Somehow, people always manage to take things a step too far.
Or in this case a shop too far.
We tend to forget that for some people, second-hand shopping is a need. No, it’s not an ‘I want to save money' kind of need. It’s more of an ‘I need a new pair of shoes and if these don’t come from a thrift shop, I’ll be walking barefoot’ kind of need. A big difference. A vital difference. An overlooked difference.
Day in and day out, social media platforms like Tik Tok are flooded with influencers and their so-called ‘thrift-hauls’. Ironically enough you will see their packed wardrobe at the back of their videos. Quite a juxtaposing image, if you ask me. Thrifting and hauling, are like pineapple and pizza. Two things which should not go together, but people are determined to pair up.
One of the central aspects of thrift shopping is conscious buying. Bulk buying is not even a long distanced cousin of consciousness. It is so easy to just let your mind go and unleash your consumer monster in charity shops. Cheap and cool, is in other words an open invitation to ‘take my money away'. However, next time you’re in a second-hand shop, think about those for who these stores are their only option, and let your needs outweigh your wants. Don’t get me wrong, give yourself a whim every so often, but keep in mind there’s an Atlantic sized difference between whim and ‘I’m gonna buy these five blouses, cause I might (please, realise how this is bold and underlined) wear one of them at next week’s party.
However, then there’s another chapter in the self-serving thrift shopping book, which I’m honestly even unsettled writing about. Those who thrift and resell to make a profit on platforms like Depop. Your face should go side by side with the word greedy in the dictionary.
Items that are sold for under a tenner in charity shops are sold for 70 pounds online. This is unbelievably opportunistic and flat out wrong. Items that were meant to be inexpensive and accessible for the majority, have turned into exorbitantly priced clothes which are affordable to the few. Calling something vintage is not the magic word for adding value. If you put a french flag on blue cheese, it doesn't change the fact it is still a three-pound cheese from Lidl.
Let’s stop this ugly trend we have of turning something mostly positive into something unequivocally evil.
Comments