Reuse, Recycle: Growing Express Children's Consignment Sale

I love finding new ways to recycle, especially when they benefit my family, and children’s consignment sales are one of my favorite ways to recycle.  For those of you not 'in the know’, children’s consignment sales are typically semi-annual sales, held in spring and fall, where parents can either a.) sell gently used children’s items (clothing, toys, equipment), b.) purchase gently used children’s items at a fraction of the retail price, or c.) do both.

I stumbled upon my first consignment sale last year when I was expecting my first child.  We were in need of everything for our first baby and I had heard about a local sale, called Growing Express, I needed to check out.  We arrived 30 minutes early for the sale, along with at least 30+ other early birds.  When our shopping whirlwind was complete, my husband and I were in disbelief: a pack-n-play in mint condition, a swing, a designer diaper bag never used, a bunch of clothing and more…for well under $200!  Needless to say, I was hooked. 

Shocked to discover that many of my parent friends were unaware of consignment sales, I feel obligated to share this information with everyone.  I recently contacted Gina Duchossois & Dawn Batman, owners of Growing Express, to get their take on the consignment sale phenomenon.  I asked Gina and Dawn their motivation for starting the Growing Express Consignment Sale:

We both have children and experienced the same challenges of our children playing with toys only a few times and losing interest…or wearing a piece of clothing & having them outgrow the item after only a few wears.  We both thought it was a great way to recycle these items and allow other kids to enjoy these items at the same time.  The concept of a consignment sale is that it gives parents the ability to earn a little bit of money on their gently- used kids items while making another kid (and mom) happy at the same time.

The best part is that you can purchase these items at a fraction of the original cost. Most items at the sale are priced at 75% off the original price…some even more.  A parent can literally visit the sale and purchase their child’s wardrobe for an entire season for under $50.  This coming sale will feature spring/summer clothing items as well as toys, books, baby equipment & anything baby and kid related.

For those of you familiar with The Growing Express sale, you’ll be excited to learn that this year will feature a dedicated sports equipment section, more checkout lanes, as well as an ‘Express’ lane for people with 5 items or less.

While it’s too late to consign your gently used items for the spring/summer sale, it’s not too late to shop!  The spring/summer sale will take place Saturday, April 6th from 8a.m. to 1p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church in Ambler.  Be sure to take advantage of the half price sale from 12-1p.m.  For more information, visit the Growing Express website or check them out on Facebook.