(Myles Morgan Photography)

Hey Thriftanistas!

Years ago, people deemed shopping at thrift stores for the less fortunate.  Nowadays, due to their low prices people of all socioeconomic status shop them.  Due to its popularity, I think thrift stores will see an increase in revenue if they made some minor improvements to stay up-to-date.  Check out my 8 ways thrift stores can become better in 2018…

 

(J.Crew Jumpsuit available here)

Model stores after retail stores.

Bad lighting. Moth ball smells.  Out of season clothing.  Hard to maneuver aisles.  It would be nice to see thrift stores emulate department stores.

Hire Influencers.

The days of hiring a celebrity to endorse products are so 90’s.  Thrift stores cannot afford to ignore the importance of hiring brand ambassadors to promote the their products on social media.  A lot of Fortune 500 companies have adopted this method which offers a low cost for advertising and high reward in profit.

Collaborate with more brands.

We all know Goodwill receives a lot of merchandise from Target.  However, I would like to see more goods from Nordstrom, Zara, and J.Crew.

Remove the music.

Is it me or does thrift store music seem extremely loud?  As a YouTuber, the music makes it extremely difficult to record a video due to copyright issues.  If the employees enjoy the music, position it around the registers but don’t blare it over the whole store.

Add more dressing rooms.

A lot of the thrift stores in Huntsville have eliminated dressing rooms due to the constant urination of consumers.  While it eliminates a sanitary issue for the employees, I don’t enjoy putting on clothes over what I’m wearing.

Add more events.

Make the shopping experience more enjoyable.  Offer theme events outside of a regular 50% off sale.  For example, thrift happy hour or clothing bag sales.

Offer Cash Refunds.

A lot of the thrift stores have opted to use a store credit instead of offering a refund in the form of payment you used.  This is extremely frustrating because I have misplaced that certificate too many times to count.

Keep the pricing reasonable.

I am completely disgusted when I see items over-priced at a thrift store.  As an entrepreneur, I understand you can’t give products away but there is a fine balance.  I’ve witnessed where thrift stores have reduced the price by $5 on items brand new with tags.  I think a good rule of thumb is to price new with tag items for 75% – 90% of original asking price.

That’s all I have folks!  What do you think?  How can thrift stores improve?  If you are a Thriftanista join the movement!  My Thriftanista T-Shirt is on sale now get yours here!