I made £3k in one day from secondhand shops finds – what to look for and why you shouldn't ignore the dusty old plates | The Sun

A PROFESSIONAL vintage reseller has revealed how anyone can rake in the cash just by knowing what to look for in secondhand shops.

Laura Caldwell owns an online vintage shop and has spent over a decade learning how to spot the best finds on the back of dusty shelves.

She recently visited different secondhand shops in her area and explained exactly what to be on the hunt for on her YouTube channel.

Straight away Laura found something to add to her shop, a vintage Japanese candle holder priced at $2.99 (£2.44) – but with a retail value of over £22 it was well worth hanging onto.

"It's all hand painted and although it's a little bit dirty I think it will clean up beautifully," she said.

She found another candle holder in the same shop, this time with a retail value $40 (£32), but she only spent $5.99 (£4.89) on it.

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Laura spotted the 1984 Olympic logo on the item, which is why she knew to pick it out from the stacks of almost identical ones.

Knowing different artists and brands is the key to picking the best items, so when Laura spotted a teapot with a design she recognised she knew she had to snap it up.

"This is a very interesting teapot, it is $7.99 (£6.52) and although it is not my style I know a lot of people collect pottery by this artist, Barb Hertel," She explained.

Knowing that the artist's work can sell secondhand for over £100, Laura picked up the teapot to add to her site.

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You shouldn't ignore the old plates either – some of them might look outdated and dusty, but if you know what to look for there are often some gems to be found.

Laura showed off a set of plates from 1964, which can sell for £13 each but were marked as just 80p per plate in the shop.

Another bargain included the Italian leather decanters she spotted – after a bit of research she discovered similar items can sell for around £60.

She grabbed the pair for $9.99 (£8.15) each in the hopes to make a similar profit.

Knowing artists to look out for really paid off when she found a ceramic dish which can fetch up to a grand when resold online.

To any other shopper the dish would look like nothing special, but since Laura recognised the artists work she knew she had something worth a lot of money on her hands.

After visiting a few more shops and collecting some jewellery pieces and more homeware, the savvy shopper added up everything she bought.

Altogether she spend $877 (£715) on the secondhand goods, but after researching everything estimated a profit of over £3k.

"Finding the item is just one step in the process, once you get it home you get it cleaned up and the real work begins.

"All of these items have to get photographed, listed on my website, measured, weighed, and before you can start writing the descriptions you've got to do your homework and research and make sure you're being as accurate as you possibly can be," she said.

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But don't let that put you off, Laura encouraged anyone to try selling secondhand finds if they want to try it out.

"Just like everything in life you get what you put in and your hard work will pay off," she said.

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