Riverina Pickers has been increasingly in demand due to the restrictions preventing garage sales and people having more time at home to do some spring cleaning.

Owners Ben O'Keefe and his wife Claire, who buy antiques and collectables, have been swamped with requests to help Wagga residents make space to adapt to working from home.

Although a cash injection has never been more important, it's more than just a cash grab that has inspired locals to part with many items, according to Mrs O'Keefe, who said lockdown had given people a great opportunity to declutter.

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"It's not all about people trying to get money for their items, that's an afterthought as many realise they have items taking up space and they want to find a better use for that space for new things like a gym or an office when working from home now," she said.

"They can't sell it in a garage sale at the moment and we are an option for them to get rid of it.

"People put off decluttering but they're having more time on their hands during lockdown and having that time allows them to clear space - I've done it myself.

"These changing times help people reassess many things, including where they want to live, how they want to live their lives, so a clear out now makes things much easier when the time comes to move."

Mrs O'Keefe said the most common reason people called for their services was to sell goods they had planned to pass on to their children or grandchildren.

"They store things and save them for later and realise they have a lot of stuff that they've kept for when the kids grow up but the kids don't want it," Mrs O'Keefe said.

"The thing that stands out the most is that the kids want their own identity.

"For the older generation, many have crystal glass collections and dinner sets in cabinets they think they'll pass on but it's not practical any more.

"These things that parents used to collect are not really usable any more and not practical, they're of value to collectors but not for daily use and Gen X or the millennials are quite minimal in the way they live."

Similar in their business attitude to the American Pickers, which became a television hit, the O'Keefe's sometimes stumble on rare items which are of sentimental value and endeavour to return them to the seller.

"Pickers has become a trade name like a plumber and most people are familiar with the show American Pickers and many can identify with that," Mrs O'Keefe said.

"People often keep things that are special and regret selling some things.

"For example we had a woman who sold us a box of trinkets she got from a relative and inside it we found a Mother's Badge with three stars.

"The more stars on the badge means that they had more sons killed in the war - this was from World War I, so she had lost three sons during World War I and we showed it to the lady and gave it back to her.

"She was so grateful as she didn't know and it should've been something she kept."

Anyone wishing to declutter their homes, or downsize, or move, can access many helpful tips at riverinapickers.com.au

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