Shopping local is really important to me as well as to many of you and I don’t think it gets more “local” than shopping at Rhea Lana’s. This is because when you shop there, not only is the business owner local but those that are consigning their items could be as local as your next door neighbor!
This article is an interview with the owner of Rhea Lana’s, Jillian Cremona. I asked her questions relating to how to shop at Rhea Lana’s (when, where and how to buy tickets) as well as how you can consign your items if you are interested. We will also discuss what items you can expect to find while shopping at Rhea Lana’s.
Shopping at Rhea Lana’s
- How/When can I shop at Rhea Lana’s?
- When is the sale? We’ll be open to the public Sunday, March 26th through Saturday April 1st from 10 AM to 7 PM. No tickets or passes needed for these days, just walk in like a store.
- What do I need a ticket or pass for? We do sell a limited number of “pre-sale” tickets to shop before we open to the public. Since consignors price their own items, the best deals really do go first! We have limited ticket options left for Friday night 3/24/2023 and Saturday 3/25/2023. You can view all the ticket options and purchase them HERE.
- We do offer some FREE tickets to shop on Saturday for teachers, military personnel, healthcare workers, and moms-to-be (pregnant or waiting on adoption.) Consignors also have a shopping time.
- Where do I buy tickets? Tickets are available on our website through Eventbrite, HERE.
- Where is the sale? 55 Springside Dr., Copley, OH
- What types of items can I expect to find when shopping at Rhea Lana’s?
- A lot of shoppers really do come and buy everything they’ll need for their kids for the next 6 months (until the next sale)! We have tens of thousands of items at 60-90% off of retail. We have something for everyone with brands from Old Navy to boutique brands such as KickeePants and Janie and Jack.
- What makes shopping at Rhea Lana’s unique?
- My paid staff keeps the store neat and organized for the entire sale which creates a quality shopping experience. This means that customers are not digging through messy or dirty piles. Also, there are no random tables like at the flea market or that sort of thing.
- It’s really important to people that their old items go somewhere they’ll be used, and that’s exactly what happens here. Moms, dads, and grandmas who will use it get to buy it at a really great deal. After the sale, we have local foster families come in and “shop” the unsold donated items for free, they can have anything they need for their foster kids. Anything left goes to local churches, shelters, etc.
- The pop up model allows us to pay consignors fairly for their items, permanent consignment stores give people pennies on the dollar, where we give people 65% of their sales.
Consigning with Rhea Lana’s
Are you interested in consigning your clothes or other items and are not sure where or how to start? Here is Jillian’s answer about how to consign with Rhea Lana’s.
- What is the process to consign clothes or other items with Rhea Lana’s?
- We have 2 ways to consign with Rhea Lana’s:
- Standard DIY consignors prep and price their own items and bring them to the store. They earn 65% of sales.
- VIP consignors gives all of their items to a processor and the processor does all the work for them. They earn 35% of sales. VIP is very popular and we do have a short wait-list right now.
- We accept pretty much everything for babies through teens, with a couple safety exceptions (no car seats, recalled items, broken or stained items, or breast pumps).
- Accepted items include: clothes, toys, baby gear (swings, bouncers, cribs, strollers, etc), outdoor items such as bikes and big wheels, shoes, books, and games.
- We have a lot of videos and resources on our website that help consignors that are prepping the items themselves. Starting with watching the videos is a great idea!
- We encourage consignors to bundle outfits (especially in the smaller sizes).
- Toys and bigger items need pieces bagged or zip-tied together.
- Once they have the items prepped, they enter them into our database either on our mobile app or on a computer.
- I will print the barcode label stickers for them (free to pick up in store at drop off or the weekend before) or some people choose to print them at home on their own.
- On drop off days, consignors bring their prepped items to the store where they either check them in with a staff in-store or sign up for a curbside drop off appointment.
- I know it seems like a lot to consign, but it’s actually pretty easy to get the hang of. Plus, once you do it once, you’ll be a pro!
- We have 2 ways to consign with Rhea Lana’s:
- How do consignors know how much they made?
- Once the sale is underway, consignors can watch their sales in real-time. As soon as someone buys one of their items, it will show as sold and credit their account. This is a lot of fun!
- Once the sale is over, I print them a check. They can pick up their check the Monday after the sale or I will mail it to them.
- As a thank you to consignors who donate their unsold items, I will mail them their barcode labels for free, they are eligible for free drop & go service (where they just roll up to consignor drop off and my staff unloads their car and puts all their items out in the store), and they get to shop with the gold tickets which is before the regular consignor shopping time.
The “why” and heart behind Rhea Lana’s
- Why did you start Rhea Lana’s?
- When I became a mom, I could not believe the amount of like-new kids stuff in the world. I’ve always loved shopping resale, literally since I was in high school! I love that we are keeping things out of landfills AND paying consignors fairly for their items. It’s so much fun having so many moms and dads come in the store to shop for their kids. They are SO happy to get what their kids want and need at such a great price, especially these days. I actually took over this business from someone who started it years ago! I had always wanted to run my own business, so when this franchise came up for sale, I jumped on it.
Giveaway!!
Do you want a chance to win a silver ticket which allows you to shop at Rhea Lana’s Saturday 3/25/2023 from 12 PM – 8PM?? Rhea Lana’s was kind enough to donate 5 tickets to 5 lucky winners!!
How to enter: Send me an email with the subject: GIVEAWAY and include your name and email address in the body of the email! If you are the lucky winner, I will reply to you and copy Jillian so that she can send you the ticket through Eventbrite. Good luck and happy shopping!!
