Which is the better place to source inventory from regular Goodwills or Goodwill Clearance Center

[pigeonpicker]

Clearance Center = Even cheaper! But it's overcrowded with the same customers every day. And you need to search for hours through junk to find the good stuff. 

[krazzykats]

I grow several varieties and colors of Christmas Cactus. 

When I propagate them, some of my favorite planters are teapots, teacups, and other pretty serving pieces...:)

[evelyb30]

I call GoodWill Ill Will for cause.  Today is the first time this month when I spent more than $10 in one go, and still didn't hit the $20 mark.  November wasn't much better.  They never send anything good but the mistakes to my local store these days, and the only jewelry comes in with Target clearance.   Last year this time, even with the jewerlry gone sometimes I spent $40 in one visit.  One more reason I'm seriously considering quitting.  

[wildpitchsports]

Nowhere. Most have picked up on the reseller haze. I saw at a goodwill the ebay comp printed on a chair. And besides, starting in 10 days you will be 1099-K'd for any gross sales over $600. It will be impossible to make money as ya'll have been. Unless you get it cheap and will hock it at a *gasp* flea market.

[chapeau-noir]

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@wildpitchsports wrote:

Nowhere. Most have picked up on the reseller haze. I saw at a goodwill the ebay comp printed on a chair. And besides, starting in 10 days you will be 1099-K'd for any gross sales over $600. It will be impossible to make money as ya'll have been. Unless you get it cheap and will hock it at a *gasp* flea market.

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But one is supposed to have been paying taxes, anyway, so that doesn't change anything.  I sure have been paying and I used to support myself shopping thrifts, consignments, salvage, overage sales, etc.  It takes energy, hustle and stamina, but it's doable. Getting tougher here, though, because the area has gotten so expensive, so I'm glad I was finally able to retire and go to part-time.

Yeah, the thrifts here have been pasting eBay print-outs on their stuff for years, probably well over a decade.  Funny thing - it's always the opening fixed price (which is frequently aspirational).  The Goodwills have nosebleed prices, and the little church thrifts are even worse.  There's no such thing as 'church ladies who don't know what they have' about 99% of the population is computer literate and they ALWAYS know what they have. 

And there is always curb surfing - I get out on the periodic days when it isn't raining with my bike and trailer and cruise around.  Once I was out running and came across a Sunny brand chair ergometer (a sort of seated peddling device) - they're about $160 and this one was basically new!  It's a nice, solid unit and weighs about 25-30 lb, which wasn't any big deal, but the cranks and bracing feet meant it was ridiculously awkward to carry with protuberances poking out in every direction - but no way was I leaving that thing behind.  If I ran home and got the car, it might be gone!  So I hauled it off and ran home with it over hill and dale (well about 1 1/2 miles) lol - I almost collapsed at my front door.  The DH asked if I was training for one of those strongmen competitions.

[downunder-61]

I like love dream catchers........

carry on........

[rabites-n-chocobos]

Hello, do you have any information on good will logistics? This would be VERY helpful information to me.

How does stuff get to the Goodwill bins? Is it stuff from the local Goodwills that weren't sold, and the stuff the local Goodwill employees decided weren't salable in their local store?

[rabites-n-chocobos]

I'd like to know the exact logistics. From People donating at a local Goodwill....all the way to the Goodwill bins.

[rabites-n-chocobos]

That's not how it works at my Goodwill bins.

[rabites-n-chocobos]

Yep, It varies greatly on location. I've got three in my location, and all are VERY different. Some area's are prone to people throwing fists every few hours, and some very civilized.

I don't expect you to answer, but how do I get into international freight stuff?

[chapeau-noir]

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@rabites-n-chocobos wrote:

Hello, do you have any information on good will logistics? This would be VERY helpful information to me.

How does stuff get to the Goodwill bins? Is it stuff from the local Goodwills that weren't sold, and the stuff the local Goodwill employees decided weren't salable in their local store?

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Some items at the outlets are culled from area Goodwill stores, some are simply trucked in as direct donations.

[rabites-n-chocobos]

Interesting, I wonder if anyone here has been an Goodwill employee?

When I donate, there's about 10 employees collecting my donation.

Where does it go from here?

[katzrul15]

Goodwill online returns and items that did not sell online go to the Goodwill bins, along with items not considered saleable in retail stores.  Here, a lot is sold by the pound.

[wildpitchsports]

Ahh yes since I moved out of the northeastern US and into the southern country I'd forgotten how lucrative curb surfing used to be. Especially in apartments or condos near the end of the month. Your story reminds me of how one time I found this old, old trunk next to an apartment garbage can, this is going back to the mid 90's. It was heavy as all get out. Before I even got it completely out of my car at the flea market someone offered me $50 for it and I promptly took it. But I wound up having to put it on a hand truck to roll it there it had to weigh over 100 lbs at least. Never mind the countless furniture salvations, etc. That really brings it back. Always have a blacklight handy because you never know what was lurking. 

Where I am we have a Salvation Army and 2 Goodwills. The salvation literally sells things you could buy in the (formerly $1) store for $2+, most of it is at or above retail - except clothes of course.

The Goodwill in the poorer side of town literally has people sitting in their vans and trucks all day scoping out deliveries and donations. One had binoculars so they could see what it was before they even bothered to get out of their truck. 

The one on the south side of town has everything (except clothes and used shoes) priced at eBay comps right down to the printer ink and handbags. I gave it a shot and felt it was more time than it was worth. But then again, this isn't really a "big city" situation.

The taxes yeah, but you know just as well as I do about the 90% that don't. It will really be a sticker shock for the thrifters as well. They all live on YouTube and TikTok tutorials and literally none that I have seen even remotely mention the word "taxes." 

[chapeau-noir]

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@rabites-n-chocobos wrote:

Interesting, I wonder if anyone here has been an Goodwill employee?

When I donate, there's about 10 employees collecting my donation.

Where does it go from here?

---

You could always look up the subject online.

https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/heres-what-goodwill-really-does-with-the-stuff-you-...

[wildpitchsports]

I hope your area doesn't have goodwill employees that know about thrifting, collectibles or just about anything resembling value, otherwise it will go from donation to the back room into the rollie cart and magically anything worth anything isn't in there. People brag on tiktok that during the pandemic they actually got jobs there and never even bothered to cash their paychecks because they made more selling donations. 

That's kind of gross to me. But to each their own.