What is Consignment?

Consignment is the placing of tangible valuables in another’s custody for distribution or sale.

The consignor consigns possessions to the consignee and retains ownership of the consignments. The consignee takes custody of the consigned merchandise and delivers or sells it.

With delivery the consignor might be paid when consignments are placed with the consignee or upon delivery.

For sales the consignor is usually only paid if and when consignments sell.

A Consignment Agreement is a written document which contains identification and contact information of the parties involved, the date the relationship was established, the duration of the holding period, the items consigned and the provisions for custody and responsibility.

A consignor of common personal effects like clothing and furniture might agree to hold the consignee harmless in the event of loss due to theft, damage and acts of God.

The responsibility of safekeeping of valuable assets might fall to the consignee who would be charged with custody and who would be liable for loss, making insurance necessary.

Agreements have provision for both party’s signature and once signed become legally binding and enforceable. Here again small consignment shops may not even have an agreement or might have an agreement with very general and ‘loose’ terms.

Terms often include the disposition of merchandise that isn’t delivered or sold. The common disposal method is to return items to the owners but with smaller items, unsold inventory can be donated (to a charitable organization), destroyed or transferred to shop ownership.

Consignment software is a computer program designed specifically for entities in the business of consignment. The program records information about consignors and their possessions. Basic software prints agreements, price labels and tags, receipts, checks and reports. Advanced features might include buyer and employee management, connecting multiple computers (networking), thermal labels and tags…

There are two very different pricing structures for software: pay forever and pay once.

Payment for Best Consignment Shop Software is once for lifetime use.

Payment for other programs in one form or another is ongoing. If a vendor has an ‘optional support plan’ ask of the consequences if the annual fees aren’t paid.

Published by Mr. Consignment

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