With the explosion of thrift stores within the last 3-5 years, thrifting is now at its height of popularity. Besides having at least 3-4 thrift stores – Goodwill, Savers, Salvation Army – within a few miles from where you live, thrifting is also extremely popular due to consistently updated inventory that is sold for pennies on the dollar. It’s like going on a treasure hunt every time you walk into a thrift store because you never know what you might find! So next time you’re out thrifting alone or with friends, make sure you are on the hunt for these 6 things to look for at thrift stores to resell.
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6 Things to Look For at Thrift Stores to Resella
1. Craftsman Hand Tools with Lifetime Warranties
Besides producing some of the world’s finest hand tools, Craftsman tools are extremely popular due to the manufacturer’s lifetime warranty policy. The warranty states that the owner can change in the tool for a replacement anytime it becomes unusable. That means if it rusts out, snaps apart or simply can’t cut or rotate anymore, you can turn it in for a new one no questions asked. No receipts required either.
For a complete list of what has a lifetime warranty and what doesn’t, check out the Craftsman’s warranty page. So next time your thrifting, check out the section of tools available. Look for hand tools such as hammers, saws, sockets, wrenches, ratchets that have the Craftsman logo stamped on them. Snatch them up and get them replaced at the local Sears store. Then keep them for yourself or simply resell them on eBay or Craigslist for a huge profit.
2. New Clothing with Tags
You’ll be surprised how many clothes you can find with tags still on them. They were donated without ever been worn and can be sold for as new. Due to inventory being updated consistently throughout the week, you might find a few designer dresses, tops or even skirts a week that you can resell for huge profits. Even non-designer clothes can be sold for profit if you know what you’re doing. Check out my post 5 Ways to Resell Clothes for Profit. a
3. Make Infant & Toddler clothing sets
A lot of mothers tend to take hand me downs or buy used clothes for their infants or toddlers simply because they know their little ones will outgrow their clothes very quickly. Because of this, a very smart and profitable thing to do is to buy separate pieces of clothes and make them into sets. If you have an eye for fashion, this is definitely something you should consider.
These sets do extremely well at garage or yard sales and they also do well online. I recommend taking a look at Swap.com. They not only sell used infant and toddler clothes but also new clothes still with tags on. My article Buying Clothes From Online Consignment Stores to Resell goes over step-by-step on how to take advantage of their system.a
4. Used Electronics
More and more you see used Cell phones, tablets, gaming system and other electronic devices being sold at thrift stores. Sometimes they are on shelves, other times they might be behind the counter or locked in a case. Make sure you look thru them carefully as many are being sold cheaply that can be resold.
A quick way to check prices is to use Amazon’s Trade-In program. Simply enter the item and check to see how much its worth. Sometimes it’s more profitable to trade in the item with Amazon for something brand new that can be sold with a bigger profit margin.
5. Furniture Pieces
If your pretty handy and have some talent, you can make a killing from rehabbing or redecorating dated furniture pieces. Most of the wood furniture pieces such as end tables, drawers, chairs can be sanded down, repainted and/or reupholstered into catchy new pieces that many are dying to buy.
And because these furniture pieces are from the 60s, 70s and 80s they are made from solid wood and not the fake stuff you find from Ikea. For some ideas, check out my Pinterest board. You can fetch great money for these rehabbed furniture pieces on Craigslist or flee markets.
6. Books
Even with the personnel at thrift stores doing their best at identifying which items are of value or not, there are simply too many books for them to check. Textbooks and hardback books sometimes sell for much higher than what you can get them for at thrift stores. And just like clothes, some of them are even new.
Pull out BookScouter on your phone and start checking prices. It might take a while but you almost always find at least a few books that you can resell for profit.
Every so often you get lucky and you find books with the author’s signature within them and/or money inside! This really depends on how much time you want to look through books during your thrift store shopping.
In Conclusion
Thrifting is one of those enjoyable things to do that’s also relaxing and profitable! If you are planning on hitting multiple stores within the same day, make sure you plan your day out first to maximize time. Have fun and good luck!
I love thrift store finds and would really like to turn a profit
Unfortunately, Sears, Roebuck and Company stores are out of business. ☹
But Craftsman is not. Our local True Value Hardware store now sells Craftsman tools. Check your local or nearby hardware store.