Dear Thrift Stores: We Love You, But Please Stop…

Oh thrift stores. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. We love thrift stores so much we dedicated an entire podcast to thrifting and sustainability. But every…

I recently purchased a pair of acorn-shaped bookends from the thrift store to list in my online shop. Like many items at secondhand stores, they were secured together with shipping tape. When I brought them home and peeled off the tape, it took the paint off too, leaving me with a damaged set of bookends. Unless I spray painted them, there was no saving them.

This sparked a discussion on my Instagram about things thrift stores do that diminish the quality of items or in cases like mine, completely damage the item.

With that in mind, one listener suggested a podcast episode dedicated to this topic. So here it is:

Things We Wish Thrift Stores Would Do Differently:

{1} Securing housewares with packing / masking tape, especially on painted surfaces

{2} Using permanent markers on items, including the soles of shoes (click here for tips on how to clean thrift store finds)

{3} Using staples to attach price tags to garments

{4} Marking up items much higher than they are actually worth

{5} Not having designated sections for shoes, but instead spreading them out throughout every aisle

{6} Creating exclusive plus size sections that aren’t fully stocked, instead of just adding the extended sizes on the same rack with the rest of the sizes

{7} Placing the price sticker on top of the brand on housewares

{8} Refusing to sell a customer an item if it’s not priced

Do any of these resonate with you? Let us know on Instagram. Follow @dinasdays @rethriftrodeucepodcast and @fatdontcrack.

Allow us to Rethriftrodeuce Ourselves is a podcast about secondhand shopping and tips hosted by two treasure-hunting friends, Dina & Shannon. 

Subscribe to the podcast. 

You May Also Like
Read More

How to Subscribe to the Podcast

If there’s one thing thrifters love more than finding treasures, it’s talking about finding treasures. Two treasure-hunting friends, Dina and Shannon host Allow Us to Rethriftrodeuce Ourselves, a podcast about…
Read More