ebay Faces One Less Competitor

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

Goodwill has long had its own online auction site, ShopGoodwill, and a few years ago opened GoodwillFinds, a much glossier online effort. ShopGoodwill remains, but they have shut down GoodwillFinds.

https://retailwire.com/goodwill-closes-goodwillfinds/

Goodwills vary from region to region, but from what I've seen here, my local stores have improved their layout, increased selection, and are doing more marketing and promoting. My local Goodwill is usually busy when I'm there.

I think one reason GWF closed might be because , with lockdowns long over, GW is discovering that  many buyers prefer thrifting in a physical store. (In part because they don't have to pay shipping, and in part because they can handle the merchandise...along with other reasons I'm sure)

For some resellers, this might be a good time to consider (if they haven't already) a physical location as a supplement to their online sales. Of course, this isn't practical for everyone, but it might be worth considering for some.

[bandrhome]

They are so over priced!! Its a rip off.

Its for the good will of the CEOs pocket...

At least Thrifty/Salvation Army helps people.

[mamacassidy]

@my-cottage-books-and-antiques 

@chapeau-noir 

I shop at my local Goodwill stores pretty often. I was talking to one of their employees awhile back, and they told me that the stores are basically franchises, and the franchise owner has to follow certain guidelines, but they are not all going to be the same from store to store/ region to region.

It was just last year when my local stores switched to each item having an individual price tag and bar code. Prior to that, they all just had colored plastic tags, and all shirts were one price, all pants were one price, etc.

Most of the prices went up a significant amount when they made this change. And each week, a certain color is half price, but with the recent increase, that's still not much of a deal for resellers.

However, just a couple of months ago, they started something called Monday Mania, where on Mondays, each item from the previous week's sale color that is left over is only $1.29. (I think they realized they needed to move a bunch of items out that hadn't sold, and it's better to sell them for a buck than to have employees spend time packing them up and shipping them off to one of the bin stores).

So I think (at least in my area) they are doing some experimenting with pricing. I'm just buying as much of the $1.29 stuff that I can before they end that deal, lol 🙂

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@mamacassidy 

Yes, I try to take advantage of the discounts they are running now, but I can usually only get there maybe once a week, and not on the "best" day for discounts. Still, I've snagged some 50% off items that I would not have bought at full price...so, yes, that does help.

[adamcartwright]

@bandrhome 

I once pointed out to the Goodwill manager that I could pay the same price for the exact item new at TJMaxx.

He just shrugged and advised me to attend one of their sale events. 

[bandrhome]

@adamcartwright 

Ive seen Dollar Tree items for $3-5...

I have so many Thrifty/Salvations and several other odd ball thrift shops close by I pretty much avoid GW. LOL

[chapeau-noir]

---

@mamacassidy wrote:

@my-cottage-books-and-antiques 

@chapeau-noir 

I shop at my local Goodwill stores pretty often. I was talking to one of their employees awhile back, and they told me that the stores are basically franchises, and the franchise owner has to follow certain guidelines, but they are not all going to be the same from store to store/ region to region.

It was just last year when my local stores switched to each item having an individual price tag and bar code. Prior to that, they all just had colored plastic tags, and all shirts were one price, all pants were one price, etc.

Most of the prices went up a significant amount when they made this change. And each week, a certain color is half price, but with the recent increase, that's still not much of a deal for resellers.

However, just a couple of months ago, they started something called Monday Mania, where on Mondays, each item from the previous week's sale color that is left over is only $1.29. (I think they realized they needed to move a bunch of items out that hadn't sold, and it's better to sell them for a buck than to have employees spend time packing them up and shipping them off to one of the bin stores).

So I think (at least in my area) they are doing some experimenting with pricing. I'm just buying as much of the $1.29 stuff that I can before they end that deal, lol 🙂

---

@mamacassidy  Yes - ours is part of the Evergreen Goodwill regional - in this case, the store manager sets the pricing, but I think pretty much with some guidelines, as the pricing does change a bit from store to store even though the sale barbs are the same.

This one does have sales, but the beginning price is so high that people often wait until Monday tag day (everything on that tag is $1.99) and one can find a few bargains, but the items have been pawed over for a month before they get there. If they ran a periodic 50% off sale like the St. Vinnies in the next town from me did, they'd clear out a lot of stuff and make it easier to shop. A lot of the people who shop at mine are young families and they can't afford $14.97 for a used button down shirt, etc. I shop for myself there and really understand.

[tarotfindsandmore]

 Most of the thrift stores in WA state are anything but thrifty.  When I was doing my undergrad degrees at UW it was a very different story.  You could actually decorate your place and find interesting little odds and ends at good "starving student" prices.  Now, I find NWT items in regular retail stores for the same prices or less than what's in the so-called thrift stores.  Spokane GW prices aren't as bad as some of the others but, well, it's Spokane so the selection is...Spokane.

[chapeau-noir]

Washington State is kind of a fashion black hole - it's better for hard goods and the like, I guess. But yeah.

ETA: When I lived in Seattle we had a number of good, big thrifts down near the waterfront, but that was back in the day when downtown was more working class/middle class and not the high-priced tony place it is now (that's a long dang time ago).

[tarotfindsandmore]

Seattle is light years ahead of this side of the mountain, though, in fairness I do recall going to see Verdi's MacBeth  and being a bit stunned by the sheer number of attendees in Birkenstocks and blue jeans (my mother was nearly apoplectic). 

We're definitely not going to be seeing Fashion Week come to this state, but at least you can still find an original Lollapalooza or EndFest tee (possibly even one of mine!) on occasion.  

[chapeau-noir]

Anything "good" here they put nosebleed prices on and put it behind the counter. I rarely find a real treasure, though, these days, but every once in a while. On top of that, I'm one of those "My size is always picked over" sizes, particularly workout clothing which is mostly what I go for (my last day job was as a data miner and didn't have dress requirements). My speciality when I got into clothing was world clothing and fashions, and I used to find a lot more than I do now, even though my neighbourhood is still very multicultural.

[bandrhome]

Im looking forward to garage/yard sale season! LOL Can find some great bargains.

[chapeau-noir]

I wish we had good yard sales! I like rolling around on my bike and trailer looking at them, but just about all of them is overpriced junk, with printouts stuck on them saying how much it's listed for on eBay (not sold, just listed). Anything good is put online because this is the silicon swamp.

OTH, I found a cool under-desk exercise bike on the side of the road when I was out running - basically new and an expensive brand. I grabbed it and ran home with it - only I was over a mile from home and it weighed 25 lb, and had pokey things all over it like pedals and stand. Plus the route was hilly. I'm now ready to sign up for the next strong-woman contest once I recover from all the bruising.

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@bandrhome Yes, it's finally starting up here....best of luck to you! I'm hoping for some good finds!

[rockinhorserevivalist]

I think it's highly unlikely that they put anything that they care about on those publicly visible sites. 

[rockinhorserevivalist]

I think they just throw some random not very significant items onto shop goodwill to create a certain narrative for public consumption.