Goodwill is the biggest and most popular second-hand store in the United States. Moneytalksnews even described it as a “mecca for secondhand shoppers.” I have been shopping at Goodwill for my entire life, even as I enjoy purchasing secondhand clothes and items, it wasn’t always an option for me, nor has it been for everyone else.
Some people go to thrift stores for fun, some to make a profit, and some because they need to. Shopping second-hand has become a norm for me since I have been doing it for so long. Whenever I go to Goodwill or any thrift store, my first stop is always the clothes. I love shopping second-hand simply because of the unique items that you can find that you probably couldn’t find at places like the mall and outlet stores, while also being cheaper. My next destination would be the array of knick-knacks and houseware. This spot contains dishware, toys, collectibles, and electronics.
Goodwill has been providing people with discounted lightly used clothing and items since 1902 and has recently been undergoing scrutiny due to their increased prices. Some blame this on inflation and the increased cost to keep the company running, but there are other factors that have a major impact on Goodwill’s higher prices. Goodwill has had a splurge of popularity entering the new decade. Thrifting hauls surfaced on people’s TikTok For You Page and have changed the long-term stigma around second-hand shopping into a fun and preppy activity. Along with Tiktokers, resellers have also settled into thrift stores such as Goodwill and Salvation Army to earn them a profit and keep their businesses afloat. These resellers comb through the racks in search of designer and trendy pieces to upload onto their shops and sell for a profit. While some of these listings can be completely ludicrous and shocking, they have seen big profit margins. Loyal Goodwill customers have painted these resellers’ hands red and blame them for the sudden price rise.
It is crucial to understand how Goodwill obtains their products and inventory to see why these increased prices are absurd. Donating things like old baby clothes, creepy dolls, furniture, and the hoodie your ex-boyfriend forgot to take back is open to everyone. You even get a small tax write-off when you donate as well.
Goodwill gets all these things for free, meaning all their income is profit (subtracting paid employees, store maintenance, and the charitable programs they support). Because of this, the billion-dollar company is being accused of greediness. Consumers claim that Goodwill is jacking up their prices because they have seen resellers making massive profits off of their stores and have decided that they want more bang for their buck. Customers are even claiming to find items in Goodwill listed for more than they would pay for them in other retail stores. Similar to resellers, Goodwill also picks through the items they receive and uploads the ones deemed of a higher quality onto their website and sells them for a higher sort of reasonable price rather than leaving them to be discounted and found by someone else.
Patrice Williams interviewed the New Jersey and New York branches of Goodwill to put their two cents into the accusations being held against them in her blog Looking Fly on a Dime. In the interview, Goodwill’s representatives justify their prices by reminding the public that 92 cents of every dollar spent at Goodwill goes to charities and helps make jobs for people who need them. This, however, doesn’t explain why their prices are going up. Goodwill also allows its employees to price their products which has brought some criticism and has shown inaccurate pricings and mistakes. An example of this can be seen on The Daily Dot where two identical shirts have an 8-dollar price difference at a Goodwill location.
It is upsetting to see Goodwill inflating their prices due to the reselling market because a lot of families rely on stores like Goodwill for affordable clothes and household items, with mine being one of them. Resellers, however, are not the problem. These companies cannot avoid the resale of their products and their choice is to raise their prices to profit off of this growing trend. This puts regular people such as myself and many others at a disadvantage because they’re not shopping at thrift stores for a living, they’re shopping at them because it’s their best option.
I have also noticed a change in the energy at Goodwill stores, from a comforting and warm environment where sustainability and opportunity are offered, to a competitive and fast-paced retail store. As a loyal customer for years, these changes have negatively affected my experience thrifting as things are not as affordable as they used to be. Goodwill’s mission as a company is to offer employment, education, and health services to help families and individuals become economically self-sufficient. Based on their name, we can only hope they stick to their proposition and focus on providing aid to the community rather than seeing them as dollar signs.
