Since my financial situation has changed, I’ve been frequenting thrift stores. As a newbie, I’ve noticed a few things:
- Every thrift store has a different pricing structure. Some thrift stores charged higher prices than others. Each store will price things like books and clothes differently. Just because you bought a pot for $2 at one store, doesn’t mean that you’ll find it for that same price at others.
- Things are not necessarily cheaper at a thrift store. I ran into a few high prices where I could almost get the same item brand new for the same price.
- Some stores have a dressing room, some do not.
- Some stores do not accept credit cards. I found the large chains like Arc and Goodwill do accept credit cards while some of the smaller stores did not. I would say that a majority do accept cards. Just prepared for that one or two that do not.
- Items are color coded and on certain days of the week, a certain color may be half off.
- In stores where the price is not listed on the item (like books), double check what your cashier charges you. I had some childrens books that were supposed to be $.50 each, but the cashier charged me the adult book price of $1.00. I didn’t catch it in time.
- You can find some really good cheap treasures if you are there at the right time. It’s amazing what people give away!