Apparel, resale & collectibles
Books and taxes for antique shops and antique malls.
Booth rent collected from dozens of dealers, one register that splits a sale across several vendors, and an estate consignment piece that takes months to sell. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
August came in at $12,000. Booth rent renewals landed heavier than usual this month, so I kept that apart from the mall's own cut of dealer sales.
- Booth rent paymentsBooth rent income
- Mall's cut of dealer salesSales commission
- Dealer sale payout runDealer payouts
- POS system feeSoftware and systems
- Building insuranceInsurance
Why your books are different
Antique mall books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees a store with a register. Your business runs closer to a landlord and a bank for dozens of independent dealers, collecting booth rent, splitting a mall commission off every sale, and holding money owed out to vendors between payout runs. When the books do not know that, the mall's own income disappears into money that belongs to its dealers.
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1
Dealer sales get booked as the mall's own income
A single register rings up a sale for a dealer's booth, and the whole ticket price gets counted as the mall's revenue instead of just its commission, with the rest owed straight back to the dealer.
What we doCounts only the mall's commission as income and keeps the rest as a payable owed to the dealer, so the mall's real revenue is never overstated. -
2
Booth rent and sales commission get mixed together
Booth rent is steady income the mall earns just for the space, while a sales commission depends entirely on what dealers actually sell, and blended into one number, neither trend is visible.
What we doKeeps booth rent and sales commission in separate categories, so each source of the mall's income can be judged on its own. -
3
Unpaid dealer payouts pile up unseen
Between monthly or biweekly payout runs, the mall is holding real money that belongs to dozens of dealers, and without a running total, it is easy to spend against it without realizing.
What we doKeeps a running dealer payable balance, so it never gets mistaken for cash the mall can spend. -
4
A high-value estate consignment piece sits without context
A single estate piece consigned for several thousand dollars can sit unsold for months, and without tracking, it looks like the mall is carrying dead inventory instead of someone else's item waiting for the right buyer.
What we doTracks high-value consignment pieces separately, so a slow sale on someone else's item does not read as the mall's own dead stock.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for an antique shop or mall.
Set up once for rent, commission, and payouts. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Booth rent incomeMonthly space rent collected from each dealer.
- Sales commissionThe mall's cut of what dealers actually sell.
- Estate consignment salesThe mall's cut of high-value estate pieces sold on consignment.
- Owned inventory salesFor malls that also sell items they own outright.
Money out
- Dealer payoutsMoney owed to dealers for their share of sales.
- Software and systemsPoint of sale and booth management software fees.
- Rent and utilitiesThe mall building's own lease and its utilities.
- PayrollFront desk and floor staff, kept apart from owner draw.
- InsuranceBuilding, liability, and inventory coverage.
- MarketingLocal ads and antique show sponsorships.
- Card processing feesWhat the card processor keeps before payout.
What we watch for you
- Dealer payable balance
What is currently owed out to dealers, so it never gets mistaken for spendable cash.
- Booth occupancy
How many booths are rented against how many sit empty. Empty booths mean lost rent.
- Commission rate realized
What the mall actually collects against total dealer sales, so pricing the commission can be judged.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things antique mall owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
No, only your commission on those sales counts as your income. The rest is owed back to the dealers, and I keep that tracked separately.
That was money owed to dealers sitting in the account, not the mall's own income. I have been tracking that balance all along so the payout run was not a surprise.
If you pay her $2,000 or more this year for that work and she is not on payroll, yes, by January 31. I am keeping that total as we go.
The tax side
The tax side of an antique shop or mall.
Most of what goes wrong here is treating a dealer's share of a sale like it belongs to the mall.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Commission income is only the mall's cutOnly the percentage the mall keeps from a dealer sale counts as its income. The rest is money collected on behalf of the dealer and owed back out, not the mall's own revenue.
- Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll paid $2,000 or more in 2026 for front desk help or appraisal work gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when dealer payables are kept separate from mall income all year.
- Self-employment taxAn owner running the mall as a sole proprietor or single-member LLC pays 15.3 percent self-employment tax on top of income tax, up to the $184,500 Social Security wage base.
Deductions antique shops and antique malls miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Point of sale software fees
- Booth signage and pricing tags
- Building insurance
- Local antique show sponsorships
- Front desk supplies
- Card processing fees
- Business liability insurance
- Building rent and utilities
- Security system monitoring
- Cleaning and maintenance supplies
- Payout check printing costs
- Phone and internet for the mall
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
An antique mall year, kept every month.
Dealer turnover and payout runs happen all year long. Your taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list for front desk and appraisal help is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether the dealer payable balance is being tracked the way it should.
- October
Before the holiday rush
Holiday shoppers start hunting for gifts and decor. Gus looks at booth renewals before December and what the season will owe.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for antique shops and antique malls. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions antique mall owners ask first.
Does Gus track what I owe each individual dealer?
He works from your bank statement and keeps a running total of what is owed out overall, so the payable never gets mistaken for cash on hand. Dealer-by-dealer balances stay in your booth management software.
How does Gus handle booth rent versus a sales commission?
He keeps them in separate categories, since rent is steady income for the space and commission depends on what dealers actually sell, so each source of income can be judged on its own.
An estate piece has been sitting unsold for months. Is that hurting my books?
No. A consigned piece that has not sold is not the mall's own inventory loss, and Gus tracks it separately so it does not read as dead stock the mall paid for.
My dealer payout runs make my cash swing a lot every month. Is that a problem?
Not if the payable balance is tracked. Gus keeps a running total of what is owed to dealers, so a big payout run is something you saw coming, not a mystery hit to your cash.
My dealer payout records are a mess going back months. Can Gus catch up?
Yes. Send the statements you have. Gus works out what has actually been paid to dealers against what the mall itself earned, and most owners see a clear number within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
More in apparel, resale & collectibles
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Comic book & collectibles shops
- Estate sale companies
- Flea markets
- Kids consignment stores
- Liquidation & bin stores
- Plus-size & specialty fit boutiques
- Record stores
- Sports card & Pokemon card shops
- Tabletop & trading card game stores
- Thrift stores (for-profit)
- Uniform & scrubs stores
- Vintage clothing stores
- Watch dealers & watch repair
- Western wear stores
- Consignment & resale shops
- Kids clothing boutiques
- Men's clothing stores & tailors
- Shoe stores
- Sneaker resale shops
- Jewelry stores
- Women's clothing boutiques
- Art supply stores
- Baby boutiques
- BBQ & grill stores
- Candle stores
- Christian & gift bookstores
- Craft & fabric stores
- Crystal & metaphysical shops
- Farm & ranch supply stores
- Fireworks stores
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever