Posted by This is a tiny rant for my local Goodwill thrift store because I feel like they could be doing better for their in-person customers. (Please note I am not disparaging the hard-working employees, but the management decisions.)
First, I know my small local Goodwill store gets loads of donations because in the short time I am in the store (and when I’m just passing by) I see car after car unload boxes and bags. And they always have a huge trailer in the parking lot for the excess. So why are some of the shelves routinely half empty?
Second, why is there so little jewelry in the case now? Is it all going online?
Third, why price average items so high that no one will buy them and then have to pay employees to go around later to remove this “dead” stock from the shelves? Price those generic Crate & Barrel wine glasses at $1.50 each and be done with them.
Fourth, frankly some things should never hit the shelves. Toss the egregiously corroded silverplate trays, ratty blankets, used candles and wonky child’s crafts.
Fifth, why not have more 50% off sales, instead of just for Halloween and Christmas decorations after the holiday? In fact why not put those on 50% off the week before the holiday as a way to clear the decks? Afterward the holiday is past I can tell you the stuff just sits there untouched until you finally decide to give it the heave ho a week later.
Sixth, and for Pete’s sake, give books flat-rate prices ($1 for paperbacks, $2 for hardbacks), instead of this convoluted system of prices based on the original price of the book.
Rant over. For now!
Needless to say it’s been slim pickings for me at this store. Here are a few of the things I’ve turned down the last few days…
I am no longer buying these common made-in-India brass vases, but as there were two of them I decided to look them over. Discovered each was priced at a jaw-dropping $12.50! (Gosh $25 for the pair.) I had no trouble leaving these behind. (Honestly I thought they’d be $5 at most.)
I’ve sold Portmeirion in the Pomona pattern before, but this lidded casserole was $17.50. (I did not check its condition.) It was possibly worth picking up but Replacements.com had theirs at $70 and usually I try to price mine lower. In the end it was not something I wanted to tackle shipping for a $30 to $35 profit.
These fancy ceramic molds were obviously someone’s beloved collection. A Google Lens search described them as Franklin Mint collectible pieces, circa 1980s. But I wasn’t tempted. These are not the kind of thing I want to sell in my store. Nothing about them appeals to me. So I left them behind for someone else to snag. (They were priced at $6 and change.)
I was attracted to this shelf of Franciscan Madeira earthenware. But most of the bundles of four plates were priced between $6 and $8+ and realistically they don’t resell for much and again were heavy and not worth the effort to ship.
To be perfectly frank, this August I haven’t bought much inventory for my Etsy store. Either the thrift store prices have been too high or the item was not the right fit. I have been slightly discouraged, but truth be told I have not made the effort to hit up estate sales again or find a replacement for our little local flea market, now permanently closed. So that’s my bad.
Mostly this month I bought books. And that’s okay. I love books. Today at my library book sale room I found this stunning coffee table book filled with 350 photos of tulips! Just the one book. Not a haul, but I am pleased.
The last few days I did buy a few things for myself on Ebay. Surprising things really.
Here’s the story–several years back I had bought vintage chandelier crystals which for a time I displayed in a wood bowl in our house around Christmas. Eventually I sold them and I discovered I missed them. There is something about crystal which appeals to me. Maybe because it evokes quality and glamour and hints to a different kind of life. Honestly I don’t fully understand it, but a couple of days ago I went online to see if I could find some crystals that weren’t too expensive that could work on both my Christmas tree as ornaments and in a bowl. In the end I bought a lot of 56 dangly drops and a lot of 15 faceted balls that were possibly Swarovski according to the original owner but not guaranteed by the seller.
I expect I might sell of some of the lot of 56 as I likely won’t use all those. Still I look forward to receiving them in the mail and decorating with them later this year. But I realize, as always, if I change my mind, I can resell them and at least recoup my cost.
I’ll close for now wishing you happy hunting.
Karen
Hunting for Vintage 