If you’ve never been, thrift store shopping can seem intimidating.
“They just don’t feel super organized…
I got really overwhelmed really quickly.”
And doing so can help you learnways to look classy on a budget.
She’s not wrong.
This is the dirty truth about your favorite secondhand shops.
As it happens, many thrift stores are for-profit.
If you’re looking to support your community, it pays to pay attention.
“[For-profit companies'] primary responsibilities are to their shareholders.”
Nevertheless, some for-profit thrift stores donate to charity.
This means there’s a lot of variables in how nonprofits can use the rest of their revenue.
Additionally, 11 percent is set aside for administration costs and a small percent is for fundraising.
Oh, and a membership to a country club.
Additionally, 13 other executives and managers received yearly salaries of over $100,000 that same year.
ConsideringGoodwillis a $6.1 billion industry, you may reason that they simply pay their employees well.
Apparently, this does not apply toallemployees.
Thankfully for customers, most of these are caught before making it out onto the floor.
Of course, this still royally sucks for the employees.
As such, they recommend you take carenotto donate anything of the nasty variety.
It means we can lose out on donations."
It may go without saying, but thrift stores also don’t want to be burdened with hazardous materials.
However, this isn’t exactly foolproof.
Other times, though, you may not even realize when something for sale poses a health hazard.
“Breaking these rules can result in costly fines or lawsuits.”
He continued, saying, “Most importantly, these rules protect our shoppers.
Safety is our number one priority.”
This is true of other thrift stores as well.
Nevertheless, recalled items do have a way of winding up on thrift store shelves from time to time.
However, there are plenty of risks lurking in many aisles of your favorite thrift shop.
These items varied from ice cream scoops to necklaces to window shutters.
If you plan to buy vintage items from your thrift store, you shouldn’t assume they’re safe.
Consumer advocate and founder ofDime Will Tell, Dustyn Ferguson recommends “always [testing] for lead.”
According to Morrell, who also worked at Goodwill, the large nonprofit works a bit differently.
“They have huge garbage bills every month, into the millions,” Morrell said of Goodwill.
Kathy Walsh, a spokesperson for Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles (S.M.A.R.T.)
However, the majority 45 percent of the clothing that ends up at S.M.A.R.T.
is either re-sold within the United States' clothing industry or shipped overseas.
“It’s funky!”
The remaining scents were various compounds of perfume, food, gasoline, and other everyday contaminants.
However, dry-cleaning isn’t always going to solve the problem.
Just stick with what makes you comfortable."
Trying on clothing at a thrift store may give you the heebie-jeebies and quite rightfully so.
Hmm, it’s no wonder they hold on to their scent.
