WATERLOO -- Danielle Deschamps says the display in front of her Waterloo home on Friday may look like a typical garage sale, but it’s far from it.
"This is the new style of COVID-19 garage sales," she said. "Everything is online and then people can book an appointment to come pick up what they want."
Deschamps says she takes pictures she is selling and posts them on social media. Potential buyers then book an appointment to come see the items in person before purchasing.
"The online sales have been really successful," she said. "Obviously people want to physically shop, but I think we made a good compromise."
Deschamps and her husband started organizing virtual garage sales after they both lost their jobs because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"My husband had the idea to start buying lockers, the show Storage Wars inspired him," she said. "We decided to see what we could get and we bought a really good unit and we turned over a lot really fast."
Hundreds of items from record players to household pieces are now for sale.
Customer Chris Lewis says he has his eye on the computer chairs and book rack.
"It’s a good feeling to be able to be out and social but still keeping our distance," he said.
The Region of Waterloo says that anyone participating in garage sales should remember to practice physical distancing.
"Avoid gathering in groups of more than five, practice good personal hygiene, and lots of hand washing," said Mike Murray, Region of Waterloo CAO.
Deschamps says they are providing shoppers with hand sanitizer and gloves and adds that the new way or running a garage sale is going well for them.
