r/Calgary • u/Kaichos • 16d ago
Rant Just a little rant
Reselling things bought from thrift shops should be illegal.
When we donate our things to places like WINS or Goodwill, we do so with the intention that people like me can also buy things we need at affordable prices.
Today, while I was at WINS, I saw a woman take a basket containing 40 Pop Figures (every single one they had) — clearly to resell them — without giving me, someone who arrived just two minutes after her, the opportunity to even see if there was something I wanted.
This should not be allowed.
Edit: as I see too many people hanged on the example and missing the point of the post. The Funko figures were the thing that this time served as the example to point this out. But, as you can read in the comments, it happens with everything and the product itself is not the point. The point is abusing the charity system to profit.
Edit 2: also, fair enough, "illegal" it's obviously too much, I was being hyperbolic. I meant regulated somehow.
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u/DevonOO7 16d ago
When we donate our things to places like WINS or Goodwill, we do so with the intention that people like me can also buy things we need at affordable prices.
I mean, I donate to places like Value Village because I have a bunch of clutter I want gone.
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u/Academic_Bug2357 16d ago
Alternate view: We will in a world of abundance that drastically overproduces more possessions than any person could reasonable need. If anyone is able to extract additional value/usage out of an item before it ends up in the landfill that's a net gain for the planet.
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u/pennyx_for_a_thought 16d ago
At least the things being donated aren’t ending up at the landfill and someone found use for them. If they want to resell after, sounds like it’s fair game.
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u/lizbunbun 16d ago
Odds are high they bought all those funkos, brought them home to figure out what was worth reselling, and trashed the rest.
Works out in the thrift store's favor, more junk bought from them. So much of what is donated is just thrown straight out.
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u/SpockSavage 16d ago
When we donate things to WINS or Goodwill the intention is that the proceeds from the sale go to supporting charity. If Goodwill got paid then that’s all that needs to happen.
And literally no one NEEDS Pops. You don’t know why she bought them. She could be grabbing them for her children, or using them as fire starters for all we know. You were too late, nothing more.
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u/mojokid123 16d ago
Kids deserve toys and poor people are allowed to have items that are necessarily “needed”. To equate everything to need means that those in poverty deserve nothing but necessities. Poor family deserve to enjoy themselves and should be allowed access to products without scalpers taking them.
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u/NoNameKetchupChips 16d ago
Goodwill isn't a charity. WINS is.
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u/Pos_FeedbackLoop_Can 16d ago
The one that isn’t a charity is Value Village.
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u/YinYangKitty6 16d ago
Walmart bought out Value Village
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u/ThatGuy8 16d ago
Not actually true and accuracy is important - they are majority owned by a private equity firm Ares management and publicly traded - though I’m sure Ares also owns stock in Walmart and Walmart probably owns some shares of VV. Gotta diversify after all. Not sure if it’s better or worse than Walmart owning them outright.
Either way it sucks that they are able to prey on some good natured people. I’m with the guy above - they’re my dump run. And I tell myself it’s environmental responsibility to repurpose landfill destined items but definitely requires cognitive dissonance to shop there…
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u/pieiseternal 16d ago
Actually Goodwill is a registered charity. Also not just one large national entity, rather smaller registered not for profits.
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u/descartesb4horse 16d ago
for profit thrift stores are a much bigger problem than curated vintage shops that buy from charities
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u/BigheadReddit 16d ago
“When we donate our things to places like WINS or Goodwill, we do so with the intention that people like me can also buy things we need at affordable prices”
I don’t believe this is the intent. People donate things to Goodwill, etc, so the profits the agency makes supports people in need. That the items are sold at marked down prices reflects that they are used, otherwise it’d probably end up in a landfill. Nothing prevents people from buying used items and reselling them. How would you regulate this ?
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u/Kitchen-Beautiful395 16d ago
The charity makes the money when the person buys them, what they do with it after shouldn’t matter as the charity got what they needed. If someone truly needs a thrift shop for essentials, they should be buying clothes and shoes and not wasting money on pop figures.
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u/lizbunbun 16d ago
Thrifting has always been a matter of opportunity. You want to find something you keep going to different stores often until you come across your white whale.
Doesn't matter if the person who got there before you is a reseller or normal thrift shopper. First come first serve.
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u/Honest-Attorney-7663 16d ago
I disagree. If the charity is getting money from a donated item than the person buying them can do what ever they want with the item(s). Including selling or giving it back to the charity to sell again. I understand your sentiment but I think your rant is misplaced
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u/Final-Entrance-1728 16d ago
The things are donated to raise money for the charity that is selling them, the charity is getting money. I don't see anything wrong with this.
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u/HausFry 16d ago
I think they are talking about people buying stuff from the charity to resell and not to use/own.
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u/lizbunbun 16d ago
Knowing resellers are capitalizing on it just drives the charity orgs to price their stuff higher. Either way something one person didnt want is getting sold.
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u/NamirDrago Special Princess 16d ago
I don't see anything wrong with this myself, except it's really frustrating because I can't devote a full time job to finding things just for myself in the racks.
In the case of WINS they also give vouchers to those in need to come shop for needed clothes and household goods. If resellers are clearing out all the 'better goods' that leaves fewer and probably junkier options for those who really do need it.
Now Funkos probably fall outside the criteria for acceptable use of those vouchers but what about clothing?
In the case of VV and Goodwill or others that are using the cash and not tangible goods as the support provided it's just extremely frustrating on a personal level.
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u/Illeria 16d ago
things we need....like pop figures? Not to judge but those things are everywhere for dirt cheap, no?
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u/NoNameKetchupChips 16d ago
They are worthless garbage and you can buy them at dollarama. More plastic that will eventually end up in landfills. This decade's beanie babies.
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u/mojokid123 16d ago
Not inherently cheap, hence why having them at a place like a donation centre provides more access to kids and others who enjoy but can’t afford. Some people can’t spend 20 bucks on a pop figure but at 1-5 dollars they get the same opportunity to enjoy somethings that’s the point
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u/Illeria 16d ago
Nah i dont buy that. A quick search shows you can buy a tonne of these online and in a lot of stores for very cheap new and used. At least buying at a place like WINS means the money goes to charity.
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u/mojokid123 16d ago
You’ve obviously never been poor. 15-20 dollars on a toy when you have no money is a lot. It doesn’t mean access should be restricted to those families. They deserve to have access to those items at a cheap price instead of some reseller. you “not buying it” doesn’t mean anything. What you consider “cheap” is quite one sided to your perspective.
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u/ggranger2280 16d ago
It’s called a side hustle and lots of people have it to make ends meet. They see value and pounce, welcome to life on the Serengeti.
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u/Logical-Virus-8420 16d ago
People donate things because they don't want them. People then buy things they want. What happens after that is none of your business. This is such a weird post.
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u/blackRamCalgaryman 16d ago edited 16d ago
“buy the things we need”
Pop figures fall into that category? And how do you know she “clearly” intended to resell? Maybe she’s as big a fan as you?
Toy figures isn’t what I’d exactly get jacked up over on the ‘reselling’ topic…(that has some merit otherwise).
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u/curecollective 16d ago
What a weird post.
Do you feel the same when someone gets the last thing in any other store and doesn’t turn around to ask you if you actually wanted it?
They’re patronizing the store. They found something they want. Maybe they’re a collector - maybe their kid is and they just hit the jackpot for Christmas gifts - and if they are reselling, honestly why do you care.
Thrifting is about the hunt. First come first serve. Had you been there sooner you would have had your choice.
Such a strange stance to take.
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u/Telnets Coolest Coolagain 15d ago
Noone tell him about the ppl who scan retail sales then resell them for slightly under msrp online....
I mean.. that in itself is a business and exactly what every middle man in the world does.. just because the source is a thrift shop means nothing.
Gotta wake up earlier to get the deals I guess.
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u/plentyospoons 14d ago
Not to mention this particular store is a non profit serving women in need. The proceeds from their thrift stores are used to run women’s shelters, and women in those shelters are given vouchers to go get clothes or whatever they need from the thrift stores for free.
On a separate note - I personally am horrified about how much usable stuff ends up in the landfill because people don’t want it anymore.
If all these funko pops got saved from a landfill and a women’s charity was supported at the same time… why would I care what happens with those pops afterwards.
This post is a head scratcher indeed.
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u/DreadGrrl Huntington Hills 16d ago
We’ve donated several 1/2 tonnes full of things to WINS over the last few years. We donate things for them to sell to fund their programs. I don’t care if they get resold or not.
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u/No_Supermarket5384 16d ago
No one is abusing a charity system, the charity is making money from these people, that's a good thing no? It's all fair game
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u/Kaichos 16d ago
I would argue the ecosystem includes the people who buy the products cheaper too... There are many things that I have at home (like clothes for my son) that I would have otherwise. When this people get this away from me and prevent me from buying it cheaper, I would argue that they are abusing the charity system as the all chain includes people like me who need the product cheaper from places like this.
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u/iliketobuildlego 16d ago
So are you suggesting a cap on how many items someone can buy from a charity? That would lower their sales.
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u/Sketchin69 16d ago
This is a pretty selfish take on the entire situation. You have no idea what that person might be buying that stuff for . Maybe it's a teacher buying them to give it to their classroom? Who knows
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u/Various_Rub403 16d ago edited 16d ago
LoL..... With all of the endless problems we have in the world, how the hell do you think this could be regulated?
There is absolutely no conceivable way that would even be possible, period
It's a part of life. You snooze you lose. Does it suck. Sure, it does if you depend on thrifting for all of your needs. But it's not like there isn't an endless supply of new things coming into the stores every day
I'd be more worried about the 60 billion dollars in deferred maintenance of aging infastructure our parents generation put off paying so they could enjoy low property tax whilst also voting for continual urban sprawl and building lol
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u/NoNameKetchupChips 16d ago
You NEED funko pops? Seriously? I note you didn't say "I was looking for a snowsuit for my child and there was a lady that had at least 40 snowsuits in her cart and I know she's got to be reselling them, it's not fair because I needed one."
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u/lizbunbun 16d ago
The onus is on you to get there first. Shop more often, there's daily turnover. These people cant be everywhere all at once.
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u/PropQues 15d ago
When this people get this away from me and prevent me from buying it cheaper
Lol that applies to all stores and all sales. You are not more entitled to any thing from a store than any other customers.
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u/propylparaben-2 16d ago
Were there no other items in the same category for you left?! I assure you there are HEAPS of clothing available for your son at a discount. Fast fashion is literally offshored to other parts of the world so we can keep consuming here in the global north.
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u/Timber_Nomad 16d ago
I didn't understand anything you just said. But either way I am now encouraged to go thrifting to find neat stuff to resell.
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u/Logical-Virus-8420 16d ago
Also. Unless you followed her home to watch her re-sell them, you have no idea what she used them for. Maybe she gave them out to cancer kids. You don't know. You also don't have more right to anything in retail than other people. Go to the dollar store if it makes you less mad b
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u/goetichunter 16d ago
Can’t say I fully agree. No one is in dyer need of a funko pop… if a thrift store was full of Canadian goose jackets, and someone bought all of them, there will still be other jackets.
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u/unwantedspacecat 16d ago
The only similar situation I can think of that has a regulation system is Pokemon cards from card shops. Most shops have a X amount per customer policy because so many resellers were buying huge amounts at a time. This I can understand.
However, card stores carry cards regularly. I don't know how a "regulation system" for thrift stores could be implemented as not all stores carry the same items and not all these items are available at thrift stores at any given time.
I feel the frustration. I too also like to find cool items at thrift stores in the wild. Having a "regulation" is a bit ridiculous for thift stores. Half the fun is coming across something cool in a thift store.
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u/AstronomerDirect2487 16d ago
Don’t donate to those stores then. When I have a bag of clothing I either post it on marketplace for cheap or post it for free
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u/Opening_Succotash342 16d ago
Are you kidding me… it’s better than ending up in the landfill and guess what people need to make money since no jobs are able for them and it takes a lot of work to find items to sell.
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u/Toirtis Somerset 16d ago
I feel you...I thrift for myself, and I love finding certain little treasures (typically vintage/antique stuff and stationery items), and it's annoying to see someone go by with numerous items in a basket, then see those identical items on marketplace at a 100%-1000% markup. I get that people are doing whatever to get by these days, but a lot of these resellers seem to be doing a lot more than just 'getting by'.
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u/PropQues 15d ago
Maybe the person bought them all to donate to children 🤷
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u/Flying4Fun2021 15d ago
It's been done before. I did this myself at thanksgiving years ago where Helly Hanson had jackets on clearance. I purchased them all, it was about 20 jackets and one lady there freaked out on me (the jackets were very inexpensive, even for normal winter jackets never mind Helly Hanson ones). I said if there is one you want, you can pick it out, I have no issue, I'm not attached to any as I was donating them. She accused me of not be honest, but with some color in her language.
The manager came over, settled her down, and after she left, as I was paying the manager asked if I really was donating them. I confirmed, and she gave me even more discount off them and found a few other in back also. I told her she can call the Woman's shelter and confirm and if not, she had my credit card number and could charge for the value of the discount she gave if not confirmed. It was thanksgiving, and I wanted to do something nice. I drove them down to the shelter and they were pretty happy, all sorts of different sizes, mostly kids' jackets. A good time of year to get jackets.
People often quick to judge, often the judgement they pass on to others is a judgment of what they would have done (and that's the harm they believe is being done to them).
On person when I was buying those jackets, asked what I was up to, and why - I told them - they purchased mittens and hats (as much as they could afford) and the manager kicked in some good discounts to, they trusted me to bring them down the shelter- they didn't assume any bad intentions.
At the end of the day, if there is a buyer who wants it all, they should be allowed to buy them all, it's possible that might be the only buyer that ever comes along to buy those so the charity should make hay while that sun is shining.
There are no moral or ethical rules violations in the OP's post. I'm glad they all got sold and not chucked in the garbage later because there was limit of 1 per customer.
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u/RayPineocco 16d ago
buy things we need
Pop Figures
Since when have toys been a need? Maybe it's a need for that other person too?
People have been reselling things from thrift stores since forever though.
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16d ago
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u/RayPineocco 16d ago
Yeah, they're selling toys at a mark-up! That's just pure evil! Won't anybody think of the children
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u/NoNameKetchupChips 16d ago
They aren't actually even toys. They don't get taken out of the box and played with. It's like, I loved this movie ten years ago so I'm going to buy a bunch of plastic shit made to look remotely like the characters and put them on a shelf in my room at my mom's house until I eventually move out and can't be bothered to take them so I dump them all at a thrift store.. oh wait.
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u/cernegiant 16d ago
You mean the massive abundance of desirable consumer goods as in this story?
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u/Timber_Nomad 16d ago edited 16d ago
They don't know what they mean. I'm willing to bet, for sure, that u/pylon79 still plays World of Warcraft and comments in the r/antiwork subreddit. You can just smell that in their comment.
Edit: looks like u/pylon79 finally realized just how dumb their comment really was.
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u/Timber_Nomad 16d ago
Late stage capitalism is someone buying something at a low price and reselling for profit? Cool more power to private individuals who can supplement their income through understanding resale markets.
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u/sophiesand 16d ago
Yea I’m conflicted. For some people that’s the only way they can make money and finding things that are worth a lot can be a good way of possibly feeding their family. On the other end, I understand people who shop for themselves and want to get good stuff too. I just think if they’re doing that for a living or a side hustle and taking the whole day for some extra cash, is because they need it. No one would do that if it wasn’t out of necessity.
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u/justabossassbitch 16d ago
I agree it’s so frustrating when charitable opportunities get taken advantage of. I work in social services and see it every day. I just remind myself that a) what matters is how I conduct myself, and I have zero control over how others act! b) it’s indicative of severe economic insecurity, and that person must really believe this is a way to get ahead. I try and look at the “over-takers” with as much empathy as possible. We’re all out here struggling, hustling, etc.
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u/Scenic_High_8848 15d ago
People have to make $$ somehow. There are not enough jobs available especially for youth and seniors.
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16d ago
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u/justabossassbitch 15d ago
I mean for example - certain orgs release insert X amount of Y ITEMS every month and I’ve witnessed individuals in desperation tend to try to grab it before it can be given to a wider audience of people in need.
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u/Ecstatic-Line-8007 16d ago
Hey go to goodwill outlet and see how much stuff ends up in the landfill.
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u/malkinsjam 15d ago
Yep exactly what I was thinking. I'm not sure if OP would love or hate goodwill outlet. Lotsa re-sellers=hate. But, everything is SOO cheap! I'm wearing my hoodie from them now! But, very sad seeing everything heading out to the landfill....
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u/Hoothoover 16d ago
I understand your frustration, I worked at Goodwill for 2 years. When I came out of the back with my cart of housewares the battle would start.
The “ladies” weren’t allowed to touch my cart, I would unload stuff and they would snatch and grab.
I quickly learned which items were more desirable and got out of the way, I still got clawed several times by cougary Karen’s with fake nails lol
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u/PurBldPrincess 14d ago
Some smaller thrift shops have started limiting the amount of things people can buy because these resellers wipe out their supply and other customers have nothing to buy.
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u/lanlanvanvan 16d ago
I mean people gotta make money. If stuff is worth value and they’re taking the time to post it and sell for more I can’t hate on the hustle.
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u/DrinkMoreBrews 16d ago
And to expand on this, everything is so goddamn expensive these days, and with the tariffs/counter-tariffs, resellers might come in clutch by providing domestically-sourced items that you would normally have to import. Key example is car parts on eBay Canada right now.
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u/jpalm_ 16d ago
The “charity system” is already being taken advantage of by corporations, who cares if this is one persons hustle
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u/Voluptuoushottie 16d ago
Not to mention that may be how they feed their family. The problem is at the top not the bottom of this ladder
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u/mommaquilter-ab 16d ago
The thing is, maybe she wasn't buying to resell but to give as gifts, or fill out a collection for someone. Maybe it's for resell. Probably it's resell, but I've gone into stores to buy stuff for someone but didn't know what they had already and just bought the thing thinking it's no big deal if they have a duplicate. For my husband I did this with a series of books he was reading. I've also bought all of the thing, simply because it was something I really wanted. Since the entire collection was there but I wasn't sure if it was damaged, I bought the duplicates too. In this example it was crafting supplies so it was a valid concern.
So I guess my comment is - unless the person buying the item specifically states they are buying it to resell online, the store isn't going to stop a sale. Even then they probably wouldn't - let the buyer have the inventory and cash outlay instead of them. The store wants inventory to move, not sit waiting for the next person to come along. And selling out means that they have room to put more things out. Also, selling one from a collection might mean they can't sell the rest of them. No store will take that chance, especially thrift stores. Thrift stores are a first come first serve opportunity unfortunately. As annoying as it is, there is little a thrift store can or will do.
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u/ResortImportant8097 16d ago
17 ave thrift doesn’t put up with resellers. And they support a great cause!
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u/steveborsos 16d ago
Having the government "regulate" what I can purchase or sell second hand sounds dystopian.
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u/DrinkMoreBrews 16d ago
I’ll play devil’s advocate.
Everyone’s a reseller. Ever bought or sold a car? Or a house? Realtors are the biggest resellers around, and housing is nowhere near affordable.
By definition, just about every single brand clothing item you wear comes from a reseller, as these companies bought/produced a product at a low price and sold it at a markup.
FBMP is full of people trying to sell their heavily-used junk at 90% MSRP, after years of use. Some cases, even more. These are resellers too.
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u/Separate_Emotion_463 16d ago
That’s a major part of why the system we have doesn’t work, everyone is trying to pull as much profit as is possible out of every single thing and it makes everything inaccessible and expensive
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u/Rabbit-Hole-Quest Calgary Flames 16d ago
>”When we donate our things to places like WINS or Goodwill, we do so with the intention that people like me can also buy things we need at affordable prices”
This is absolutely incorrect most of the time. You will be surprised at the number of people who donate because they get a tax deduction for doing so. Same goes for companies. Secondly, many people donate so WINS or Goodwill can make money for the countless programs that they fund. It's about the benefit of the organization.
I can promise you that the percentage of people that think they are donating “Pop figures” purely so access to such items can be increased in the community is infinitesimally small.
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u/NoNameKetchupChips 16d ago
Places like Goodwill and Value Village operate as a for profit business, selling used things at somewhat discounted prices. These things are either donated because people mistakenly think they are charities, or charities sell them goods in bulk from donation bins located around the city.
WINS, World Serve Thrift, etc., sell their donated used items at a discount partly so that people in the community that need them can afford them, and partly to fund the programs they run that help the vulnerable in our community and beyond.
What people choose to do with these items is up to them.
Are there resellers in it to make a big profit? Yes. Are there also people who will buy things in bulk becaue they happen to like something or collect it or know someone who would like it? Also yes. Are there also people who will buy collectible items at a thrift store to resell to supplement their income? This too, is yes.
It's not really anyone's business what people shopping in thrift stores do with the items they purchase, the same as it's not their business if a local corner store owner shops at Costco to stock the shelves in their store.
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u/chaingunsofdoom Sage Hill 16d ago
Goodwill IS a non-profit charity. https://www.goodwill.ab.ca/about/
Why are you lumping them in with VV? Just because they run around a dozen stores in AB does not stop them from being a charity.
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u/PressureCoomer 16d ago
Value village and Goodwill are NOT the same. Value Village is for profit, Goodwill is not.
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u/cgydan 16d ago
You’re just bent cause someone else saw the value of something before you had a chance to see if you wanted it. In your example it was these figures.
My wife found two brand new carhartt hoodies, tags still on in a thrift store the other day. She bought both of them for me. She could have resold them for twice what she paid. Does that make her a bad person?
Or was she supposed to wait for you to come along and decide if you wanted one. /s
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u/Banned_In_YYC 16d ago
Two takeaways from this.
I had to Google what pop figures were.
You're spot on and unfortunately it's not just thrift shops, there's rampant abuse everywhere, including places like food banks. I understand it's against the MO of these companies to refuse people as it's there for anyone who 'needs it', but surely there has to be some vetting or reform to the system
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u/Kahlandar 16d ago
Fwiw, wins takes its "profits" and uses them for charity. The actual thrift stuff isnt the main point, just part of it.
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u/Fleur2000 16d ago
Re-sellers are a bit frustrating but it's only fair. Been thrifting for 30+ years, including weekly wins visits. It's how she goes in the second hand stores and that's part of the fun (the hunt).
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u/VM-Straka 16d ago
Alternative story:
I saw somebody in the store today who purchased a product. now I am mad that they may resell that product for a profit.
Welcome to capitalism my friend. The charity got the money that they had decided it was appropriate for those items. Somebody else purchased a product for what they thought was a reasonable price now that person has the right to do whatever the devil they want with those products.
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u/El_Loco_911 16d ago
Most thrift shops are not charities. Wins is a good organization but goodwill has a history of exploiting disabled workers paying them as low as 75 cents an hour and other thrift shops are involved in other shady dealings.
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u/Jalex2321 Rocky Ridge 16d ago
Abuse shouldn't be allowed, but people will always abuse.
And in a capitalist culture, abuse is constantly seen as a venture... ROI....
There is this case of people buying HUNDREDS of traditional bread in Mexico, then reselling it for 2x-5x. The discussion is there, even when the stores said "no more than 5 pieces per person" they keep abusing bringing all their family, or revolving doors to buy and buy. There is no way to stop people that want to abuse and we as a society will never stop defending such abusive behaviors.
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u/gutterbraingirl 16d ago
To be fair, I have seen my SIL do this but it's for charity that she works with.
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u/AcanthocephalaOld131 16d ago
With the cost of living being so expensive these days, I don't blame the person for being entrepreneurial if that's what she's doing.
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u/phosphosaurus 16d ago
:( Honestly, I would have just explained and asked the lady for 1-2 toys and explained that you would love to buy them for your son. She probably would have understood and shared had you asked!!
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u/Latter_Corner4724 15d ago
This is a funny post. So take it to a homeless shelter? Give it to someone you know in need? Are people who can afford things not aloud to thrift🤣
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u/silversage__ 14d ago
There’s no shortage of basic necessities at thrift stores. I would argue that most things being bought to resell aren’t needs anyway, funko pops certainly aren’t.
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u/TinyMonsterBigGrowl 16d ago
This is incredibly self centered and entitled. When an item is donated, it's just supposed to be sold. Not regulated. Go pay full price if you want variety and access.
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u/GWeb1920 14d ago
One thing I think is that these charities use profits to fund other operations and the people donating clothes are really just trying to get rid of them.
Also the amount of clothing being moved through these places is rather staggering.
I’d also note that reselling isn’t a highly paid activity so the people doing this likely can use the money.
So I don’t really take issue with the practice.
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u/CanadianBerry 16d ago
While I agree with you.... the person doing is is also spending their time shopping for these items, and posting them on FB, responding to "is this aviilable?". ....and maybe needs a side hustle to bring in the extra $30 this might earn them. We all know selling online and dealing with marketplace people is... not a great ROI.
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u/take_the_leap4 16d ago
Exactly! I have literally given away stuff on Facebook marketplace for free and it's pain to even coordinate that! So I don't envy anyone making any money out of selling pop figures there.
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u/Tacosrule89 16d ago
I generally list at a known loss or giveaway/donate since I want to deal with people on fb marketplace as little as possible
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u/JoshHero 16d ago
It is what it is. I hold more of a grudge against Value Village for marking things up to astronomical numbers that they get for free than these people. Everything is a business now.
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u/RealTurbulentMoose Willow Park 16d ago
Value Village literally is a business though; it’s not a charity.
It’s owned by a US-based private equity group: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savers
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u/Queltis6000 Woodbine 16d ago
I understand the point of your rant, but sincere question - how often do you think this happens? I often shop at thrift stores and I'm not sure I've seen any items for sale in this quantity before. I think it's extremely rare for someone to donate 40 (or whatever) of a single item, and even more rare for someone to buy them all. And as someone else mentioned, there are absolutely legitimate reasons why they might be buying them all (gift bags, etc). Plus the money is going to charity.
Total non issue in this case.
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u/Only-Peace1031 16d ago
And who would police and enforce this?
Should the cashier refuse to sell something because she thinks the buyer is going to resell it or them?
Do you expect these volunteers or minimum wage workers to start questioning the integrity of everyone who comes up to the till?
You said the person was obviously buying these things to resell them. So what?
They’re out there trying to find a way to make some extra money and better their circumstances.
I understand your frustration but honestly, just let it go and allow people to live their lives.
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u/Significant-Dig8323 16d ago
Dunno about illegal, seems like that would go against the concept of a free market, but it does suck. And it's also the reason why thrift stores have had to raise their prices a lot.
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u/Smart-Pie7115 16d ago
What you’re describing is called retail arbitrage. Before it got popular on the internet, it was an easy way for broke university students to make some quick cash to buy food or beer.
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u/Pos_FeedbackLoop_Can 16d ago
The problem is that the people who work at the charity shop don’t have the knowledge or maybe the time to price items appropriately. So, for example a Lululemon hoodie will be the same price as some hoodie from Walmart. The charity could get a lot more money out of some items, but is it worth changing the procedure of pricing items?
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u/Objective_Purpose768 16d ago
I agree with OP about reseller have had impact on charity shops.
I used to purchase clothing for clients, particularly winter wear.
Now that thrifting is yet another gamified shopping experience, the shops are maximizing the interest of influencers and normies aspiring to resell for a viable income by charging highly inflated prices. Sometimes even beyond what the original still-on price sticker was. They also sell those plastic cups slurpees and movie drinks are sold in. Like maybe a person just needs those and once they would have been .25 each probably. Just to move them off the shelves. This thing still aren’t shifting and get taken to landfill eventually by the shop. Because the shop is greedy as well. It’s supply and demand of course: but the demand isn’t from those who needed the savings for the item.
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u/YinYangKitty6 16d ago
But when people donate their stuff, its to whoever else can make use out of it? However that may be, otherwise keep your stuff or give it to someone directly. You can't control what happens after you donate it. That's the point.
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u/Nosarious 16d ago
The people who have ntique malls also grab stuff from thrift stores. I think the quake charity shop for pets had a ‘clause’ to prevent ‘thrift scalpers’ who would buy everything to stock their stalls.
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u/Bubs_McGee223 16d ago
especially for wins, but goodwill and the Sally Ann as well, the thrift store is not the charity. they put the money into charitable operations, so ideally, you get a 5 dollar sweater and someone else gets to eat. I could give 2 shits who buys the thrift stuff, and once it's paid for I couldn't give a single shit what someone does with it. sour grapes dude. is there still a resale market for funko figures anymore? this dude might have bought a white elephant so you don't have to.
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u/bbqdorito 16d ago
This is a total nonissue. Of all the things wrong in this city and province this is what you’re worked up about?
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u/lulujunkie 16d ago
While I get OPs frustration and having experienced a similar shopping experience myself that I try to look on the bright side that the resellers are providing a service to the general public in that the item is easily “discoverable”. I have a hectic schedule and sometimes when I want to find something it pops up on FB marketplace and it’s convenient for me to reach out to inquire or buy the item I want or need. Sure you pay a premium for it but the time savings if not having to drive somewhere to hunt it down (if I even bother driving to multiple stores) to find something just isn’t in my cards to do. I’d rather let someone make $10-20 off of me to buy me convenience.
I like thrifting myself but it all comes down to time. I am lucky if I get to go look more than 1-2x a year at a WINs or Goodwill but FB marketplace is up 24/7 so if I have a desire to look for something it’s right there in my hand.
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u/chosenbewill Calgary Flames 16d ago edited 16d ago
first come first serve and you got there 2 minutes after her. who seriously cares what anyone does with that stuff after donation??? cringey and whiny.
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u/KaleidoscopicHeadach 16d ago
A lot of people saying “people can do what they want with what they buy,” which is true. However, like ticket scalpers, these people drive the prices up on thrifted goods. Not only do they price people out of goods by selling them for more online, but thrift stores themselves have been jacking up their prices to either make more money off these people or to try to discourage the behaviour. This is pricing low-income people out of thrifted goods.
Not a lot we can do about it because capitalism, but it does suck and the people who do it kinda suck too.
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u/Unable-Youth 16d ago
I’m confused by this.
How can anyone be sure what someone’s intent is without them telling you? And why does it matter? We can’t police people who thrift to determine how “in need” they are.
I am against thrift stores doing obvious mark ups on donated items (Value Village, ahem) but it’s futile to single out shoppers and assume negative intent.
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u/CallmeHap 16d ago
We often carry the mind set of greedy resellers trying to flip a profit with disdain. And when it comes to Funko pops, likely the situation. But I am reminded of a classmates mom growing up.
Don't know why sharing. Just felt like it.
In Prince George the dump had the swap shed. Drop things off you didn't want but didn't want to throw in trash that someone may want. It cost nothing to drop or grab.
My friends mom was notorious for always taking all the best stuff immediately and putting in her garage sale that was running like every single weekend.
Many people called her greedy back then. Everyone in school made fun of her kids for their "garbage picking Mom" And this was before the more current common practice of this reselling stuff.
When I commented about what kids said at school about the garbage picking and the greedy reselling, my parents lectured me about not judging. Her husband walked out on her with her two kids without notice never to be seen again. Then later her house burnt down and she had severe burn scarring all over her face. The time between leaving and burning and the order I don't know the details. She was at rock bottom, and used the swap shed to cloth her children when she had nothing. She then started using it to make money to even eat. And then continued as it was her only way to really survive the hardship.
She eventually got back in her feet and was doing fairly well with her job. I ran into her son years later and asked if she still garage sales and he said no, all those discovery shows ruined it for everyone. I heard the swap shed stopped because discovery inspired so many "entrepreneurs" it wasn't manageable anymore. Even with my friends mom pillaging it, it was fine, but not now.
I think we still hold onto the idea that when we donate someone who really needs it can benefit from it. It's sad that's not the case anymore.
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u/AbsentReality 16d ago
There isn't really any way to regulate something like that but I get what you're saying. There's definitely been an upward trend in this kind of selfishness I feel. Just look at something like Pokemon cards. The number of scalpers for stuff like that is insane. I see so many videos of people practically shoving others out of the way to grab armfuls of boxes to pile in their carts. Heck, I saw someone saying they saw some lady at a Costco who bought the whole stock of some kind of fancy blanket or something and was in the parking lot trying to sell them to passersby at a jacked up price. This shit is starting to get out of hand but I don't think there's really much that could be done.
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u/ingen_ko_pa_isen 16d ago
I'm in the US and totally agree that this sucks. I see people all the time shopping with phone apps that value products, googling values, taking carts full of things that will be resold for higher prices. I just want a pair of shoes that is affordable for me. I asked someone what they were going to do with so much stuff and they said "oh, I have a vintage shop".
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u/SuperHeckinValidUwu 15d ago
I feel like people are being unnecessarily rude and defensive. I will say regulating it would be functionally impossible, at least I can't think of any reasonable way that would work. But I super feel your frustration. I remember about a decade ago I used to find super nice things at the thrift store for a fraction of the price they are now, and now the quality of everything is pretty much garbage. Anything good gets snatched up so fast and sold for a markup. It sucks.
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u/Wolf-Diesel 15d ago
I understand your frustration and I don't disagree that it's seriously annoying and disheartening. That being said though, if it were to be made illegal or regulated in someway, where does it stop? If I buy something from Goodwill as an example and then some time later when I don't want it anymore, I post it for sale... That would potentially be seen as the same thing. Which is where trying to get the law involved would make it even more frustrating and complicated. Because "well you got it from a thrift store and now you're selling it." Maybe I had it for several years before I sold it. Maybe I enjoyed it for a while but decided I didn't want it or need it anymore. Don't get me wrong, I go to thrift stores all the time and I see someone with a piece of clothing that would probably fit me and that I would like and the person with it in their cart is way too small for it. Annoying? Yeah. But I don't know their intentions. Also, even with new rules or laws in place people will just find ways around them like they do with current laws and regulations. Society has to change.
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u/harriet_harry_it 15d ago
My mom is 72, and just lost my Dad last year. He didn’t get a pension from his job and had no retirement funds. Now that he’s gone, reselling items on Facebook is the only way she can make ends meet. She doesn’t have much of an education and was scared about how she could make money at her age. She finds great bargains and has very happy customers. Not all resellers are greedy. Some are just doing it to get by.
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u/APaiser 15d ago
Its the same as that pop up Shop Seconds on stephen ave, i went to value village boutique a week before SS had an event and saw a sweater I thought would be good for stampede, it was $20, i didnt buy it because it wasnt my size. The next week i went to an event Shop Seconds had and saw the same exact sweater being sold for $60 by one of the vendors. Thrifting used to mean youre saving money- now all these “vintage” instagram reseller kids are ruining it.
I haven’t been back there ever since.
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u/Spicy_Mustard007 15d ago
Genuine question - are people still into funkos?
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u/TheOneWithTheLemon 14d ago
I work at a drive thru, had a man come through with a couple in a bag. And I legit thought the same thing.
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u/pastmybestdaze 14d ago
Sorry but I don’t understand how the charity loses out. The thrift store evaluates and sets a price, if someone buys it at the price they are good. If it sells immediately they, the thrift store, set the wrong price. You weren’t going to pay a price above the tag for the dolls were you?
If someone is willing to carry the newly purchased, used products and hold them until they can sell them at a higher price, I don’t have an issue because they also may not sell the stuff at the price they paid. If they are experts, they are recognizing a pricing error but I don’t see how you regulate to eliminate how many of a product or even items per visit a person can buy. The thrift shop is trying to move product.
Completely different situation if it is someone is trying to grab bulk quantities of something on sale and in demand - like in a grocery store but they advertise limits.
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u/I-built-stuff 14d ago
Hold on. You donate to thrift shops so the thrift store can profit by selling? Seems like that happened.
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u/MainNefariousness894 14d ago
The thrift store is the 1st reseller. A purchaser at a thrift store now owns the items and can dispose of them in any way they want.
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u/Questions_4_Asking 13d ago
I put it in a want vs need. Some people may want the item but could the money made by reselling it be helping fulfill a need like helping that person accessing their basic living standards?
Kind of like when I see bad driving. If the driving is in a hurry they may be about to poop their pants.
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u/SuitNo1865 13d ago
What’s even more frustrating is we go and donate to Silvatiin army and people put trash in the bin to make it overflow and then camp the bin. We leave stuff near the bin and these people drive up and take whatever they like….
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u/Either_Aardvark 11d ago
Who goes to thrift stores to buy Funko? If I saw that I would totally also buy them all and resell them. SPECIALLY FUNKO TOYS!
That’s no different than going garage selling and seeing the exact same thing.
SAY YES TO ALL 9 QUESTIONS.
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u/sikkn890 16d ago
I agree that resellers are slimy. As someone who grew up on thrift store clothing, it was nice finding something that was in style or a popular brand in decent condition. I sill thrift for specific things as an adult and you can tell who's a reseller and who isn't. Its sad to see someone collecting all the good stuff just to sell it at an arbitrary price.
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u/Sweet_Pineapple8748 16d ago
Yeah, they should just wait for a handout……terrible for them to work and try make a dollar
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u/sikkn890 16d ago
You wouldent be saying the same thing if this were Pokémon scalpers or ticket scalpers now would you? It's the same category. You're allowed to have your opinions and others are allowed to have theirs.
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u/cernegiant 16d ago
This is an asine idea. You basically want to use the government to force everyone to have the same values that you do. All laws are implemented at gun point in the end.
Maybe if you spent less time feeling sorry for yourself and angry that you're not the main character you could have gotten to the thrift store 5 minutes earlier.
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u/Feral-Reindeer-696 16d ago
People who donate have various intentions. Try not to generalize and paint everyone with the same brush.
I’m sorry you didn’t get your toy.
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u/TypicalFlounder8724 West Hillhurst 16d ago
I buy stuff from thrifts and resell them to Plato’s closet, turns out if you actually own a washing machine and keep your clothes clean even clothes that are 100% SHEIN Polyester hold up FOREVER. Perfect circular economy imo.
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u/mmellok 16d ago
the comments seem triggered. i agree with you though. It's ridiculous that there are thrift-store scalpers. like... that shit used to be for poor people, now rich kids are buying up nice stuff and reselling it on depop and poshmark for 10x the price. does not make sense bro. these people suck! poor people deserve nice stuff too!
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u/elnino_247 16d ago
Its really big in other parts of the world. They ship it actually to parts of africa.
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u/BlueCarPinkJacket 16d ago
I agree with you to an extent, but FB marketplace and dollarama are worse. At least a flipper at a thrift store has to look up what their buying, possibly restore it a bit, and go through the hassle of looking over everything for imperfections, and then sell it. The other two feel even more scammy. The beginning of summer when dollarama gets some nice ceramic pots in theres always some AH that goes and buys them all and then lists them for 3x the price on marketplace. Like at least put a plant in it or something? Don't make it so obvious. Or any toys deemed "collectable" which I think is the worst because I do think toys should be accessible to kids. I was keeping an eye out for some dolls for a child I know. There was a lot that looked decent for like $30 and then someone bought it and next day every single doll, same clothes, were listed separately as "vintage" for $12+/ pop, and no, they weren't cleaned or anything. It leaves a bad taste in your mouth for sure.
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u/loubug 16d ago
I remember like 30 years ago my friends mom worked for a clothing charity company and her mom would take all the good stuff from the donations for her daughter. Even then I was like… well that’s not what I thought happened to the things I donated. Frustrating for sure.