Celebrate National Thrift Shop Day on August 17 2022

Donating your unwanted items to a local thrift store is one way to participate in National Thrift Shop Day.

Celebrated each year on August 17, National Thrift Shop Day is all about supporting local thrift shops and raising awareness for charitable organizations. There are many benefits to shopping at thrift stores year-round, including reducing waste, saving money, and supporting your local community.

How National Thrift Shop Day Started

While the exact start of National Thrift Shop Day is unknown, thrifting has been around for hundreds of years. A thrift shop or thrift store goes by many different names, including consignment store, charity shop, second-hand store, resale shop, and hospice shop. No matter what you call this type of store, it's a retail establishment that sells used items. Typically, charitable organizations run the stores to raise money for a specific charitable purpose. Since most items are donated, the sale prices are typically much lower than in traditional retail stores.

6 Thrift Shopping Tips (for National Thrift Shop Day or any day) 

Here are our top six tips to help you make the most of thrifting, whether it's on National Thrift Shop Day, or another time of the year.

1. Inspect Everything

   If you’re shopping for appliances, always ask to plug them in before committing to buy. If you’re purchasing CDs, records, or DVDs, open up the cases to make sure nothing is damaged and that what you think you are buying is actually in there! No one wants to get home only to discover that you’d just paid for a cardboard sleeve and that record you were looking forward to is nowhere in sight. When purchasing used clothing, give the garment a thorough once-over – check for stains, rips, missing buttons, or broken zippers.

2. Know Their Schedule

   Many thrift stores will run different promotions on different days – for instance, all items with a blue tag are 50% off on Wednesdays. Find out when the best discounts are to maximize your savings. Also, find out the shop’s donation schedule to determine the best shopping days. Many larger thrift store chains will add to their inventory on a daily basis, but some smaller stores may only accept donations on certain days of the week, which means the best time to shop is a day or two after, allowing the store time to restock the shelves with the newest donations.

3. Try It On

   One of the biggest problems with thrifting is that most clothing on the racks only comes in one size and color. Since many stores don’t offer refunds, it’s important to try everything on before you purchase it. If the store doesn’t have dressing rooms, wear form-fitting clothing to make it easier to try on the garment over whatever you’re already wearing.

4. Look For Potential

   Thrift store finds won’t always be exactly what you’re looking for, but being able to visualize an item’s potential after a quick cleaning or a new coat of paint will make a huge difference.
   One great thrill of shopping for clothes at thrift stores is discovering something you never knew you wanted until you saw it hanging there on the rack, calling out to you. Unfortunately, that perfect suit or new dress might not be exactly your size. If you’re handy enough with a sewing machine, then you might be able to get away with purchasing damaged goods at a fraction of the price. And with a little work, you’ll be left with something good as new! Even with few alterations, a thrifty purchase is often cheaper than buying the item new.

5. Don’t Get Carried Away

   Just because something is cheap, doesn’t mean you need it. Have a purpose in mind when going to a thrift store to keep you from losing your mind and coming home with tons of other people’s junk that is just going to further clutter your home. Don’t buy something because you might need it later, only purchase what you have a clear need for right now.

6. Give Back

   

   The Junkluggers make it easy to donate your items with donation pickup and drop-off services!

   Most thrift stores exist to sell discounted items to support a cause such as helping individuals with disabilities, veterans, animal shelters, and more. Do a little research on your local thrift store to find out what causes your purchases will be supporting to make sure their values align with yours. And always remember that local donation centers are constantly looking for more donations. Take back some space in your home by emptying out your closets and donating household items you no longer use to a good cause.

   If you have more to donate than you can fit in the back of your car, give us a call and we’ll be happy to donate those items on your behalf, providing you with a
   tax-deductible receipt for any items donated.

   Donations play a huge part in our eco-friendly mission to protect the planet one piece of junk at a time. When you call The Junkluggers to remove used furniture, old clothing, appliances, or more from your home, you are not only helping to keep those items out of the landfill, you are also helping your local community. We do our best to donate or recycle as much of what we lug away as possible, passing on the savings to you in the form of a tax-deductible receipt and passing your items along to those who need it the most right in your very own community.

If you’re looking for ways to give back, check out our List of Charity Partners. To donate your unwanted items,
book an appointment now with your local Junkluggers.