Local business benefits Issaquah food bank, other charities

Just Between Friends Issaquah will host its semi-annual consignment sale benefiting local charities.

A local business is gearing up for its semi-annual sale event and hopes local parents can contribute after many people spent recent snow days cleaning out their clutter.

Just Between Friends (JBF) Kid’s Consignment in Issaquah will host its semi-annual kid’s consignment sale event at The Pickering Barn March 7 through 10. According to JBF, more than 115,000 American moms across the United States use cold weather and snow days to prepare various items to consign at 73 spring and summer events.

The event offers an opportunity for parents to buy and sell gently-used and unwanted items, from clothing to toys to strollers. Additionally, the sale event will, in part, benefit the Issaquah Food Bank and other local charities.

“JBF sales events bring moms together under one roof and give them the opportunity to consign and make great money for their family, while providing a venue where they can also shop for what they need for the next season,” said Sheila Brown, who has been volunteering and consigning at JBF events since 2007. “I always find some great deals and get a nice check for my items, but JBF is also about bringing moms together so they can network and have fun shopping. Saving money is a great theme for any get-together.”

The sale event will have free admission for online registration starting at 10 a.m. March 7, and first-time and expecting parents can enter an hour early. Additionally, locals can purchase pre-sale tickets to attend the event a day early along with volunteers, consignors, military members and teachers.

Consignors can make up to 70 percent of what their items sell for. JBF staff will inspect all consigned items and reject items they know won’t sell.

“We don’t waste the time of our shoppers, who do not want to sort through stained and outdated clothing or dig through broken toys or games with missing pieces,” said Courtney Evans, owner of Just Between Friends Issaquah. “Consignors say they save their ‘best stuff’ for JBF because they can make more money than at a garage sale, they love to shop early and they don’t have to pick up any items that don’t sell. We make it easy for Eastside moms to make money, save money, make new friends and have a ton of fun in the process.”

Any locals can participate in the spring sale and JBF encourages them to sign up for their mailing list and begin prepping items. The consignment sale will accept numerous items including, DVDs, booster seats, books, toys, baby equipment, nursery furniture, hair bows and anything related to raising a child.

“My first JBF sale, I had a ton of stuff to tag and bring because I had a couple of years’ worth of my kids’ stuff to sell,” said Megan Martin, who was one of the first Eastside moms to join Just Between Friends. “After a spring/summer and then a fall/winter sale, I was just prepping and tagging items for one season. I get a nice check, and I have a lot less to store and try to keep up with. It’s great having money for the items that were just taking up space in my home and garage.”

JBF has more than 150 franchises across the states and, in 2018, donated more than $3.2 million dollars in children’s items to local charities, according to a press release. The organization has more than 115,000 moms participating as consignors, volunteers and shoppers.

Locals can visit www.jbfsale.com for more information on how they can participate in the 2019 Spring Issaquah Just Between Friends sales event.