Second-hand thrift stores have come under fire over the last several years for pushing prices beyond what is affordable for needy families and those who rely on them for clothing in a lower price range.
Some more critical shoppers are finding specific examples of thrift and second-hand shops offering donated items for high prices. One such shopper, @whoaanellyy, has previously slammed the Salvation Army for selling an Aritzia top for $60.
In a more recent video shared to TikTok, the content creator is calling out the store once again for selling a wall of fur coats for $500 apiece.
“We already know that Salvation Army and Value Village are monsters but I will never shut up about the fact that they are actual criminals,” she says in the video. “It says, ‘new fur coat, retail $1,500. $500 featured. Do you see all of these f*cking fur jackets that they’re selling for $500? Nobody is going to buy a $500 f*cking fur jacket from a thrift store. All of these are going to end up in the landfill. This actually makes me sick and I want to cry.”
The creator clarifies to viewers in her caption that she does not actually shop at the stores named in the video.
“And before you comment ‘then dont shop there don’t support them,’ just know that I never give them my money #thrifted,” she wrote. “And I genuinely want to know and discuss what we can do to bring about change, because our planet cannot sustain the disposal of clothing.”
@whoaanellyy And before you comment “then dont shop there 😡 dont support them” just know that i never give them my money #thrifted ♬ original sound – Whoaanellyy
The Daily Dot has reached out to @whoaanellyy and the Salvation Army via email regarding the video.
Several viewers remarked they had noticed similar changes at their local thrift stores. Some even shared that they had stopped shopping there for a variety of reasons, from a lack of changing rooms to pricing.
“I stopped shopping at there once they got rid of the change rooms, i’ll only do goodwill,” one commenter wrote. “Also expensive but at least i can try it on.”
“They had a vintage lipstick holder that i have been looking for…. Priced at $500,” another user shared.
“I can’t buy anything there when I know the sale price of the item was less,” one commented. “If they lowered prices slightly they would sell so much more!”
Others pointed to the rise of the resale market, where some folks have built businesses off of the resale of vintage finds from thrift stores.
“I believe it’s because of resellers,” one commenter wrote.
“Well they caught on to resellers and they are not getting how reselling works,” another user said. “Maybe they should try reselling.”
“Problem is people would buy everything for cheap and make a vintage eshop and make money of them,” a viewer shared in a comment. “There’s ppl doing that all day just to resell.”
