For many years, bargain hunters spent their weekends driving around town, searching for bright signs that said “yard sale” written in bold black marker. But one woman from London, Ont., is on a mission to make the search easier with a new app.
Kaitlin Mc Gee is the mind behind Yardly, a web application that lets users add and find garage sales throughout southwestern Ontario.
“I made Yardly because I wanted it to exist, so I made it exist,” she said.
“I was so tired of spotting great yard sales only to realize they were far away from me. Searching every address on each post takes up so much time that could be spent shopping at yard sales.”
Sellers listing a garage sale must provide the date, time, and location of their event. They can also include details like item categories such as toys or furniture and upload photos of their items.
On the other hand, shoppers can see nearby sales either listed out or displayed on a map. They can filter sales by type-like moving or estate sales-and by category.
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The Yardly app allows shoppers to see all of the yard sales in their area on one map. (Kendra Seguin/CBC)
Yardly is free to use, and listings appear on the app instantly.
So far, users have posted sales in London, Tillsonburg, Mount Brydges, Stratford, and Belmont on Yardly.
“It honestly feels amazing,” she said while expressing her hopes for even more users across southwestern Ontario and eventually nationwide.
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Mc Gee spent months sketching and planning the Yardly app which first launched in spring 2025. (Kendra Seguin/CBC)
She mentioned that online s through apps are much more accessible than traditional flyers since they allow sellers to share more detailed information about their events while enabling buyers to reach out with questions easily.
Mc Gee added that she doesn’t think apps will completely replace traditional advertising methods.
“By no means do I think the giant pink poster billboard signs are going extinct, and I never want them to. But if you want more local stuff or you’re specifically looking for yard sales, this is a great alternative,” Mc Gee stated.
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Evolving Marketing Approaches
The way people find and promote garage sales has changed quite a bit over the years according to Christina Fournier, who runs a yard sale Facebook group in London. <p“On Friday nights, my mom and I used to sit down with the newspaper looking at classified ads for yard sales,” Fournier recalled. “There’s really no good place to look anymore except driving around hoping to spot a sign.” Fournier is also starting work on her own yard sale app called Yard Sale Hopper. This app will let sellers list upcoming sales while giving shoppers tools to plan efficient routes between locations.Lending Support for Testing
Mc Gee began developing Yardly in late 2024 before releasing its first version in spring 2025. No prior experience in app development existed; she had worked in construction before becoming a stay-at-home mom several years ago. “There was really nothing else to do and this was something I wanted so I started sketching out ideas,” she shared. She utilized an AI tool called Replit for coding purposes and has gone through various phases getting Yardly into its current form today. All expenses have been paid personally by Mc Gee who’s now seeking additional financial support moving forward. “It’s lots of trial-and-error but it’s been quite challenging nonetheless.” Users can access the latest version of Yardly via mobile or desktop browsers but Mc Gee aims to release it onto Google Play soon allowing downloads directly onto phones. She’s looking for some individuals willing to test the app over two weeks before it’s officially available in stores. Afterward she envisions transforming Yardly into an all-year buy-and-sell platform where users can list individual items when cold weather makes yard selling difficult during winter months. “It’s going to be community-crafted; what do people want on Yardly? How can we create an awesome second-hand platform?”>Source link
