Has EBay overtaken the car boot sale?

Clitheroe hosts a car boot sale every Sunday at the cattle market off Pimlico Link Road. This often attract the crowds, especially when the weather is as fantastic as it has been this summer.

A stroll around the “pick and mix” style stalls for a small entry fee can provide visiting folk, young and old, with a well-deserved break from the monotony of the working week.

So, if there are plenty of people visiting these car boot sales, where is the problem?

Technology has been evolving over the years and now, in the 21st Century, consumer sites such as EBay, Amazon and others are beginning to offer an alternative way to buy and sell.

In my opinion, they offer cheaper goods at times, so are possibly changing the habits of some car booters.

I have been a regular seller at the Clitheroe car boot sale for a few years. Last year when my mum and I arrived very early all the inside plots were full and there were very few plots left outside.

We ended up cramped in a corner by the burger van ... actually not too bad after all, plus it was busy all day, with sellers making good profits.

This year we decided to have a trip to the car boot sale on a fine day in June; however, we were sorry to see a decline in stalls. Sellers told us they had been quiet all day. Was this just a one-off or are people using alternative ways of buying and selling their goods?

I believe we should discard the somewhat downbeat thoughts, and think about what car boots offer. Let’s search for some hidden gems among the bric-a-brac, and not glare at the computer screens for hours on end.

And let’s maintain the age-old tradition and not let the boot simply shut on them just yet!