hey, Have fun with this, I did. Otherwise, don't do this. Learn from this experience, it is priceless.

Steve Hart
Cape Canaveral, FL USA

I have done some of this on and off for years and expect to do some more in the future.

I recommend buying commercial Svengali decks, making them at home does not usually produce a good enough product.

The three card trick, Buddha (hope I spelled that right) papers, vanishing coin in a glass of water, rising wand and many others can be made by even a fumble-fingers like me to a reasonable standard.

Good signage is important. You don't need a lot but it had better be good.

Most malls require a lease if you use a shopfront. We have two that allow a pitch table, rent is very high and $5 million public liability cover is mandatory under their rules.

You should have good public liability cover even just operating markets. Somebody just says they were ***ed by the hook on your hook coin and that could be a half million suit!

Val Andrews in England wrote a good booklet years ago but the best education is to watch good pitchmen in action.

Remember they are working and don't try to get between them and the buying public!

If you can get to talk with them, buy them a coffee and sit down, you may learn more than you will from a book.

I was fortunate to see, and talk with, Joe Stuthard who retired from a notable career as a stage magician to sell his card decks and magic mice around Australia.

Good Luck.

Here is another list for your to look at:

http://dmoz.org/Arts/Performing_Arts/Magic/Vendors/

Good Luck

BB