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You’ve worked hard to source your discoveries and create your own offerings. Now your vintage booth is stocked with treasures for customers to shop and the fun can begin!
You may be wondering if you need antique inventory insurance – what happens if tragedy strikes?
This is an area of your business that may not be fun to think about, but it is important to consider whether or not you need this financial protection.
My own story with the antique booth
I have been selling antiques, upturned furniture and furniture refinish from antique stalls for 12 years through my company Lost & Found.
I love the vintage booth model, especially for busy moms like me. I can focus on sourcing and organizing my finds and then letting the antique mall staff greet customers and collect payments.
It has worked very well for me and my business has boomed.
However, recently, a tornado swept through the area and hit not only the antique mall where I have my current suite, but also two other antique malls in the area.
3 moles. . . They were all destroyed in minutes early one Sunday morning.
I was very lucky to find my space without any real damage. My Fusion Mineral Paint shelves were intact, and the rest of my vintage items and home decor were fine.
But many other sellers were not so lucky.
This is what is so difficult about events like this, you never know when or if tragedy will strike.
In the wake of this storm, I received a lot of questions on my Facebook page from booth vendors asking about insurance for their inventory. Seeing the photos I shared made everyone wonder: “What would happen if my shopping mall was damaged?”
Is your Antique Mall liable for damage to your booth inventory?
When you rent booth space at an antique mall or flea market, you sign a lease. This lease document contains the terms of the agreement between you and the mall owners, and you should read the lease carefully.
Every lease I’ve ever signed includes a liability waiver for antique mall owners.
What this means in layman’s terms is that no one is responsible for paying for any lost, damaged or stolen items at your kiosk.
Antique mall owners will likely carry insurance that covers their business property — the building itself, their computers and other items at the checkout counter, and any inventory they sell.
However, inventory you own and located at your stand will not be covered by this policy. The mall owners, depending on the terms of your lease, will likely not be responsible for anything that might happen to it.
What type of insurance do I need for my antique booth?
If you are concerned about losing the value of your inventory in some type of catastrophic event, you should consider a commercial property insurance policy.
This type of policy will help provide funds to replace your inventory in the event of a covered loss (such as fire, hurricane, flood, etc.). Of course, like all insurance policies, you need to read the fine print to find out what types of losses are covered.
The cost of your insurance depends on the value of what you want to cover. You can expect to pay anywhere from $25 to $100 per month.
Should I get insurance for my antique items?
In 12 years of business, I have never carried commercial property insurance for my antique inventory. But after this experience, I can see how it could be a good idea to consider.
I’ve always heard that if you can’t afford to financially lose something, it’s a good idea to insure it.
This is another reason why it’s important to keep track of your vintage booth inventory – do you know the value of what you already have in your booth?
Some booth vendors sell inexpensive items purchased at garage sales for a few dollars, and in their space they may only be worth $100 to $200. In this case, it’s probably not worth insuring.
But others may have an inventory of high-end antique items, expensive furniture or estate jewelry, or large lines of wholesale items (such as furniture paint, stencils, decorative transfers, etc.).
In my suite at the time of the hurricane, I had about $2,000 worth of furniture paint on my shelves. If my stock had been lost or damaged, it would have cost a lot of money.
So the answer lies in the value of your specific stock, as well as your personal peace of mind.
Close ideas about insurance for your antique kiosk
We all hope that no tragic event will happen to our homes or businesses. But if I’ve learned anything from this experience, it’s that life is unpredictable and sometimes the worst comes along.
If your antique booth inventory is damaged, can you recover it financially?
If you have large booth spaces with a lot of high-quality inventory, it may be worth considering a commercial property insurance policy to cover your items.
Even if you have a small kiosk space, having insurance coverage on your inventory can give you peace of mind.
The best place to start is to know the actual value of what you have. If you don’t track your inventory costs or what you already have in stock, you won’t be able to make a good decision about purchasing insurance.
It’s best to start tracking now so you can determine what kind of protection your company may or may not need.
You might enjoy these other posts about running an antique booth business!
How to Choose the Right Price for Your Antique Suite Items
Ideas for what to sell each month at your antique booth
4 steps to take your antique booth from hobby to business
Lost & Found LLC is not a licensed insurance agent or legal expert. Please consult an attorney or insurance agent if you have suffered a loss in your business or want more information about business insurance coverage.
