Looking for the best tips or ideas on thrifting? Trying to live more frugal? If you’re not thrift shopping then you haven’t tried the ultimate savings hack! We’ve got the thrifting hacks to save you EVEN MORE MONEY and get the best selection at places like Goodwill and Value Village. If you re-sell on Poshmark or Ebay (or just want to save EVEN MORE while thrifting) you NEED to read this!
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I’ve been shopping at thrift stores my whole life. As a child it was more of a necessity given our financial status. As an adult I really enjoy the thrill of the hunt and saving 80-90% off of retail prices! Let me give you just a few a few examples of some amazing buys I’ve made in the past year:
Women’s North Face Thermoball Jacket $24.99
Checkerboard Vans Slip-on Shoes $7.99
Frye Melissa Button Riding Boot $9.99
Hunter Tall Rain Boot High Gloss $14.99
As you can see…thrifting can really save you on some of the highest quality wardrobe staples! Unfortunately, I’m not the only one to have noticed. In the last five to ten years I’ve seen a surge in the popularity of thrifting thanks to the upcycling & re-selling movement. Sadly, I’ve also seen a surge in prices.
My closest thrift store is Goodwill and I find about 80% of my clothes there in new or like new condition. I remember the days when you could find a blouse or a pair of slacks for a couple of bucks. Those days are long gone.
As a self proclaimed professional thrifter I can tell you there are a few tips and secrets to paying rock bottom prices for your new or vintage clothing finds. The same principals apply to Value Village as well (they have very similar pricing principals).
If you want to pay the LOWEST prices and get the BEST selection on name brand, designer clothing….read on my friend:
{Tip 1} The Best Selection for Thrifting ANYTHING is the “Good Weather” Months
Keep in mind that there is a busy season for Goodwill and that is when the weather is good. During the good weather months folks are moving, cleaning out the garage, purging grandma’s house etc. Goodwill employees tell me time and again that the good weather months are the busy times of year. They also say that they struggle to have enough merchandise on the shelves during the cold weather months. So the best selection and highest volume will come during the summer/good weather months. I’ve noticed this myself and I just don’t do as much thrifting during the winter months.
{Tip 2} The BEST Thrifting Days with the Best Selection are Wednesday-Friday
Saturday and Sunday are the busiest days for Thrifting shoppers and Goodwill donations. While Goodwill is constantly pricing and stocking….there is a flood of donations that come in over the weekend while people are off from work. Monday and Tuesday are usually the days where the store can catch up and push that merchandise out onto the floor. I only shop Wednesday-Friday to take advantage of the best selection. Note: Large pieces of furniture are usually priced immediately and put out onto the floor to make room in the pricing area (so this tip doesn’t really apply for Goodwill furniture shoppers).
{Tip 3} The Best Time of Day for Thrifting is Before 3pm
So we’ve established that the best days for thrifting are Wednesday-Friday…but when is the best time of day? In order to get the best selection I suggest that you complete your shopping before the vast majority of consumers get off of work and head to Goodwill in the evening. I like to complete my shopping before 3pm.
{Tip 3} The Manager has Pricing Power
This is an important thrifting tip to keep in mind while you’re perusing the aisles! Let’s say that you find two nearly identical sweaters…one is blue and one is green. They are the same brand and same condition but for some reason there are two different prices. You prefer the blue sweater but it’s priced at $9.99…whereas the identical green sweater is priced at $4.99. If you take both sweaters to the manager on duty you can most likely get a price reduction AND take home that blue sweater for $4.99. In addition, if you see an item that is damaged (but maybe repairable by you) you can ask for an additional discount from the manager.
{Tip 4} Thrift Stores/Goodwill Sell Women’s Clothing for Twice as Much as Men’s
Sad but true fact: If you’re a man this is good news….for us lady-folk it’s a real injustice. Without a doubt, the typical Goodwill customer is female and Goodwill knows that. On any given day I would say that the store is 80% female shoppers. This is a great advantage for male shoppers
{Tip 5} Find the “Upscale” Thrift Store/Goodwill in Your Area
If you live near a large metropolitan area I highly recommend that you start thrifting at the Goodwills located in the best neighborhoods. I live about an hour north of Seattle which provides access to some of the nicest Goodwill locations I’ve ever shopped. I love to shop the Goodwill locations in the best neighborhoods because I find the latest designer clothing and accessories (in most cases tags are still attached). If you are a re-seller on Poshmark or Ebay…THIS is where you can easily find brand name clothing in new condition (in volume I might add). Bottom line: nicer neighborhoods yield nicer merchandise.
{Tip 6} My #1 Money Savings Secret to Thrifting/Goodwill? BUY OFF-SEASON.
That means when it’s winter you need to be shopping for summer clothes and when it is summer you need to be shopping for winter clothes. It’s a little known fact that Goodwill increases their prices by 100% when a clothing item comes in season (so does Value Village). No I didn’t accidentally add a zero there. So a sweater that would be priced at $4.99 during the summer would be priced at $9.99 during the winter when it is “in season”.
My advice here is to start your thrifting a little before the “prime” season starts. As an example…if you want to add to your summer wardrobe, you need to start shopping in February. If you’re looking for winter clothes then you should start start shopping in August. Another advantage of shopping this way is that you will have a HUGE selection of items because nobody is looking for summer clothes in February OR winter clothes in August. The summer clothes (in this example) will be coming in all winter long and priced at “off-season” prices (essentially half off). The winter clothes will be coming in all summer long and priced at “off-season” prices.
If you’re wondering when the pricing transition happens it’s easy to tell. Employees move the prime season’s clothing to the front of the store and start pricing 100% higher at that time. So lets say it’s September and all the sweaters and winter coats are being moved to the front of the store…you can be assured the prices are going up on sweaters and winter coats that are coming in from that point on.
If you want to see ALL the things I save on at thrift stores (not just clothing) be sure to check out my post on the 13 Things I Buy at Thrift Stores That Save Me Thousands Every Year.
I hope these thrifting hacks help you save even more money! Do you have any thrifting secrets to share? Leave me a comment! And don’t forget to pin this post for later!
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A glue gun in one hand, a whisk in the other- that's me in a nutshell! I'm the heart and soul behind acountrygirlslife.com. I've been crafty since childhood so I'm your go-to girl for everything crafty, delicious, and DIY. From clever crafts & printables to mouth-watering bakes- I believe in sprinkling a little handmade magic into every day. I'll help you find your creative niche at home!
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