Woman Flabbergasted At Thrift Store’s Prices, Calls Them Out By Sharing 14 Examples

Hello SS, I have no idea why you are getting downvoted. I am originally from the UK and moved to the United States for work, family, and school. I believe that some thrift shops are run by charities or religious organizations like the Salvation Army, however, it is no way near as prevalent. Most thrift stores in the United States appear to run on donations from the public and hire people to work there.

Capitalism aka the love of money has RUINED EVERYTHING in the United States.

A lot are. I always donate my good unwanted stuff to a thrift store that funds a no-kill animal shelter. And they have decently priced stuff, but they are a lot smaller than the Goodwill or Salvation Army.

Value Village is in Canada. The American branch of the company is called Savers. They were sued in the US for making false claims about their charitable giving and lost. This resulted in massive store closings.

Used to be but Google how much Goodwills ceo made last year. It has become a capitalism entity that hides behind non profit protections while only sharing the wealth to those higher up in the food chain

Originally, Goodwill was a place to donate so that homeless persons could work and sell to other down and out people. It has since become a for profit institution that still relies on the history of what it was to get free stuff but is actually as far from it's origin as one can get. As there are many that have seen down and out people turned away due to the prices and I've yet to see a homeless person even. be considered for employment

We have charitable shops here as in the UK, but the big stores are all corporate, and stores like Goodwill have CEOs who make vast sums of money, but often pay employees a pittance in comparison. To many, it seems like a racket. Small thrift stores operated by churches, animal shelters, Adult Care homes and the like are staffed by volunteers and keep their prices in check.

They are. But large chains that barely legally qualify as non-profit have dominated the market. Goodwill's thing is thay they help with employment services. Originally they employed disabled people, but then it got out that they were paying them less then minimum wage because they couldnt work as fast as able bodied people.

They are supposed to be but you see, even though those volunteers aren't getting paid, management does get paid. Overall, most of the so called charitable places put less then 10°% of what they take in to a real charity or to the community. Thank you corrupt government and politicians.

Many are private. They purchase donated items BY THE PALLET at auctions and estate sales for LESS THAN PENNIES ON THE DOLLAR. AN ENTIRE PALLET full of mostly newish kitchen small appliances can go for $10 or less at a weekday auction. And the real kicker? THEY BUY THIS STUFF FROM "charities" like Disabled American Vets, DAV), United Way, Red Cross, etc. All those charities you love to donate your new clothes that you never wore but no longer fit, or nice appliances you thought you'd use but never did, and you donated them thinking they would do someone a lot of good? Those are getting sold for less than pennies, because it's all sold BY THE PALLET. I have a good friend who owns a thrift store and he and his wife DON'T gouge. They NET about $10-15 million a YEAR with one largish thrift store. It's insane.

Charity stores in Sweden pay people to work there as a part of "job training ." The stores still charge more than retail for basic Ik6stuff.

Thrift stores yes. Value village nope. Its a for profit store. They do hire the disabled but pay next to nothing

US translates into "it's all about the money" conscience has nothing to do with it

She was talking about Canadian Value Village not American 😊

Value Village and Goodwill are for Profit in USA.

Many thrift stores in the US buy items donated to churches and other charity places that received the donations but don't want to sell them themselves, so they sell in bulk to these stores. I once saw a gallon glass jar I recognized with no price on it. I asked someone how much it was for sale. They responded $3.99. I had just bought the same jar at my local supermarket the week before for $3.99 - but my jar was full of pickles!

My understanding from the website is that Savers stores in USA donate part of the sales to charity. They are not ran by any charity.

Not all…. Hospice is for charity to help families and those that need hospice services. We are all volunteers and our prices are never that high… I’m shocked

Value Village is Canadian. I would never shop there as they sell overpriced junk. We have dollar stores that are a lot cheaper. You can buy brand new stuff for less.

It seems to depend on what organization runs the shop. In my area, those run by rescue missions are where you can get a shirt for $3 and such. Goodwill has become useless.

I have noticed that a local Charity shop here in Massachusetts have a new feature, an enclosed glass case for 'Designer Items' such as shoes, handbags, etc. I find it amusingvthat half the time the items they feature in this case are not genuine items, but obvious knock-offs.. However, l did find a great buy there recently... They missed out big time...l found a lovely Max Mara cashmere coat for $10.00.. Anyway, l doubt it would have fit into their 'glass showcase".. Too funny. !!!!

Value Village is in Canada. Like most places, in Canada we have a mix of charity and for-profit thrift stores. For-profit stores are generally higher priced and more picky with the items they accept (and may pay you a small amount for the items they accept), charity stores are usually cheaper with more random items. Value Village definitely deserves a boycott, they advertise themselves as being a charitable organization but donate very little of the insane prices they charge. Last time I went into one I saw many items marked ABOVE the "New" price, particularly in household items like water glasses. Probably other sections as well, I just have a better idea of what those items cost new.

Many are, but not all. There are a lot of private owned thrift shops that get their items cheap at swap meets, flea markets, estate sales, p**n auctions, etc, then mark them way up in their stores. Thrifting used to be great but it’s caught the eye of exploitative capitalism, unfortunately.

Some are charities and some are not, but it is no indication of whether the prices are high. They can be high or low at both types.

They are for profit in USA . The Value Village and Goodwill are.

This post is not about the US, it's about Canada. Just saying.

We have all kinds of thrift stores in the US. Where I live, the vast majority are run by charities, but there are a few that seem to be "for profit' enterprises. I have found that the most likely to be pure charity operations are smaller, and usually run by a church or by a focused charity...like Heart Association or Humane Society. They seek donations and use volunteers. Goodwill Industries are locally owned and operated, and there have long been allegations of workers being paid less than minimum wage, while owners receive high seven figure salaries. I think with just a little research it's possible to find a really responsible charity here in the US. That said, I called one of the charities I have used for years, and told they wouldn't come out and pick up furniture, as they were overflowing because of the pandemic... both because people were decluttering in their downtime, and because people lost housing and had to move.

No...Charity shops in the U.K. are run differently.. When l go home on holiday...my Mam and l often shop at the local shop where prices are very reasonable compared to the shops here in America.

US translates to "its all about the money"

Yeah I think it's different here. My husband worked for Goodwill and they hired people.

No,staff is paid ,contributions are made.

This is in Vancouver, Canada. Canada isnt much different from the states, so I understand your confusion

They aren't staffed by volunteers. Why should they be?