Selling items at flea markets is a way to make a part-time or full-time income. Knives are often sold at flea markets, according to Hal Ritter, the owner of The Outpost, an Illinois gun shop that sells knives. You may discover a lot of competition at flea markets, but you can stand out by offering a wide variety and ensuring that you know everything there is to know about your product.

Things You Will Need

  • Knife inventory

  • Tables

  • Tent

  • Boxes or bags

Visit flea markets in the areas you wish to sell. Find out if there are already knife vendors. If there are, look over their knives. Review the quality and the brands of knives they sell. You may still be able to sell at the flea market if you can offer something better or more unique.

Research knives. Become an expert on the types of knives you want to sell. At flea markets, people don't just like to buy things cheaply, but they like to talk about them. Knife collectors will come to you if they find that you're knowledgeable about the product.

Find suppliers for your knives if you are selling them new. You can look online to find distributors. Be sure that you are paying a low wholesale price so that you can offer a good retail price to your customers.

Collect knives. You can get knives from yard sales, local classified advertisements and websites. You can also place ads in classified ad listings offering to purchase knives. It will take longer to assemble an inventory this way, but it will give you access to a wider variety of knives.

Rent space at your selected flea markets. Contact the flea market organizers and rent a space. Try and get a space away from other knife vendors, if you can.

Display and sell your knives. Make your knife booth an attractive and welcoming space. Purchase folding tables that are easy to carry in your vehicle, a tent if the market is outside and bags or boxes to put your customers purchases in. Invite people to chat. Make sure people can see your knives and see your prices.

Let your customers shop. The best way to ensure you will make money selling your knives is to be pleasant and to allow your customers a chance to shop. If your knives are attractively displayed and you are welcoming to each customer, you shouldn't have a problem selling them. According to A Touch of Business, "Strong people skills will take you far in the flea market business. You will need to win over your customers and sweet talk sellers in this business, and a likeable personality and effective communication skills will help you to know what to say and how to say it."

Ask your customers questions. The best way to sell knives, according to Ritter, is to ask them questions about their knife usage. Customers aren't bashful about sharing details about the product they are looking for, Ritter says. Ask a series of questions designed to identify the right kind of knife for your customer's needs.