I’ve Got Twenty Dollars In My Pocket
Though it may not be promoted in commercials or billboards, thrift store shopping is a smart and stylish way to save money while entering a new semester.
Year after year, stores like JCPenney, Macy’s, and Sears premiere “inexpensive” back-to-school commercials, but their 20 to 50 percent off merchandise can still leave a gaping hole right through your wallet.
Add in shoes, school supplies and the many other superficial must-have accessories that peers tend to judge one another by. Multiply that by the number of siblings you do/don’t have and you’ve got the equivalent amount of your Federal Pell Grant.
Now many students are able to do all this and still have dollars to stretch along their not-so-tight budgets, but in reality many are not as fortunate.
Shopping at secondhand stores is a better way to increase your savings. It makes for better budgeting, allows you to express your own individual taste and can guarantee you high-end designer names in fashion for a very low price.
The Red White & Blue Thrift Store (12640 NE 6th Ave., Miami, FL 33161 with a second location in Hialeah) makes shopping an enjoyable experience. Every Wednesday the store provides 50 percent off discount specials for senior citizens. And every Saturday this outlet color coordinates its entire store for your benefit. How sweet is that?
“If you have enough patience and don’t mind walking around a couple of times, then this is the place to be,” said Ida Rosario, manager of the RW&B in North Miami for over 20 years. “We house all kinds of attire for everyone, though ladies clothing is most abundant. And all kinds of people from Haitians to Spanish people shop here, it’s very diverse.”
Throughout the years I’ve scored rollers skates, books and a game of scrabble. I usually spend 50 cents to $1.25 per item.
Out of the Closet (2900 Biscayne Blvd.) was declared the best thrift store in 2015 by Broward/Palm Beach New Times. Besides stocking clothing from ready-to-wear to high-end brands like Gucci, Versace, and even Prada, OOTC possess a wide inventory of CDs, records, books and shoes. A percentage of all proceeds gets donated to their AIDS/HIV healthcare foundation, testing sites, wellness center and pharmacy.
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“A lot of our retail fashion is donated, mainly by rich people, but here we offer them at the lowest prices you won’t find anywhere else,” said Randall Parker, an OOTC cashier turned manager.
During my visit to OOTC I saw a varied selection of clothes, hats, books and shoes. A unique feature are free colorful condoms at the checkout.
There are more than 20 OOTC stores nationwide, some are even in overseas dreamy travel spots like Amsterdam and the Netherlands. Luckily for us, four are comfortably sitting right in South Florida.
Once frowned upon, thrift shops from Goodwill to Miami Twice to the Bargain Barn are now good options. They’re fun, cheap and retro without the tackiness. Second hand shopping allows that judgmental barrier of knowing a person’s wealth to disappear. You too can look the bomb.com for a fraction of the price.
