SWAP MEET 2019 OFFICIAL INFORMATION THREAD

[Zelyhon]

Is swap meet free to attend on thursday?
Or do we not do that anymore?

Yes, you do not need a Fanime badge to come to buy at Swap Meet on Thursday.

[Zelyhon]

Question, if you are not a seller, can you as a buyer bring your own merch not to sell but trade?

This hasn't really come up much before, but my inclination is to say no.  The actual sellers there paid money to reserve a spot at Swap Meet.  For others to then come in to trade their items without reserving the spot or paying wouldn't feel right for those who did get their spots.

Also, and I'm not saying that you would do this, but allowing people to come in with things "just to trade" would be ripe for abuse by those who want to skirt the rules of Swap Meet.  Thus, I'm going to say no on bringing items to trade with the Swap Meet sellers.

[Koinuchan]

We are gonna try to do the swap meet for the very first time this year, is there any like pro tips that anyone can share before we go? We literally have never sold anything before. Not even to a garage sale.

[ccxci]

Hi, first time thinking about selling this year!

I have a lot of extra prizes I won from crane games (Toreba to be exact) and they're still new in their bags. Would that still be ok to sell at the Swap Meet if I've never sold at any other event before, other than occasionally on eBay and Mercari? Also, would it be ok to sell my prizes, since they are considered new?

Thanks for hosting the swap meet!

[thepharaohinleather]

We are gonna try to do the swap meet for the very first time this year, is there any like pro tips that anyone can share before we go? We literally have never sold anything before. Not even to a garage sale.

Bring plenty of change! Depending on how much you're selling stuff for, make sure to have some quarters and lots of ones and fives. It's good to have a variety of change, but make sure to have lots of small change. Expect many people to pay in 20's even for small stuff. Don't miss a sale by not having proper change right away!

Definitely figure out how to transport everything ahead of time. They do not allow dollies but you can use suitcases with wheels for easier transport. Last year I made the mistake of bringing too much without any help but was lucky and had some nice people in line who watched my stuff while I made a second run to my car. Remember you're going to have to bring back anything you do not sell!

Price tags take a long time to put on stuff (even those pre-priced stickers), so most people just lay stuff out and let people ask how much specific things are. This also makes it easier if you want to knock down some prices as the night goes on if something isn't selling well and you really want to get rid of it.

It's good to bring a blanket or tarp of some sort to keep stuff directly off the ground, but try and use a solid color as patterned blankets can make it difficult for buyers to see everything on your spot if you have a lot of small things bunched together.

Bring chairs! As long as you're not using them to display items, you're welcome to bring chairs to sit in. You'll want this as swap meet lasts a number of hours and no chairs are provided, and you don't want to sit on the concrete that long.

Try and think of the type of people attending swap meet when deciding what items to bring. Sometimes things that would sell well at a garage sale won't sell very well at an anime convention (ie appliances, tools, etc)

Bring water and snacks! It can get warm even in the huge hall, at least after setting everything up I do lol. Especially if you're selling alone, you don't want to leave your stuff to go get food, water, or go to the bathroom. So make sure to do that last one right before you get there!

If you don't know how much to sell something for, do some research beforehand! I often check what things I have are selling for on ebay and price them 5-10 bucks under that to entice people to buy them from me rather than online. Remember most people are looking for cheap deals, but don't be afraid to stand your ground on prices! Unless you really just want to get rid of stuff and don't care about how much money you make, stay steady on your determined prices even if people don't seem interested right away. If the night goes on and it still seems like no one is interested in the item for that price, then you could consider lowering it if you want to get rid of it. Otherwise just sell it online afterward.

COME EARLY TO CHECK IN! There is always a long line that doesn't always move very fast, and spots are given out first come first serve, so if you want a spot near the front, get in line an hour or two early. People start lining up super early, and remember you need to have everything you're selling with you when you check in, so you need to push it all along the line with you! (Also a good reason to bring chairs and food/water for waiting in line).

I don't know if people will try this in person but don't accept personal checks from people. It's often a scam and you won't know if it is or not until you try and cash the check. (I just got someone trying to scam me on craigslist with this old trick so I don't want anyone to fall for it lately)

It can also be handy, if you have time and effort and/or care, to keep a list of what you sell and for how much to keep track of your money. Always keep your money within eye sight or on your person. Unfortunately there are bad people out there, so protect yourself with a fanny pack or something akin so you always know where your money is, especially when doing multiple sales at once or if you need to move from your chair to show a buyer something.

If you have a bunch of one type of item (ie dvds, games, cds etc) it can be helpful to have them organized in some way relevant to the type of item or lay them all out so buyers can see the covers clearly. Some people are fine with digging through boxes/binders for things like trading cards and the like, but many don't turn a second glance when they can't see right away what you have to offer. Everything you can display fully, do so! The easier it is for buyers to see something they want, the more sales you will make. But keep in mind Swap Meet does not allow stands of any kind to display things (except peg boards laid flat on the ground).

Good luck and have fun!

[GFresh]

Trying to register for the swap meet, the spot on the fanime sit says registration is at noon on the 28th which is now but all it has is a dead link, and i can't find anything else about registration.

[LightandDarkSoul]

Trying to register for the swap meet, the spot on the fanime sit says registration is at noon on the 28th which is now but all it has is a dead link, and i can't find anything else about registration.

That's from last year.

[Nami914]

Is anyone else still getting this message "The requested URL /2019/swapmeet/ was not found on this server. Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request." when clicking on the registration page?

Registration should've opened today April 28, 2019 at 12:00 pm, right?

[GFresh]

Trying to register for the swap meet, the spot on the fanime sit says registration is at noon on the 28th which is now but all it has is a dead link, and i can't find anything else about registration.

That's from last year.

Any idea when this year's registration will go up?

[GFresh]

Is anyone else still getting this message "The requested URL /2019/swapmeet/ was not found on this server. Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request." when clicking on the registration page?

Registration should've opened today April 28, 2019 at 12:00 pm, right?

Yeah, I was told that is last year's even though it says 2019, here's hoping registration hasn't opened yet.

[shiumi]

The fanime site said the swap meet registration would open up today (4/28/19) but there is a 404 error when I try to click the link. Is there any information on when this issue will be fixed? I really want to secure a spot...

[Jazzygilla22]

Anyone else trying to register and getting an error? After I created my account and seller info it says it can't be processed xc

[Zelyhon]

Is anyone else still getting this message "The requested URL /2019/swapmeet/ was not found on this server. Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request." when clicking on the registration page?

Registration should've opened today April 28, 2019 at 12:00 pm, right?

If that was on the official site, that was in error.  We didn't have a solid date for opening.

For all of those here trying to register and not having any success, Swap Meet Registration is not yet open, but keep your eyes on this space, the official Fanime Site, twitter, facebook, etc. in the next couple days.  I will update when I can.

[Zelyhon]

The fanime site said the swap meet registration would open up today (4/28/19) but there is a 404 error when I try to click the link. Is there any information on when this issue will be fixed? I really want to secure a spot...

If you are looking at what I am looking at, that post was made 4/27/18 and was in reference to last year's Swap Meet.

As I said in the previous post here on the forums, keep your eyes on this space and other Fanime official communications in the next day or two.

[Zelyhon]

Front page has been updated with the link for registration which, as of this moment, is not yet live.  I will post here with updates as I have them.

[ryuusea]

Hello! Doing swap meet for the first time together with a friend and wanted to know what info is needed for registration? Because I'll probably be the one to do registration for me and that person as well. (Unless we have to register separately?) Thanks!

[Zelyhon]

Okay!  Since the official word is out on Twitter and the like, I can post this here now:

SWAP MEET REGISTRATION WILL OPEN ON APRIL 30 AT 6:00 P.M. PST.

The link for registration is on the front page.

[Zelyhon]

Hello! Doing swap meet for the first time together with a friend and wanted to know what info is needed for registration? Because I'll probably be the one to do registration for me and that person as well. (Unless we have to register separately?) Thanks!

Names, Fanime badge numbers, address, Date of birth, and information on what you're selling, for the most part.  There's a few other things, but I don't have the form in front of me at the moment and that's the basics.

[ryuusea]

Thank you!!

[redroses3164]

I was doing my swap meet reg but for some reason, I now have a third seller in my list. I cannot delete them anymore because I am stuck on step 2B (finalizing step, special requests account information section). I cannot edit the seller list anymore and I did not add this third seller.

My email: [email protected]

The third seller who can't be deleted is Brandon.


Edit: and now I'm in a stuck loop where it continually says my account is not confirmed and then I get it sent to my email. Then I click to begin the next steps...and then says my account is not confirmed.