Four Ways to Get More Bang for Your Buck at Thrift stores
By: Rigel Smith
Tags: Frugal, Save Money, Hacks, Money, Thrift Shops

Photo by Artificial Photography on Unsplash

I’ve always been a diligent thrift shopper. I’ve been experiencing the joys of Value Village from a very young age, often spending many hours and far too much money — yes, even though the items are already discounted. But as much as I love it, with inflation increases and the rise of the almighty thrifting trend, I’ve seen prices rise.

What used to be a $3.99 shirt at VV is now often $7.99. Plus, they’ve gotten more stingy about their return and exchange policy, now only offering an exchange within 7 days, and if you were looking for a return policy, you’re out of luck.

Cue the need for a solution.

Throughout my years as a thrift store savant, I’ve come up with four solutions that not only brings those prices back down to earth, but go ever further to uncover deep discounts on items.

*Note, these penny hunting hacks go far beyond Value Village, it just so happens I do most of my thrift shopping there*

Here are the four big penny hunting hacks that work for me:

Beat down the door on sale days Ask for further reductions The “love it or lose it” rule Donate for future discounts

Sale days

I’ve found that sale days are, without a doubt, the best way to save when thrifting — but it doesn’t take a genius to figure that out. Some thrift stores, like Value Village, have rewards programs that send out reminders about upcoming sales and even give members early access (often opening up the sale to members the day before it goes public). If your preferred thrift store doesn’t have this option, there’s no harm in phoning and getting the deets on any upcoming sale events.

In my experience, Value Village often has 50% off sale days that are fairly widespread across the store. However, they don’t often include my favourite thrifting category: household items. But, where there’s a will, there’s a way (see step two)!

Ask for further reductions

I think I speak for many of us when I say, I hate when the item I love has a defect — and I find this most often plagues my favourite, the household section, go figure.

By my — definitely not very scientific — estimation, people donate household items for one of two reasons: they’re tacky and outdated, or they’re broken. Of course, there’s not much you can do about the former except avoid those items, but the latter has a better option: ask for a reduction on a damaged item.

This one penny hunting hack has never failed me.

I’ve seen reductions anywhere from 15–30 per cent just for pointing out the defect and asking for the price to be reconsidered! It may be a tad embarrassing to ask for a deal on an item that’s already pretty cheap, but I think it’s worth it.

Love it or lose it

This is a rule I use constantly, but I’ve recently brought into my thrift shopping repertoire. It’s very simple:

If you don’t love the item, don’t buy it.

I’ve been working diligently to minimize the amount of stuff that I own over the last few years. One key element of that process is to quit the, “Yeah, I kind of like this” routine where I purchase the item because it “isn’t awful,” wear it or use it once or maybe twice, and then a little while down the line, return it to whence it came (a.k.a. the thrift store).

I found myself constantly dodging items in my wardrobe tiresome and unnecessary. It took a lot of time out of my day and really, in hindsight, it was silly of me to allow things I didn’t love to take up space in my home. Of course, I’m still working towards loving everything that I own, but it’s a long process and this simple rule is a great way to start.

So here’s how it usually plays out

If I’m seriously considering an item, I always pick it up and walk around with it. The last thing I want (and trust me, this happens all the time) is to decide I definitely do want that cat statue, but by the time I walk over to pick it up, someone else walks past with it in their cart. BUZZ KILL.

If it’s a clothing item, I always try it on. It may seem like a hassle to some, but it has saved me from buying so many “meh” items. Then when I have the piece on and look in the mirror, I ask myself, “Will I actually wear this?”

Let me tell you, more often than not, the answer is “no.”

So back on the shelf it goes.

Another method I use is to challenge myself to think of one scenario in which this new article of clothing is you best outfit for that occasion. I’m not talking the, “it wouldn’t be too bad for a day around the house,” but instead the “I’m always going to reach for this piece in my closet for job interviews/a day at the beach/a lunch date/etc.”

It can be tough sometimes, but I’ve never been disappointed about not buying something when I use this rule.

If it’s a household piece, like I mentioned before, I always wander around the store with it in hand. Sometimes I end up finding something better and sometimes I realize I don’t actually want it.

If I’m still considering an item near the end of my shopping trip, I ask myself, “Where will I put this? What will I do with it?”

If I have a plan for it, I usually end the personal questioning routine and take it up to the check out. But, if I can’t think of a use for it, it’s usually a sign that it wouldn’t serve a purpose, so it’s probably not worth my time, money, and space.

There are definitely some exceptions to this (because who doesn’t love to buy stuff sometimes “just because”) but for the most part, I try to stick to this rule.

Donate for future discounts

The last tip is to donate. It’s an easy way to help the planet without dealing with the stresses of trying to sell things on Kijiji (an art I have yet to master). Now, this may not apply to all thrift stores, but Value Village will offer in-store discounts on future purchases based on the number of bags of items you donate. They seem to be constantly changing their formula for this, but they typically offer anywhere from 5%-30% off just for donating your unused items!

Here’s how my latest thrifting trip at Value Village went using these penny hunting hacks.

So to start things off, I used tip #4 and donated a few items I had sitting around taking up space. In exchange for only one bag of donations, I received a 20% off coupon, a coupon for $5 off books, and an opportunity to get $2 off my next purchase by filling out a satisfaction survey.

What?!

All that just for handing over a couple of items I never used? I’d call that a success!

Next, I did a little shopping.

I had two things on my list for this trip: a tote bag and some new sneakers.

Once I got inside, I went straight to the bags. The selection was small, but there was one bag I saw and considered for a while. It had a good price ($9.99 CAD), looked to be in good shape, and it was from a brand I recognized, Call it Spring. In the end though, I used hack #3, “love it or lose it”, and decided I didn’t love it. The colour was too metallic for my tastes, and while I did recognize the brand, it isn’t one I equate with high quality products, so I chose to pass on it.

In the next aisle over though, I found a goldmine. A pair of gently used Joseph Sibel European walking shoes. They were slightly dirty, but nothing an old toothbrush and some soap couldn’t fix. The price was reasonable for them as well, only $15 CAD for shoes that cost about $130 CAD brand new.

Now, even with all that, I brought hack #3 into play again to make sure I wasn’t just jumping at them because they were a good deal. One of my favourite things to do when buying shoes is to put them on and wear them while I continue to shop. I find that often, even if a shoe fits when you try it on, it isn’t actually comfortable to wear when actually walking around. Luckily, these passed the “walk around” test and I decided I had better buy them.

As a final mental note, I considered if I already had something similar at home. In this case, I actually had two pairs of little sneakers already, but they had worn out. So with this new purchase, I was able to retire two pairs and thus save space in my closet.

I hope these four thrifting tricks help you on your next thrifting adventure, let me know how you fared!

Happy hunting, everyone!