Ummmm…I wasn’t feeling much good will when Judy and I went to the Goodwill store. The prices are crazy! Almost everything in there is cheaper new. I don’t get it. Is it some sort of a tax write-off boondoggle? I saw a couple of “executives” in an office…all dressed up and their cars out front were expensive. This is a HUGE store. It must cost a fortune to heat, cool and light, plus it was way over-staffed. This place must benefit somebody, but it’s not poor people or anyone who wants to buy stuff at a good price!Does anyone know why Goodwill is like this?
I’ve been doing some research. For the folks rich enough to itemize on their taxes, this is quite a windfall!
Then we went to the Salvation Army. It was another humongous store with greatly inflated prices. I am appalled. Lucky for Judy and I, we know a place that sells stuff cheap. No way am I spilling the beans on them. It’s in a rough part of town and yuppies must avoid it. It’s the only thrift store us po’ folks can actually afford to shop in. Thank goodness for the dumpster and recycle area near my apartment! That’s the one place I can “shop” even at the end of the month. Dumpster diving Rules! 
Yep they are the same way here…BOTH of the stores. Cheaper to go to Walmart for new clothes then pay those used prices
I agree with the Goodwill sentiments but our local Salvation Army is ALOT better. The thrift stores around here are great too. Don’t forget freecycle!
We stopped going to the goodwill around here for just that reason. Luckily there is a terrific one run by a local hospital that is terrific.
I couldn’t agree with you more!! Things are never a bargain in there..if by chance we need an item we can usually watch sales and get it cheaper and brand new!~
same here on the goodwill. salvation army is still much more affordable. i told the staff at gw that they have lost a customer due to their price gouging on my last trip there.
they get free goods from target and sell those items at even higher prices. plus, if something isn’t priced, they refuse to sell it.
Our Goodwill isn’t overpriced, per se, but everything in it is crappy! You can’t find any good bargains if nothing is worth purchasing. My kids worked for a charity that runs two stores, and that’s where we go. I got a dress that had 79.00 tags on it for two dollars. It came with a necklace (Which was ugly) and the necklace was broken, so it was marked way down. I didn’t want the necklace anyway, and two bucks for a little black dress to wear to a funeral – well, you can’t beat that! ~~K~~
I could not agree with you more!!! I have even complained about this to Goodwill in the past. It is aggravating and ridiculous to want to “shop for a cause” by going into the store in the first place, then to be expected to pay exhorbitant prices for stuff that cost that store NOTHING. I’m not going to argue about the overhead costs, payroll, blah, blah, blah. Lots of retail stores have the same costs- plus one- they actually have to pay for the crap they sell to consumers!
The misconception about Goodwill is that it’s a charity. It is NOT a charity. It is a corporation. About inflated prices, it varies by location and managment. The local Goodwill here is grossly overpriced while the Salvation Army is more reasonable and the manager will sometimes go down on prices/haggle with you. GOodwill throws away dumpers full of donations without even going through them and will threaten to call the police if you take anything from it. The dumper is out in the parking lot about 40 feet away from the building. Anyhow, out in California I saw just the opposite going on. Salvation Amry stores were priced (and marketed) like Antiqued stores. Meanwhile the Goodwill stores were more run down and lower priced. So it all depends on who they get to run the stores. When I called Goodwill to complain about the store here they said I had to take it up with the local management.