I think you are spot on Pete. I think it is their choice to raise prices, but they will kill an entire industry in the process. They think they can get what ebay is getting, but only because everyone thinks they can get the prices they see on ebay. I think it is immoral to bring in free stuff and jack the prices up sky high, as well as pick through certain things and sell them on ebay exclusively. Goodwill has an ebay account and they hire professionals to value the good items and they throw them up on ebay before anyone like you gets to even look at the items. It is getting pretty scammy if you ask me.
I see Ross tags at the Goodwill. LOL. I also saw a dollar store item for sale for .99. Whenever they get some padded mailers, they cost as much as new ones.
joe lane please inform everyone of the programs at Goodwill that help the poor. You need to get the word out. Now if you are talking about Salvation Army or St Vincent DePaul, yes they do help the poor and needy. Goodwill is a for profit company period. They are trying to open stores in every zipcode and they are running up the prices on commercial real estate so their competition (Salvation Army and St Vincent DePaul) cannot afford to open more stores that really do help the poor and needy
DiggingIntoYesterday I kind of agree. Reselling isn't as easy as it looks in these videos (it isn't really hard) and people soon realize it actually takes work and years to build it into a business. I think it may be a fad that will fade with time but I could be wrong.
Yes, it's a lot of work and to make any real money at it you have to grind constantly. I think a lot of people are just drawn to the allure of being their own boss, but don't push themselves hard enough to really get anything out of it. These types are better suited for a traditional 9-5 and would most definitely make more money working for someone else. In this game there are no time clocks or set hours, but if you have no drive you aren't gonna eat.
It's the reason I stopped making UA-cam videos. I always thought people were stupid by putting out their business model and sales out there for attention. I started doing that myself then had to step back. Thrift picking isn't ruined. I'm still getting amazing stuff every week
DiggingIntoYesterday no it was the greedy ceo of goodwill. They are their to help people make something of themself to be able to support their familia this is what reseller on youtube are doing. Goodwill just got greedy. Where are all the people they have help get jobs. By trying to get the youtube reseller they are also hurting the community with their stupid prices.
The golden age is gone ppl. that is what happens posting videos about making killer money. Goodwill CEO saw it.. and said "HEY, I am losing so much money."
Exactly, it's only so long a company will let a bunch of people rub it in there face about how much money you make off of them. It's not dead because they still make mistakes but the margin is slim
I agree, to a point. We are the ones taking the risk. Cleaning, checking operation, listing and then taking the hit if returned. We ship, pay fees etc. also, in my little town, there is no where near the exposure (market) that commands the price. We list on an international platform and still have to wait for the sale.
My problem with Goodwill is they talk about helping the community there's a lot of people that I know need helping the community that cannot afford their stuff! That being said talking to a couple Managers from the East Coast they don't want to give up the good stuff to resellers but yet there's a lot of talk of the managers taking the stuff for his shelf and reselling it themselves... my local Goodwill had a dresser priced at $900 how can somebody that really needs a dresser they can't afford new pay for that.. bottom line managers and CEO are worried about their salaries. PS people need to watch the CBS story they did on Goodwill and how the CEOs and the regional managers make Megabucks and they still pay disability people less than a dollar an hour the name of the video is (Goodwill exploits workers with Penny wages) sorry this is all text to speech for the grammatical errors
Their mission is to help people who have a hard time working get a job, not to supply cheap items to the community. They also use their proceeds to do a lot of charitable work. Their mission was never to provide cheap goods, it's just something got used to for a while and started thinking that was the case.
Visited the Salvation Army store in Galveston, Texas recently. They had an art deco period bedroom suite (in decent shape, not great) priced at $2699.99. They are just as bad as Goodwill overall.
the thing is that, at $50 or a other high price nobody will buy it at a thrift store. atleast no poor people. if it is priced $1, then either a reseller gets to earn some money on it (and they are most often not rich as well) or someone else that is poor gets to buy it. but then it atleast gets sold.
I work at Sears full time. We sell clearance T shirts band new sometimes as $2.99 or $3.99. NEW. NOT USED. Shows how greedy Goodwill is selling used ass shirts for that price.
Marc Davis I don't mean greed as in immorally greedy. I mean greedy as in "expecting to much" in return for products in a store that basically looks like a dumpster. It will be their downfall as a company because they got "greedy". Understand my context. You can say a drug lord got greedy or was greedy for screwing over his dealers and it got him killed. It has nothing to do with "rights". It's just my opinion. Of course they have the right. It's just retarded and them being greedy. Anyone can get greedy.
That is the worst part. If Goodwill is hiring eBay & jewelry experts to maximize profits, why don’t some of these ‘experts’ tell the Managers at Goodwill that you shouldn’t price used $ Store items for more than new? Anyone who shops at the $ store recognizes most of their brands.
I wish t shirts were $2.99 here in Ont Canada. Its $7 a t shirt, $11 for button down, $12 for jeans, $8 for shorts and $45 for suit coats. Clothing game is almost a no go around here. Great video Pete! Also the last few goodwills I went to the managers asked why I dont spend a few $100 every time now. I explained its because you put all the video game son ebay and try to ask ebay prices for everything in store. I told them I have a e waste guy now I deal with for electronics. The one manager said they have seen about 35% decrease in sales since raising the price but a 18% jump in revenue! So they are not changing there ways. He almost seemed mad I did not want to spend $100s any more.
This is how you fix the problem: Go on Google Reviews and RATE your local Goodwill. Let the general public know the item you donated was listed on Ebay 24 hours after you dropped it off.
I think the public who donated it would rather know that Goodwill listed it and made money (hopefully for charity) - fulfilling the purpose of those who donated the item - than to see it listed on ebay by a reseller instead. Sorry, just being truthful here.
People Don't care where it goes they just want the stuff gone from their house. I could see goodwill going totally online. They get crazy prices for stuff on their auction sit And the shipping they charge is crazy high.
Can you imagine? Back in the 1960's and 70's, Goodwill actually hired handicapped people and TRAINED THEM to REPAIR things, in-house! They took in donations of broken TV's, radios, furniture, washing machines and other appliances, and FIXED them, then sold them at affordable middle-class prices! They don't do that anymore. That was really helping the community, with those jobs and skills.
Back in those decades this country made things that were designed to be repaired if they broke. Now we have planned obsolescence--you either can't fix the item, because it was designed that way, or it's more expensive to fix than it is to get a brand new item. Don't blame that crap on Goodwill. You don't see many small engine/appliance repair shops around anymore, either. That is how our economy has been designed in the last few decades.
Great video =) When resellers Tag goodwill in instagram posts and haul videos, plus tell what brands sell for, and how much profit they make it comes back to bite you in the ass! Yes they are watching...
I know.... people are so stupid....once hits mainstream...the game is over....and the real issue is just the internet 6 years ago people weren't looking items up unless they know they paid a lot for it...now cause of videos and people wanting to "show off what they found / help ppl quit their day job" goodwill/salvation is for ppl who need discounted items for them....how can you get mad at goodwill hahaha go out and find the real deals...not the easy bullshit t-shirts and shoes (2.99 way to much hahahaha...oh wow 14.99)
I totally agree with you, Pete! Goodwill is way over priced now. I rarely find anything worth reselling there anymore. It seems like a lot of their merchandise is being sold at retail prices.
I am in New York, Nassau County on Long Island. I find plenty out here to resell, but never at Goodwill. Goodwill is absolutely overpriced, in many instances they are asking for more than retail prices. I think it's plain disgusting the way they get 100% free inventory and then charge retail prices as if it is new.
@Craigslist Hunter, I get great stuff from the Craigslist "free stuff" column, much better than Goodwill, best time to work the free stuff column is Saturday and Sunday after 4pm, going up to 8pm
That's also a great way to get supplies, especially at the end of the month when people are moving - I get tons of bubble wrap/boxes/and packing peanuts that way.
yes, I agree with that things I received from the free column in good condition with good market value: snow blowers/Ariens, lawn mowers, ladders, power drills & saws, wrought iron patio sets-Woodard brand, ovens ,home furniture, commercial gym equipment-Icarian/Precor brand, industrial shelving, vintage electronics, Klipsch & Cerwin Vega speakers, Crown amplifiers, free weights, dumbbells, weight benches, office furniture & equipment etc...
Thanks for the video Pete. Gotta say though,, good for Goodwill for identifying loss of revenue. While I understand the frustration in losing a resource, it was bound to happen eventually. You guys showed them through your videos that the public will pay big bucks for their wares,, so why shouldn't they ask the same prices that the resellers are selling it for? After all,,, they are in it to profit,,, not to provide profit for others. Think about it,,, you've made several videos showing you purchased a $5.00 VCR from them and then sold it on ebay for $40.00. Why wouldn't they cut out you ( the middle man ) and maximize their profit on the same item using the same pricing model? Remember,, you guys showed them that the public is willing to pay that price. Through your videos you are setting the price that they can also sell at. All that said, I still love ya Pete,,, keep on hustling!!
GA1dad. I understand your point. I don't think you get the reseller's view. The company has completely abandoned their initial goals. It doesn't matter who buys what.. So it morally and financially makes no sense. They are blaming us resellers when we physically and financially put in the WORK to make a small profit while giving them LOTS of business & MONEY. While they are screwing everyone else in the process. They should favor the reseller.
They have become the middleman in the eBay selling in there system instead of the reseller. The only time stuff that's resell-able or profitable gets put out is when they make a mistake or they do not look up the value before pricing it. I was going to their store here 365 days a year for a while and it was only then that i would find great deals but in perspective I spent over $10,000 in one year at our local goodwill in 2015, that was more than the entire sum of all my garage sale spending, other thrift store spending, and Craigslist buying, and what I also noticed was the goodwill buys were always the things I made the least profit on. When the do have good stuff, It's not hard to spend $50 at goodwill for $150 in value if you spend a long time looking. But at yard sales it's easy to spend $50 over several sales and finding $500+ in profitable stuff. What's most amazing is the rummage sale stuff was being sold dirt cheap by the people who bought it new and the $5 they put on a DVD Recorder with remote is fine with them, there not mistaken on value or anything, they just want it gone. But then look at goodwill, they get a DVD recorder for free, no idea if it works, they put $79 on it because the same model is $100 on eBay, and they are firm on the price.
I am a reseller in a small town in Oregon. There is a good will 2 minuets from my house. I stop there 2 or 3 times every day. They have a schedule of when they put new stuff out and I am there at that time so I can get the first look. They have a lot of turn over and some staff that will not look everything up so good stuff gets to the shelf at a good price. I thing goodwill has changed the pricing strategy but there is much move competition for it. I make $800-$1000 per week or about 1/3 of my income from goodwill, but I also out hustle my competition.
Cantcha Guess? :p Good afternoon, I sell mostly used hard goods. Used electronics and kitchen appliances, sporting goods, tools and antiques. I very rarely sell glass or clothes. I also sell anything MCM decor like clocks and wall art. I can get old mcm tables in poor condition and sell the tapered legs for $15-$60 per set. Plus anything that just catches my eye. The way I think is people will spend money on what they enjoy like eating, sports and music.
Cantcha Guess? :p Sure that's part of the problem, everyone wanting to know what you sell so they can under bid you. Just go out and make it happen. This is what the guy is trying to tell us, be ahead of the game and don't try to be like the next person.
Not just his, like he said there are 100s of people like him telling people and teaching them how to compete with them. And then they call them a "community".
It's the freaking internet! Everyone has a cell phone now and even grandma & grandpa are looking up items! The internet is great but it's also killing so many businesses.
Goodwill IS gouging re-sellers and the general public. C'MON! Those prices are ridiculous! I say all re-sellers unite and not shop any thrift store for 1 week. I know it's difficult to do, but if we all band together and agree to call it a "re-sellers boycott" week where we designate the week and a call to action. Goodwill and other thrift stores will see the impact re-sellers have on the community. Think about it...if the clothes were sold for $1.00 each, we would not have to send them to the landfills the way we do. I went to a Salvation Army on the south side (I believe the one on Cicero) and there was an employee throwing all of the ceramic figurines into a large garbage drum. I asked her why she was breaking them and throwing them into the trash, she said "Because they are not selling". Jeesh! Of course not-not at the prices they were asking! So, they would rather throw them away, then sell them for a quarter or ten cents. SMH
Only in America. No other country or people in the world would be that wasteful. Others in the world re-use everything. I agree with you. If they "can't sell" something, then have a good old-fashioned "blow out sale" for 25-cents and free up that shelf space! These fools don't seem to realize the carrying cost (i.e., STORAGE cost) of merchandise that doesn't move fairly quickly. Every year, I sell a few things (on Craigslist) AT A LOSS, just to get them out the door and out of my storage space.
That is what pisses me off to no end. They sell shit that is broken. They don't even test it to make sure it fucking works the way it's supposed to. That, to me, is a scam. I won't ever buy electronics from them again. They sell shit sky-high and they don't even know if it works. And the thrift stores that put electronics into a bag and hang it on a hook are the worst. If you open it up to see if it works or not, they won't sell it to you because they call it product-tampering. Yet they won't let you return it when you get it home and try it out. It's all a goddamned SCAM.
They want to sell power adapters for $8. They sell stuff so expensively that people are using their phones to see if it's cheaper online. I thought they were all resellers, but, no, some are checking on Ebay to see if it's cheaper there.
I go to the thrift stores and I can't even make myself look for items to sell anymore. The last few times I've gone to the thrifts, I've come out with 1 or 2 items....not worth it anymore. I find myself shopping for myself instead. I think those stores are going to lose a lot of resellers buying from them, but they still have a lot of interested people to buy their stuff. I always see lots of teenagers shopping and I families with loaded carts. I feel bad for resellers that depend mostly on thrift stores to earn an income...prices are too high to make it worth it. I do the reselling thing because I can't get a regular job as I'm a caregiver, but I do it to have spending money not necessarily for bills. I'm going to have to find another way to make money. I'm used to the extra money...I can't go back to how it was. I've had more freedom with the extra money. I'm done with thrifting as my main source. Tfs. Cheers!
Just made over $100 profit on a goodwill find. Found something else the other day will make around $120 on. It's hit and miss. Some stores price a walkman for 2.99 others have it for 14.99 behind a showcase. Think every store is different. Some of the store managers don't have a good eye, some do. Bought this light up pink flamingo for $5 sold for over $100 the next day. Saw a generator the other day for $75, looked it up and you can get it new for the same price. That same store I bought a Sony Walkman for $2.99 sold for $80 on auction. You're not gonna find stuff every day. I mean you can find cheap stuff everyday, if you want to list hundreds of things. But I'm going for $100 and up profit.
Goodwills in my area are junk, so it must be the high end items are going to auction. Savers is off the chain, charging retail prices. I quit going to these stores because it was a waste of my time. My local honey hole, they sit around looking everything up on eBay all day and it makes me crazy. It is very challenging for me to find stuff. I never find the same thing twice at a good price, and I count on the volunteers who don't want to look crap up all day. I do well at estate sales but only if there's no jewelry or guns. Jewelry and guns brings the buyers who bid everything up too high to make a buck. Can't do garage sales yet because I'm taking a one year old with me everywhere I go. She isn't ready. I love the work though. Thanks for the video, Pete.
Pictabelly Sly yup and you can thank big mouth resellers bragging in the stores about how they find items and make alot of money..I don't care if I find a gold bar I always let my mouth shut to employees in thrift stores...the employees and managers over time caught on and that's why the prices are jacked up...thanks big mouth resellers for ruining the business
Pictabelly Sly my husband worked at goodwill when he was young, decades ago. The big bosses took the good stuff right off the top and employees got second pick. What was left got sold. Goodwill not so good.
You said goodwill was ruined by UA-cam and youtubers and that they distribute YOUR videos for education. You're my favourite youtuber and unfortunately you are the problem. Goodwill uses your videos to educate the pricing staff, you are literally the reason there is no meat on the bone. They told you that to your face
Unfortunately Pete, I agree about the Videos... Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy your videos as-well-as other resellers videos... However the fact remains that there is too much information out there which leads to too many people in the business which leads too thrift stores hiking prices. I am a teacher but have been a reseller part time since 1990’s. The golden age was 1998-2012 or so... I still make good money but it’s tough. Do not use the reward cards, they track your purchases. I had a manager tell me that what ever I buy (he knows I resell) they raise the price by 10% no the same item next time. They keep doing this until they see me not buy the item. I have noticed on backpacks for example. I live in an area where good quality backpacks come in weekly. Sometimes I find three or four a week. They are good sellers... I usually pick them up for $15 or less and sell them for $50-$150... The last several months the Good Will has raised their prices to the $35-$50 on the backpacks I was picking up. It’s all about the data we are giving them on the rewards cards. They analyze what’s flying off the shelf and then they crank up the price...
You can occasionally get a rare score at Goodwill but I've pretty much stopped going everything is so overpriced. $4.99 for a basic T-shirt!! And you thought $2.99 was overpriced. It's become a waste of time at Goodwill.
Our GW prices used tees for $3.99. I wait til 50% off certain color day and maybe can find one occasionally for $2. I just got myself clothes at Kohl’s end of season sale for about $4 each BRAND NEW. I don’t shop the thrifts much anymore even for myself,it’s just too hard to find a good price.
My local Goodwill has actually started basing their prices off of Ebay prices. They are trying to sell a rocking horse with a broken head for $25.99...crazy....Because of their price hikes my ability to source has plummeted and my sales have dropped by 63% in the last 30 days. I understand they are a business but come on. I am a quadriplegic and reselling has allowed me to be a productive member of society again but if I can't source I'm screwed.
Yeah we noticed the game change here as well in NW Arkansas. Jacked up prices on jacked up merchandise. Now we go straight to yard sales. We do free pick ups yeah we have to sort thru some stuff but we are a big family and a full size truck load only takes a few mins to go thru. And we take the not so good stuff to....NOT GOODWILL unless a lot then we get a donation receipt for taxes.
"Because of their price hikes my ability to source has plummeted and my sales have dropped by 63% in the last 30 days." Lol, I know this is horrible, I'm a re-seller myself but that was just a little funny.
Try other thrift stores and online flipping, like letgo and offerup. Goodwill has never been the best place for sourcing because they've always been the greediest chain thrift store. It doesn't sound like you can easily do garage sales, but it should work out if you do online flips.
Pete, You know Goodwill sells on eBay... As brick and mortar, Goodwill is the store with prices comparable to eBay prices. Moreover, People can shop at those prices in a Goodwill and not have to wait for merchandise to be shipped to Them. Goodwill managers are loving this opportunity to sell in the stores and on eBay, when profit margins can be increased. They are basically copying You, Pete. I just don't like it when They do it in their sort of hypocritical way. It was over for Goodwill, with Me 3 years ago, or more. They are worthless to a Reseller, here in Southern Indiana. To Goodwill, I would ask Good WHAT?
No they can't shop Goodwill instead of eBay. How many people are going to scour Goodwill stores for days and weeks on end looking for an item that can be found on eBay in a matter of minutes.
Curt Egerer exactly if I am willing to pay Ebay prices for something then I will sit at home in my recliner and order it from Ebay where I can return it and get my money back if it doesn't work. Instead of out driving around hitting up Goodwills hoping to find what I'm looking for and then can't return it.
I don't think you get the reseller's view. The company has completely abandoned their initial goals. It doesn't matter who buys what.. So it morally and financially makes no sense. They are blaming us resellers when we physically and financially put in the WORK to make a small profit while giving them LOTS of business & MONEY. While they are screwing everyone else in the process. They should favor the reseller.
Goodwill has been dead for 2yrs bro. It seems like often they price the items right about ebay price. I personally only go there if I'm "scrapping the bottom of the barrel" so to speak. The troubling thing is salvation army is similar now. The other day I offered to buy ten pairs of shoes at a discounted price and got shot down hardcore. Not to mention at least five of them were risky items. Thrifting is becoming a hardcore lottery. Takes the fun of thrifting away. Love your work and insight.
Yeah good will sucks. I've known this for about two years now. Their prices went way up about two years ago and I noticed it then. It makes me sick. Also, their CEO makes more than a million dollars a year. This whole "charity" thing they flex is such a scheme to just charge more.
My best picks have been at yard sales. You want to catch that old guy who is moving. He just doesn't want to take it all in the move and has lots of old, quality stuff. I got some amazing tools that way. Some are so good (American-made) that I keep a few for my own use!
An estate sale in my neighborhood had all items priced extremely high. The last day of sale there were no big discounts. Next day, huge dumpster in front of house. Items not sold went into the huge dumpster and it was filled to the top! All went to the landfill, just too greedy to lower their prices.
Estate sale are the shit! lol. I love going on the last day. They practically give things away depending on the person. I like buying up the watch lots. Watches are always unpicked because people don't take the time. I got some really good brands just a day ago. Making over a 500 dollar profit.
Depends on what you look for. I always look for things know one would expect is valuable. Like auto parts. Allot of vintage auto parts go for allot of cash. Some lady who run's an estate sale might know about antiques, at the same time she probably knows nothing about a vintage pair of Moroso valve covers. :].
The Goodwill game has been quickly dying off in the past year for every reason that you mentioned. Also, I hear from store employees about entire categories of items that have disappeared from the stores because they're going on the Shopgoodwill website. All we can do is wait until their stores are inundated with unsellable inventory and they finally get the idea. On the other hand, it's also sad that there are so many uninformed new resellers who are actually buying this overpriced junk from their shelves. Let these newbies cycle themselves out of the game by next year and things might change.
Gruve Records I’m one of those newbies, and I don’t buy stuff that doesn’t have any profit. Nobody does that. It’s a waste of time and money. But if I go to several goodwills, I often find stuff that got missed. The “pricer” was high that day or didn’t recognize the brand. I have the best luck with full priced, mispriced items than heavily discounted ones. I keep track of the tag colors so I know which items are the new ones, and I go at times when they are putting new stuff out and just scan the categories I sell for new items pretty quickly. And if all else fails, you wait until half off day and usually that’s enough to give some items a profit margin that makes it worth it. You were a newbie once, too, so don’t go piss on Newbies because Goodwill learned how to use the Internet. But I only go to each Goodwill near me about once a week.
a smart thrift will move stuff out at cheap prices, depending on how much is coming in. By the way, most people think goodwills are a non-profit enterprise, the fact is they are not, they're strictly for profit and always have been. They're now trying to get retail, obviously. What they fail to realize is they're not going to move all that much at full retail.
Most thrifts in my area have either gone out of business, or they've gotten so high I don't even bother to look there any more. Fortunately, there is one good one not too far away, they generally sell things by the bag full, 5 bucks for a large paper grocery bag, whatever you can fit in it. a small paper shopping bag for a dollar, whatever fits in it. Even when I buy stuff that doesn't fit in bags, they're still pretty cheap, sometimes they sell larger items really cheap just to get them gone, floor space is always at a premium. What clothes they don't put out for resale, they sell to a company that takes the material and makes other things out of them like cleaning cloths. Of course, they started the bag thing when just simply huge amounts of goods kept coming in. Now, some is trash, but if you're selective, you can find stuff to resale at very cheap prices sometimes making ten to 150 times your investment.
Oh, they've been investigated, many times. Fact is, they never claim to be non-profit, and do not file under non profit, so they're in the clear... technically. Though ethically, yeah they're kinda screwing us over. A small percentage of what they make does go to charity, so they can get away with a lot. One of our local thrifts that helped what is called Hannah Home and some boys ranch sold out... to a for profit company... a small percentage still goes back to the charities, so they continue to use the charity names, but if you go in the store, you can tell they're definitely not non profit any more. Used to be I could buy stuff cheap there, so cheap it was cheaper to go buy more clothes than do laundry. (I didn't have my own then so I had to go to a laundromat) so I'd just go buy more sweats, and t-shirts, the only thing I had to launder was my socks and underwhere, which can be done by hand. Now, forgeddaboudit. they want more than retail for used junk, and are now selling a lot of new but cheap merchandise at inflated prices. Or at least they're trying to they certainly don't get the business they used to. The parking lot used to be full all the time, now there's hardly anyone in the store at any time of the day. Why would anyone pay retail for used when they can pay the same for new or maybe even pay less for new.? Back to Goodwill, the guy that founded it got rich and sold out years ago, I don't know if he's even still kickin' but he's no longer involved. They used to hire handicapped a lot, but that wasn't out of any sense of altruism, they hired them because they could get them cheap and often some state or federal program paid their wages and benefits.
Goodwill is a nonprofit. A nonprofit is just a specific form of corporation, and it doesn't mean they can't have huge revenues. They just need to use the revenues for their job training thing. My guess is that they are making a trade off on revenues: they used to count on volume, but now they are looking for the margin, and figuring out ways to get rid of inventory outside of the retail locations, like at their bins.
I think you better check again Most of them don't even have job training programs. I'm not sure how it all works, they may be some kind of franchise deal now. Once upon a time, some did have job training programs and such. I don't know about all of them. However, if you check closely, they are not incorporated as a non-profit. Least ways, not today.
The goodwills here in Arkansas, have been no good at all for sourcing for at least the last 4 years. I don't even darken their door.. they are a useful place to ditch old tvs & monitors because they will still take them to recycle.. I don't see them as a viable source even for personal items as matter fact, they are just to high.. I used to Sell a lot of books on ebay but never from goodwill industry's they have had someone looking them up here in central Arkansas for last several years. These goodwills here even list stuff on ebay themselves.
You make plenty of money off UA-cam with advertising and 78,000 subscribers, so you don't get to cry. Now the rest of us, yeah, we can cry about the inflated prices at Goodwill of late thanks to you and other resellers who showed off your hauls on UA-cam and bragged about all the money you made. You are doing so well that you even turn your nose up to $10 profit margins, but we little resellers are happy to get even that. Thanks a lot for killing our market.
At a Goodwill by me there's been a Sony Hi8 video cam (no battery or cords) on the shelf for 6 weeks priced at $49.99. I LOL every time I pass it. They definitely try to get ebay listed prices on a lot of things (electronics mainly). Over priced stuff doesn't sell here. It sits, taking up space on their shelves. They'll learn eventually and lower prices. In the mean time, the more amateur part time flippers that get scared off and quit, the better.
lol I have argued with people like Chad that we are screwing up the market but we are helping people I guess. Just making it harder to make a living lol
My jaw hit the floor when i saw the prices! Unbelievable.... i'm out if this is what all Goodwills will be doing. I'll not support thrifts that are greedy like that. This is also why i never round up at the registers. It's only to line the pockets for corporate.
when they price items so high, how are they able to not have all of their stores overflowing? i imagine at some point they receive more than they sell and just throw stuff away to make space
True. They are hiding from the public how much they are actually sending to the town landfills. It's a scandal waiting to happen. They could move ALL of that merchandise if they'd quit being stubborn and just lower the prices, have a "blow out sale" till it's gone.
People do treat thrift stores like garbage dumps and from what i hear from these videos where insiders talk about goodwill, the stuff is not exactly in the most sanitary of environments while they're on the trucks so a lot of things they throw away are for good reason . Goodwills are busy places, but not busy enough to sell $20+ vhs cassette players. What they don't understand is that each store has its own economy based on their environment. Ebay has millions of customers and your neighborhood goodwill has maybe hundreds. No excuse for them to mark up ripped up JCP suits to $25-30. Some of the stuff that's marked up in my goodwills I wouldn't in good faith auction off at 0.01, i would just toss it in the bin because it makes my store look bad, and im a guy selling clothes from home, i don't have a stockroom loaded with hundreds of items. I hope they catch on to the potential profit of fast cash with virtually unlimited merchandise
@@susangarcia6233 they send nothing to a landfills lol. They auction the junk and what doesn't sell off to 3rd world countries. I'm not lying either. They dont even donate it to the needy countries. They sell it to them. I have a friend that worked in the back room getting those pallets together
I stopped going to Savers and Goodwill about a year ago. In my area no meat left on bone. It’s ok though, I stopped doing EBay. Still resell but source and sell elsewhere.🤙
I work at the Goodwill at a donation site. They have us putting any items that are worth money in a special bin so they can sell online on ebay. This is why you are not seeing anything good in the stores. All gaming stuff, high end purses, collectables, etc are all sold online. They said the online sales are starting to surpass the store on money being made.
All thrift stores have become boutiques. I understand these places have overhead and they help the community but come on!!! They get this stuff for free!!!
I get 99 percent of my items for free cause I dumpster dive & have lived in my my house for 30 years so just finding n hoarding I guess. Had crab legs for dinner last nite. Free.
I stopped thrift stores they are looking up prices on eBay completed listings, the prices are always close to ebays solds. I source garage sales and flea markets.
You have so many more options! Storage auctions, Thousands of online auctions, Ebay, Amazon, Estate Sales, Yard sales, Facebook Market Place, Let go, Offer Up, Mercari, Liquidation pallets, and tons of other places to source. I can keep going. Find some of the smaller thrift stores. I live in norcal and we have a ton of options out here. People just need to hustle more! I do agree Goodwill prices are out of control.
Game over, man. Game over. Lots of resellers there who are making 3-10 bucks per item. They haven't figured out that they are making less than minimum wage.
Right I would guarantee you there's not anyone going to Pets Shoppe to buy things to resell, it's funny how these resellers will go to a garage sale or wherever and complain about the price being too high and then they turn around and resell it for four times what they paid for it kind of disingenuous, and dishonest,They should have to give their merchandise away so the resellers can get rich/earn a living
I'm in CT and Goodwill prices have been too high recently. You can buy clothing items for $2 each on Sunday but I stopped selling clothing. Electronics are priced at eBay prices at the Goodwill now.
100% of the shit Goodwill gets is free to them not 90%, they pay not one dime for ANYTHING...so , yes they are making too much off of free items DONATED from people.
they have their own online resale site called e-com the site is shopgoodwill.com they have their stores send the good stuff to "e-com" and they auction it off on the website. its over for resellers and eBay too because eBay won't be collecting their cuts of the sales anymore either.
I think you are spot on Pete. I think it is their choice to raise prices, but they will kill an entire industry in the process. They think they can get what ebay is getting, but only because everyone thinks they can get the prices they see on ebay. I think it is immoral to bring in free stuff and jack the prices up sky high, as well as pick through certain things and sell them on ebay exclusively. Goodwill has an ebay account and they hire professionals to value the good items and they throw them up on ebay before anyone like you gets to even look at the items. It is getting pretty scammy if you ask me.
they are trying to sell preowned clothing for more than new on the clearance rack at TJMaxx and Ross
Yes, I frequently see Dollar Tree items priced at $2 and $3! So ridiculous!
The Goodwill close to me has a Ross next door. I know which entrance I'll use next time!
I see Ross tags at the Goodwill. LOL. I also saw a dollar store item for sale for .99. Whenever they get some padded mailers, they cost as much as new ones.
nuts isn't it? and most of it looks like crap to me. Also check out JC penny
joe lane please inform everyone of the programs at Goodwill that help the poor. You need to get the word out. Now if you are talking about Salvation Army or St Vincent DePaul, yes they do help the poor and needy. Goodwill is a for profit company period. They are trying to open stores in every zipcode and they are running up the prices on commercial real estate so their competition (Salvation Army and St Vincent DePaul) cannot afford to open more stores that really do help the poor and needy
Hate to say it, but thrift picking was ruined by youtubers - years ago. This is not a new thing.
Seems like every industry is being affected by UA-camrs. People watch the videos then they all want to go out and do it for themselves.
DiggingIntoYesterday I kind of agree. Reselling isn't as easy as it looks in these videos (it isn't really hard) and people soon realize it actually takes work and years to build it into a business. I think it may be a fad that will fade with time but I could be wrong.
Yes, it's a lot of work and to make any real money at it you have to grind constantly. I think a lot of people are just drawn to the allure of being their own boss, but don't push themselves hard enough to really get anything out of it. These types are better suited for a traditional 9-5 and would most definitely make more money working for someone else. In this game there are no time clocks or set hours, but if you have no drive you aren't gonna eat.
It's the reason I stopped making UA-cam videos. I always thought people were stupid by putting out their business model and sales out there for attention. I started doing that myself then had to step back.
Thrift picking isn't ruined. I'm still getting amazing stuff every week
DiggingIntoYesterday no it was the greedy ceo of goodwill. They are their to help people make something of themself to be able to support their familia this is what reseller on youtube are doing. Goodwill just got greedy. Where are all the people they have help get jobs. By trying to get the youtube reseller they are also hurting the community with their stupid prices.
The golden age is gone ppl. that is what happens posting videos about making killer money. Goodwill CEO saw it.. and said "HEY, I am losing so much money."
Exactly, it's only so long a company will let a bunch of people rub it in there face about how much money you make off of them. It's not dead because they still make mistakes but the margin is slim
You hit the nail on top!
Exactly.
I agree
I agree, to a point. We are the ones taking the risk. Cleaning, checking operation, listing and then taking the hit if returned. We ship, pay fees etc. also, in my little town, there is no where near the exposure (market) that commands the price. We list on an international platform and still have to wait for the sale.
GreedWill
FreeStuff GreedWill
My problem with Goodwill is they talk about helping the community there's a lot of people that I know need helping the community that cannot afford their stuff! That being said talking to a couple Managers from the East Coast they don't want to give up the good stuff to resellers but yet there's a lot of talk of the managers taking the stuff for his shelf and reselling it themselves... my local Goodwill had a dresser priced at $900 how can somebody that really needs a dresser they can't afford new pay for that.. bottom line managers and CEO are worried about their salaries. PS people need to watch the CBS story they did on Goodwill and how the CEOs and the regional managers make Megabucks and they still pay disability people less than a dollar an hour the name of the video is (Goodwill exploits workers with Penny wages) sorry this is all text to speech for the grammatical errors
Their mission is to help people who have a hard time working get a job, not to supply cheap items to the community. They also use their proceeds to do a lot of charitable work. Their mission was never to provide cheap goods, it's just something got used to for a while and started thinking that was the case.
Visited the Salvation Army store in Galveston, Texas recently. They had an art deco period bedroom suite (in decent shape, not great) priced at $2699.99. They are just as bad as Goodwill overall.
I always thought their mission was to help poor people out with clothing and household goods at low cost. Not to help resellers make $50 off of $1
the thing is that, at $50 or a other high price nobody will buy it at a thrift store. atleast no poor people. if it is priced $1, then either a reseller gets to earn some money on it (and they are most often not rich as well) or someone else that is poor gets to buy it. but then it atleast gets sold.
They hire people on disability and pay them like 2 dollars an hour, meanwhile the CEO is a billionaire
I work at Sears full time. We sell clearance T shirts band new sometimes as $2.99 or $3.99. NEW. NOT USED. Shows how greedy Goodwill is selling used ass shirts for that price.
LOL, GOODWILL is just taking advantage of The Greater Fool Theory!
Crazywaffle5150 and Sears is going out of business. Terrible.
Carol Thomas Yep. LOL. I work at the last Sears in Kansas. I got a job the purposely because of that. I get allot of clearance stuff I can flip.
Goodwill is not greedy. They have the same right as we resellers to make as much money as possible.
Marc Davis I don't mean greed as in immorally greedy. I mean greedy as in "expecting to much" in return for products in a store that basically looks like a dumpster. It will be their downfall as a company because they got "greedy". Understand my context. You can say a drug lord got greedy or was greedy for screwing over his dealers and it got him killed. It has nothing to do with "rights". It's just my opinion. Of course they have the right. It's just retarded and them being greedy. Anyone can get greedy.
You won't believe how many Dollar Store items I have found at Goodwill for $1.99. Used of course.
That is the worst part. If Goodwill is hiring eBay & jewelry experts to maximize profits, why don’t some of these ‘experts’ tell the Managers at Goodwill that you shouldn’t price used $ Store items for more than new? Anyone who shops at the $ store recognizes most of their brands.
are you serious ..wow
SAME HERE! I just shake my head!
Back in the day Goodwill was sexy and now it's just... meh...
Well said
I agree they are overpriced. Another thing. I get irritated that they ask me to round up every time I purchase.
That round up thing is crazy ain't it? I feel like saying I already rounded up 3 times what I should paid
Ask them if you can round down, esp. if you're between jobs/hard times, etc....
@@phillyflash43 that actually works sometimes!!!
I've never had them to ask me to round up maybe that's a local thing ?
I wish t shirts were $2.99 here in Ont Canada. Its $7 a t shirt, $11 for button down, $12 for jeans, $8 for shorts and $45 for suit coats. Clothing game is almost a no go around here. Great video Pete! Also the last few goodwills I went to the managers asked why I dont spend a few $100 every time now. I explained its because you put all the video game son ebay and try to ask ebay prices for everything in store. I told them I have a e waste guy now I deal with for electronics. The one manager said they have seen about 35% decrease in sales since raising the price but a 18% jump in revenue! So they are not changing there ways. He almost seemed mad I did not want to spend $100s any more.
This is how you fix the problem: Go on Google Reviews and RATE your local Goodwill. Let the general public know the item you donated was listed on Ebay 24 hours after you dropped it off.
I think the public who donated it would rather know that Goodwill listed it and made money (hopefully for charity) - fulfilling the purpose of those who donated the item - than to see it listed on ebay by a reseller instead. Sorry, just being truthful here.
People Don't care where it goes they just want the stuff gone from their house. I could see goodwill going totally online. They get crazy prices for stuff on their auction sit And the shipping they charge is crazy high.
A C that's funny. but a true solution.
C M goodwill is a scam lol..
A C. Thats great
Sir were going to have to ask you to leave before you break everything in the store thanks. LOL
Tims World I thought the same thing, hilarious comment, lol.
You break it, you own it!
LOL
The best is when your shopping at Goodwill and a clearance tag from Target is still on the box for $4.99 and Goodwill is selling it for $12
Can you imagine? Back in the 1960's and 70's, Goodwill actually hired handicapped people and TRAINED THEM to REPAIR things, in-house! They took in donations of broken TV's, radios, furniture, washing machines and other appliances, and FIXED them, then sold them at affordable middle-class prices! They don't do that anymore. That was really helping the community, with those jobs and skills.
Wow!! Real skills!!
Back in those decades this country made things that were designed to be repaired if they broke. Now we have planned obsolescence--you either can't fix the item, because it was designed that way, or it's more expensive to fix than it is to get a brand new item. Don't blame that crap on Goodwill. You don't see many small engine/appliance repair shops around anymore, either. That is how our economy has been designed in the last few decades.
Great video =) When resellers Tag goodwill in instagram posts and haul videos, plus tell what brands sell for, and how much profit they make it comes back to bite you in the ass! Yes they are watching...
Goodwill has moved all the better stuff to their online store. And the prices are crazy.
Making videos about how much you can make thrifting and people start to notice man.... prices and competition goes up.
I think thats what happen to vcr sals I cant give them away now and the goodwills want 15.00 each for them
darryl holder I get them for about $12 usually sell for about $50 can make a little if you get creative with shipping but they need to be combos.
I know.... people are so stupid....once hits mainstream...the game is over....and the real issue is just the internet 6 years ago people weren't looking items up unless they know they paid a lot for it...now cause of videos and people wanting to "show off what they found / help ppl quit their day job" goodwill/salvation is for ppl who need discounted items for them....how can you get mad at goodwill hahaha go out and find the real deals...not the easy bullshit t-shirts and shoes (2.99 way to much hahahaha...oh wow 14.99)
I totally agree with you, Pete! Goodwill is way over priced now. I rarely find anything worth reselling there anymore. It seems like a lot of their merchandise is being sold at retail prices.
I am in New York, Nassau County on Long Island. I find plenty out here to resell, but never at Goodwill. Goodwill is absolutely overpriced, in many instances they are asking for more than retail prices. I think it's plain disgusting the way they get 100% free inventory and then charge retail prices as if it is new.
@Craigslist Hunter, I get great stuff from the Craigslist "free stuff" column, much better than Goodwill, best time to work the free stuff column is Saturday and Sunday after 4pm, going up to 8pm
Great tip. Thanks for watching. Cheers !!
That's also a great way to get supplies, especially at the end of the month when people are moving - I get tons of bubble wrap/boxes/and packing peanuts that way.
yes, I agree with that
things I received from the free column in good condition with good market value: snow blowers/Ariens, lawn mowers, ladders, power drills & saws, wrought iron patio sets-Woodard brand, ovens ,home furniture, commercial gym equipment-Icarian/Precor brand, industrial shelving, vintage electronics, Klipsch & Cerwin Vega speakers, Crown amplifiers, free weights, dumbbells, weight benches, office furniture & equipment etc...
You are a true hustler. Good work. :-)
thank you Laura for the wonderful compliment
Thanks for the video Pete. Gotta say though,, good for Goodwill for identifying loss of revenue. While I understand the frustration in losing a resource, it was bound to happen eventually. You guys showed them through your videos that the public will pay big bucks for their wares,, so why shouldn't they ask the same prices that the resellers are selling it for? After all,,, they are in it to profit,,, not to provide profit for others. Think about it,,, you've made several videos showing you purchased a $5.00 VCR from them and then sold it on ebay for $40.00. Why wouldn't they cut out you ( the middle man ) and maximize their profit on the same item using the same pricing model? Remember,, you guys showed them that the public is willing to pay that price. Through your videos you are setting the price that they can also sell at. All that said, I still love ya Pete,,, keep on hustling!!
GA1dad. I understand your point. I don't think you get the reseller's view. The company has completely abandoned their initial goals. It doesn't matter who buys what.. So it morally and financially makes no sense. They are blaming us resellers when we physically and financially put in the WORK to make a small profit while giving them LOTS of business & MONEY. While they are screwing everyone else in the process. They should favor the reseller.
They have become the middleman in the eBay selling in there system instead of the reseller. The only time stuff that's resell-able or profitable gets put out is when they make a mistake or they do not look up the value before pricing it. I was going to their store here 365 days a year for a while and it was only then that i would find great deals but in perspective I spent over $10,000 in one year at our local goodwill in 2015, that was more than the entire sum of all my garage sale spending, other thrift store spending, and Craigslist buying, and what I also noticed was the goodwill buys were always the things I made the least profit on. When the do have good stuff, It's not hard to spend $50 at goodwill for $150 in value if you spend a long time looking. But at yard sales it's easy to spend $50 over several sales and finding $500+ in profitable stuff. What's most amazing is the rummage sale stuff was being sold dirt cheap by the people who bought it new and the $5 they put on a DVD Recorder with remote is fine with them, there not mistaken on value or anything, they just want it gone. But then look at goodwill, they get a DVD recorder for free, no idea if it works, they put $79 on it because the same model is $100 on eBay, and they are firm on the price.
good observations!
I am a reseller in a small town in Oregon. There is a good will 2 minuets from my house. I stop there 2 or 3 times every day. They have a schedule of when they put new stuff out and I am there at that time so I can get the first look. They have a lot of turn over and some staff that will not look everything up so good stuff gets to the shelf at a good price. I thing goodwill has changed the pricing strategy but there is much move competition for it. I make $800-$1000 per week or about 1/3 of my income from goodwill, but I also out hustle my competition.
Great job! it's good to hear positive talk in this resell world. That situation with your local Goodwill sounds awesome.
Cantcha Guess? :p
Good afternoon, I sell mostly used hard goods. Used electronics and kitchen appliances, sporting goods, tools and antiques. I very rarely sell glass or clothes. I also sell anything MCM decor like clocks and wall art. I can get old mcm tables in poor condition and sell the tapered legs for $15-$60 per set. Plus anything that just catches my eye. The way I think is people will spend money on what they enjoy like eating, sports and music.
That's the way to do it, congrats on knowing how to run a business. Best post yet
Cantcha Guess? :p Sure that's part of the problem, everyone wanting to know what you sell so they can under bid you. Just go out and make it happen. This is what the guy is trying to tell us, be ahead of the game and don't try to be like the next person.
What's MCM?
I guess they watched all your videos and it wised them up!!!!
Not just his, like he said there are 100s
of people like him telling people
and teaching them how to compete with them.
And then they call them a "community".
Yea it's not just Pete it's the whole UA-cam community making everyone so called professional resellers including Goodwill and mom n pop thrifts
It's the freaking internet! Everyone has a cell phone now and even grandma & grandpa are looking up items! The internet is great but it's also killing so many businesses.
svdma Yup, blaming Pete is like blaming a single drop of rain for flooding out your basement!
I seldom find anything at Goodwill except smalls. way, way too many people in the game now.
Bingo
Thank you UA-camrs
Goodwill IS gouging re-sellers and the general public. C'MON! Those prices are ridiculous! I say all re-sellers unite and not shop any thrift store for 1 week. I know it's difficult to do, but if we all band together and agree to call it a "re-sellers boycott" week where we designate the week and a call to action. Goodwill and other thrift stores will see the impact re-sellers have on the community. Think about it...if the clothes were sold for $1.00 each, we would not have to send them to the landfills the way we do. I went to a Salvation Army on the south side (I believe the one on Cicero) and there was an employee throwing all of the ceramic figurines into a large garbage drum. I asked her why she was breaking them and throwing them into the trash, she said "Because they are not selling". Jeesh! Of course not-not at the prices they were asking! So, they would rather throw them away, then sell them for a quarter or ten cents. SMH
Only in America. No other country or people in the world would be that wasteful. Others in the world re-use everything. I agree with you. If they "can't sell" something, then have a good old-fashioned "blow out sale" for 25-cents and free up that shelf space! These fools don't seem to realize the carrying cost (i.e., STORAGE cost) of merchandise that doesn't move fairly quickly. Every year, I sell a few things (on Craigslist) AT A LOSS, just to get them out the door and out of my storage space.
Also. They are selling shit full resell price "as is" or broken.
That is what pisses me off to no end. They sell shit that is broken. They don't even test it to make sure it fucking works the way it's supposed to. That, to me, is a scam. I won't ever buy electronics from them again. They sell shit sky-high and they don't even know if it works. And the thrift stores that put electronics into a bag and hang it on a hook are the worst. If you open it up to see if it works or not, they won't sell it to you because they call it product-tampering. Yet they won't let you return it when you get it home and try it out. It's all a goddamned SCAM.
It’s happening at every Goodwill, they are going to price themselves right out of the market they were intended for
They want to sell power adapters for $8. They sell stuff so expensively that people are using their phones to see if it's cheaper online. I thought they were all resellers, but, no, some are checking on Ebay to see if it's cheaper there.
Eh the one I work at has decent prices. Some of the stuff is way overpriced though
I go to the thrift stores and I can't even make myself look for items to sell anymore. The last few times I've gone to the thrifts, I've come out with 1 or 2 items....not worth it anymore. I find myself shopping for myself instead.
I think those stores are going to lose a lot of resellers buying from them, but they still have a lot of interested people to buy their stuff. I always see lots of teenagers shopping and I families with loaded carts.
I feel bad for resellers that depend mostly on thrift stores to earn an income...prices are too high to make it worth it.
I do the reselling thing because I can't get a regular job as I'm a caregiver, but I do it to have spending money not necessarily for bills. I'm going to have to find another way to make money. I'm used to the extra money...I can't go back to how it was. I've had more freedom with the extra money. I'm done with thrifting as my main source. Tfs. Cheers!
MaggieLoveMTC go to church sales and offer up is pretty good
Just made over $100 profit on a goodwill find. Found something else the other day will make around $120 on. It's hit and miss. Some stores price a walkman for 2.99 others have it for 14.99 behind a showcase. Think every store is different. Some of the store managers don't have a good eye, some do. Bought this light up pink flamingo for $5 sold for over $100 the next day. Saw a generator the other day for $75, looked it up and you can get it new for the same price. That same store I bought a Sony Walkman for $2.99 sold for $80 on auction. You're not gonna find stuff every day. I mean you can find cheap stuff everyday, if you want to list hundreds of things. But I'm going for $100 and up profit.
Goodwills in my area are junk, so it must be the high end items are going to auction. Savers is off the chain, charging retail prices. I quit going to these stores because it was a waste of my time. My local honey hole, they sit around looking everything up on eBay all day and it makes me crazy. It is very challenging for me to find stuff. I never find the same thing twice at a good price, and I count on the volunteers who don't want to look crap up all day. I do well at estate sales but only if there's no jewelry or guns. Jewelry and guns brings the buyers who bid everything up too high to make a buck. Can't do garage sales yet because I'm taking a one year old with me everywhere I go. She isn't ready. I love the work though. Thanks for the video, Pete.
Pictabelly Sly yup and you can thank big mouth resellers bragging in the stores about how they find items and make alot of money..I don't care if I find a gold bar I always let my mouth shut to employees in thrift stores...the employees and managers over time caught on and that's why the prices are jacked up...thanks big mouth resellers for ruining the business
Pictabelly Sly my husband worked at goodwill when he was young, decades ago. The big bosses took the good stuff right off the top and employees got second pick. What was left got sold. Goodwill not so good.
That explains the Laserjet 4 and Kenwood vintage stereo I saw in cage bin thing that got put into a truck. Those donations never hit the shelves.
You said goodwill was ruined by UA-cam and youtubers and that they distribute YOUR videos for education. You're my favourite youtuber and unfortunately you are the problem. Goodwill uses your videos to educate the pricing staff, you are literally the reason there is no meat on the bone. They told you that to your face
Sad but true
I totally disagree
Unfortunately Pete, I agree about the Videos... Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy your videos as-well-as other resellers videos... However the fact remains that there is too much information out there which leads to too many people in the business which leads too thrift stores hiking prices. I am a teacher but have been a reseller part time since 1990’s. The golden age was 1998-2012 or so... I still make good money but it’s tough. Do not use the reward cards, they track your purchases. I had a manager tell me that what ever I buy (he knows I resell) they raise the price by 10% no the same item next time. They keep doing this until they see me not buy the item. I have noticed on backpacks for example. I live in an area where good quality backpacks come in weekly. Sometimes I find three or four a week. They are good sellers... I usually pick them up for $15 or less and sell them for $50-$150... The last several months the Good Will has raised their prices to the $35-$50 on the backpacks I was picking up. It’s all about the data we are giving them on the rewards cards. They analyze what’s flying off the shelf and then they crank up the price...
Wow, that's scary.
You can occasionally get a rare score at Goodwill but I've pretty much stopped going everything is so overpriced. $4.99 for a basic T-shirt!! And you thought $2.99 was overpriced.
It's become a waste of time at Goodwill.
Tshirts are 3.99 here in NC
They're 1.99 in Los Angeles. 5 to 7 for short sleeves and polos, and a little more for long sleeves.
Ours are $4.99 too, you've got it cheap Pete!
Our GW prices used tees for $3.99. I wait til 50% off certain color day and maybe can find one occasionally for $2. I just got myself clothes at Kohl’s end of season sale for about $4 each BRAND NEW. I don’t shop the thrifts much anymore even for myself,it’s just too hard to find a good price.
My local Goodwill has actually started basing their prices off of Ebay prices. They are trying to sell a rocking horse with a broken head for $25.99...crazy....Because of their price hikes my ability to source has plummeted and my sales have dropped by 63% in the last 30 days. I understand they are a business but come on. I am a quadriplegic and reselling has allowed me to be a productive member of society again but if I can't source I'm screwed.
Yeah we noticed the game change here as well in NW Arkansas. Jacked up prices on jacked up merchandise. Now we go straight to yard sales. We do free pick ups yeah we have to sort thru some stuff but we are a big family and a full size truck load only takes a few mins to go thru. And we take the not so good stuff to....NOT GOODWILL unless a lot then we get a donation receipt for taxes.
"Because of their price hikes my ability to source has plummeted and my sales have dropped by 63% in the last 30 days." Lol, I know this is horrible, I'm a re-seller myself but that was just a little funny.
Try other thrift stores and online flipping, like letgo and offerup. Goodwill has never been the best place for sourcing because they've always been the greediest chain thrift store. It doesn't sound like you can easily do garage sales, but it should work out if you do online flips.
Pete, You know Goodwill sells on eBay... As brick and mortar, Goodwill is the store with prices comparable to eBay prices. Moreover, People can shop at those prices in a Goodwill and not have to wait for merchandise to be shipped to Them. Goodwill managers are loving this opportunity to sell in the stores and on eBay, when profit margins can be increased. They are basically copying You, Pete. I just don't like it when They do it in their sort of hypocritical way. It was over for Goodwill, with Me 3 years ago, or more. They are worthless to a Reseller, here in Southern Indiana. To Goodwill, I would ask Good WHAT?
Basically copying who?? O ok lol
No they can't shop Goodwill instead of eBay. How many people are going to scour Goodwill stores for days and weeks on end looking for an item that can be found on eBay in a matter of minutes.
Curt Egerer exactly if I am willing to pay Ebay prices for something then I will sit at home in my recliner and order it from Ebay where I can return it and get my money back if it doesn't work. Instead of out driving around hitting up Goodwills hoping to find what I'm looking for and then can't return it.
Exactly, and realistically, as John Jones said, "They are not there to sell items wholesale for resale".
I don't think you get the reseller's view. The company has completely abandoned their initial goals. It doesn't matter who buys what.. So it morally and financially makes no sense. They are blaming us resellers when we physically and financially put in the WORK to make a small profit while giving them LOTS of business & MONEY. While they are screwing everyone else in the process. They should favor the reseller.
Goodwill has been dead for 2yrs bro. It seems like often they price the items right about ebay price. I personally only go there if I'm "scrapping the bottom of the barrel" so to speak. The troubling thing is salvation army is similar now. The other day I offered to buy ten pairs of shoes at a discounted price and got shot down hardcore. Not to mention at least five of them were risky items. Thrifting is becoming a hardcore lottery. Takes the fun of thrifting away. Love your work and insight.
Yeah good will sucks. I've known this for about two years now. Their prices went way up about two years ago and I noticed it then. It makes me sick. Also, their CEO makes more than a million dollars a year. This whole "charity" thing they flex is such a scheme to just charge more.
Been doin good at estate and yard sales lately though...well some of them..just gotta stay hungry...
The problem is more pickers
My best picks have been at yard sales. You want to catch that old guy who is moving. He just doesn't want to take it all in the move and has lots of old, quality stuff. I got some amazing tools that way. Some are so good (American-made) that I keep a few for my own use!
An estate sale in my neighborhood had all items priced extremely high. The last day of sale there were no big discounts. Next day, huge dumpster in front of house. Items not sold went into the huge dumpster and it was filled to the top! All went to the landfill, just too greedy to lower their prices.
Estate sale are the shit! lol. I love going on the last day. They practically give things away depending on the person. I like buying up the watch lots. Watches are always unpicked because people don't take the time. I got some really good brands just a day ago. Making over a 500 dollar profit.
Depends on what you look for. I always look for things know one would expect is valuable. Like auto parts. Allot of vintage auto parts go for allot of cash. Some lady who run's an estate sale might know about antiques, at the same time she probably knows nothing about a vintage pair of Moroso valve covers. :].
We have $1.79 Mondays on a certain color. GW prices things SO high that a lot of stuff ends up there on Mondays. We still find deals!
The Goodwill game has been quickly dying off in the past year for every reason that you mentioned. Also, I hear from store employees about entire categories of items that have disappeared from the stores because they're going on the Shopgoodwill website. All we can do is wait until their stores are inundated with unsellable inventory and they finally get the idea.
On the other hand, it's also sad that there are so many uninformed new resellers who are actually buying this overpriced junk from their shelves. Let these newbies cycle themselves out of the game by next year and things might change.
Gruve Records I’m one of those newbies, and I don’t buy stuff that doesn’t have any profit. Nobody does that. It’s a waste of time and money. But if I go to several goodwills, I often find stuff that got missed. The “pricer” was high that day or didn’t recognize the brand. I have the best luck with full priced, mispriced items than heavily discounted ones. I keep track of the tag colors so I know which items are the new ones, and I go at times when they are putting new stuff out and just scan the categories I sell for new items pretty quickly. And if all else fails, you wait until half off day and usually that’s enough to give some items a profit margin that makes it worth it. You were a newbie once, too, so don’t go piss on Newbies because Goodwill learned how to use the Internet. But I only go to each Goodwill near me about once a week.
a smart thrift will move stuff out at cheap prices, depending on how much is coming in. By the way, most people think goodwills are a non-profit enterprise, the fact is they are not, they're strictly for profit and always have been. They're now trying to get retail, obviously. What they fail to realize is they're not going to move all that much at full retail.
Most thrifts in my area have either gone out of business, or they've gotten so high I don't even bother to look there any more. Fortunately, there is one good one not too far away, they generally sell things by the bag full, 5 bucks for a large paper grocery bag, whatever you can fit in it. a small paper shopping bag for a dollar, whatever fits in it. Even when I buy stuff that doesn't fit in bags, they're still pretty cheap, sometimes they sell larger items really cheap just to get them gone, floor space is always at a premium. What clothes they don't put out for resale, they sell to a company that takes the material and makes other things out of them like cleaning cloths. Of course, they started the bag thing when just simply huge amounts of goods kept coming in. Now, some is trash, but if you're selective, you can find stuff to resale at very cheap prices sometimes making ten to 150 times your investment.
Oh, they've been investigated, many times. Fact is, they never claim to be non-profit, and do not file under non profit, so they're in the clear... technically. Though ethically, yeah they're kinda screwing us over. A small percentage of what they make does go to charity, so they can get away with a lot. One of our local thrifts that helped what is called Hannah Home and some boys ranch sold out... to a for profit company... a small percentage still goes back to the charities, so they continue to use the charity names, but if you go in the store, you can tell they're definitely not non profit any more. Used to be I could buy stuff cheap there, so cheap it was cheaper to go buy more clothes than do laundry. (I didn't have my own then so I had to go to a laundromat) so I'd just go buy more sweats, and t-shirts, the only thing I had to launder was my socks and underwhere, which can be done by hand. Now, forgeddaboudit. they want more than retail for used junk, and are now selling a lot of new but cheap merchandise at inflated prices. Or at least they're trying to they certainly don't get the business they used to. The parking lot used to be full all the time, now there's hardly anyone in the store at any time of the day. Why would anyone pay retail for used when they can pay the same for new or maybe even pay less for new.? Back to Goodwill, the guy that founded it got rich and sold out years ago, I don't know if he's even still kickin' but he's no longer involved. They used to hire handicapped a lot, but that wasn't out of any sense of altruism, they hired them because they could get them cheap and often some state or federal program paid their wages and benefits.
well its a multi billion dollar company, they can get away with anything they want, if they know who to pay off.
Goodwill is a nonprofit. A nonprofit is just a specific form of corporation, and it doesn't mean they can't have huge revenues. They just need to use the revenues for their job training thing. My guess is that they are making a trade off on revenues: they used to count on volume, but now they are looking for the margin, and figuring out ways to get rid of inventory outside of the retail locations, like at their bins.
I think you better check again Most of them don't even have job training programs. I'm not sure how it all works, they may be some kind of franchise deal now. Once upon a time, some did have job training programs and such. I don't know about all of them. However, if you check closely, they are not incorporated as a non-profit. Least ways, not today.
The goodwills here in Arkansas, have been no good at all for sourcing for at least the last 4 years. I don't even darken their door.. they are a useful place to ditch old tvs & monitors because they will still take them to recycle.. I don't see them as a viable source even for personal items as matter fact, they are just to high.. I used to Sell a lot of books on ebay but never from goodwill industry's they have had someone looking them up here in central Arkansas for last several years. These goodwills here even list stuff on ebay themselves.
True, for sure, Man! We have the basically same Goodwill scenario, here in Southern Indiana.
You make plenty of money off UA-cam with advertising and 78,000 subscribers, so you don't get to cry. Now the rest of us, yeah, we can cry about the inflated prices at Goodwill of late thanks to you and other resellers who showed off your hauls on UA-cam and bragged about all the money you made. You are doing so well that you even turn your nose up to $10 profit margins, but we little resellers are happy to get even that. Thanks a lot for killing our market.
At a Goodwill by me there's been a Sony Hi8 video cam (no battery or cords) on the shelf for 6 weeks priced at $49.99. I LOL every time I pass it. They definitely try to get ebay listed prices on a lot of things (electronics mainly).
Over priced stuff doesn't sell here. It sits, taking up space on their shelves. They'll learn eventually and lower prices. In the mean time, the more amateur part time flippers that get scared off and quit, the better.
In every cloud there's a silver lining, they say ;)
lol I have argued with people like Chad that we are screwing up the market but we are helping people I guess. Just making it harder to make a living lol
My jaw hit the floor when i saw the prices! Unbelievable.... i'm out if this is what all Goodwills will be doing. I'll not support thrifts that are greedy like that. This is also why i never round up at the registers. It's only to line the pockets for corporate.
They ask you to "round" it up, but the CEO of Goodwill make like what, $2.3 million a year.
When they ask me to round up I tell them no. Last time they asked I said “I donate here & I pay these ridiculous prices so no I can’t round up.”
I round up when I spend 14 and some change to get my stamp. I don't care if it's 2 cents I will never round up any other time.
Goodwill is an eBay business now that sells their merchandise on Ebay. Crazy Huh?
Facebook marketplace has replaced goodwill for me
Offer up also. I got a brand new 3 burner coleman camp stove that retails for $150 for $60. I did not buy this to resell but for personal use
when they price items so high, how are they able to not have all of their stores overflowing? i imagine at some point they receive more than they sell and just throw stuff away to make space
True. They are hiding from the public how much they are actually sending to the town landfills. It's a scandal waiting to happen. They could move ALL of that merchandise if they'd quit being stubborn and just lower the prices, have a "blow out sale" till it's gone.
People do treat thrift stores like garbage dumps and from what i hear from these videos where insiders talk about goodwill, the stuff is not exactly in the most sanitary of environments while they're on the trucks so a lot of things they throw away are for good reason . Goodwills are busy places, but not busy enough to sell $20+ vhs cassette players. What they don't understand is that each store has its own economy based on their environment. Ebay has millions of customers and your neighborhood goodwill has maybe hundreds. No excuse for them to mark up ripped up JCP suits to $25-30. Some of the stuff that's marked up in my goodwills I wouldn't in good faith auction off at 0.01, i would just toss it in the bin because it makes my store look bad, and im a guy selling clothes from home, i don't have a stockroom loaded with hundreds of items. I hope they catch on to the potential profit of fast cash with virtually unlimited merchandise
@@susangarcia6233 they send nothing to a landfills lol. They auction the junk and what doesn't sell off to 3rd world countries. I'm not lying either. They dont even donate it to the needy countries. They sell it to them. I have a friend that worked in the back room getting those pallets together
@@bobsamurai they do not throw that stuff away. It's auctioned off in pallets to 3rd world countries. Goodwill is more petty than people realize.
It goes to the Goodwill outlet AKA "The Bins" after it sits
I stopped going to Savers and Goodwill about a year ago. In my area no meat left on bone. It’s ok though, I stopped doing EBay. Still resell but source and sell elsewhere.🤙
Are you willing to share from where to source and to where to sell?
It gets harder every month at goodwill
I work at the Goodwill at a donation site. They have us putting any items that are worth money in a special bin so they can sell online on ebay. This is why you are not seeing anything good in the stores. All gaming stuff, high end purses, collectables, etc are all sold online. They said the online sales are starting to surpass the store on money being made.
All thrift stores have become boutiques. I understand these places have overhead and they help the community but come on!!! They get this stuff for free!!!
pete broke the flowers
It's coming from corporate. A goodwill pricer person told me she/he has to make her numbers quota or get fired. So they jack prices up
Eric Love If you don't move product. You get fired anyway.
She going to get fire anyway because no one is going to pay those prices LOL
I get 99 percent of my items for free cause I dumpster dive & have lived in my my house for 30 years so just finding n hoarding I guess. Had crab legs for dinner last nite. Free.
FREE crab legs? I'm almost afraid to ask!
Is your house made out of cardboard?
i think all the johnny come lately wanna be sellers making fake profit videos are what killed the glory days of finding good stuff
This started years ago! Cell phones and the internet will be the death of us!
It sure didn't help! LOL
I stopped thrift stores they are looking up prices on eBay completed listings, the prices are always close to ebays solds. I source garage sales and flea markets.
Garage sales in my area catching up with goodwill prices, so won't be long before they are not an option either.
You have so many more options! Storage auctions, Thousands of online auctions, Ebay, Amazon, Estate Sales, Yard sales, Facebook Market Place, Let go, Offer Up, Mercari, Liquidation pallets, and tons of other places to source. I can keep going. Find some of the smaller thrift stores. I live in norcal and we have a ton of options out here. People just need to hustle more! I do agree Goodwill prices are out of control.
Game over, man. Game over. Lots of resellers there who are making 3-10 bucks per item. They haven't figured out that they are making less than minimum wage.
Since most of them could not pass a drug test for a real job, they really don't care; they'll take the less than minimum wage.
Plus their shoddy business practices are encouraging ebay, amazon, etc. to put the screws to ALL resellers :(
I'd like to see your prices at your shop Pete
Right I would guarantee you there's not anyone going to Pets Shoppe to buy things to resell, it's funny how these resellers will go to a garage sale or wherever and complain about the price being too high and then they turn around and resell it for four times what they paid for it kind of disingenuous, and dishonest,They should have to give their merchandise away so the resellers can get rich/earn a living
You can get cheaper clothes at Nordstrom rack new! Lol what a joke
Goodwill in almost every city have eBay stores
LOL Adrian at the beginning.
Welp guess I'm staying up a little longer
They dont pick prices at the pay by the pound
im in CT and my local savers and GW still have fair prices. those were insane some of the prices you were showing.
sublime90
Im in ct also
CT party over here lol
I'm in CT and Goodwill prices have been too high recently. You can buy clothing items for $2 each on Sunday but I stopped selling clothing. Electronics are priced at eBay prices at the Goodwill now.
cryztal6 yep this is true
sublime90 $5 for a coffee mug at my local Goodwill
100% of the shit Goodwill gets is free to them not 90%, they pay not one dime for ANYTHING...so , yes they are making too much off of free items DONATED from people.
It isnt dead. I still find some decent resale deals.
PLOT TWIST: Goodwill hires out ebay sellers, oh no!
chadwack that ship has sailed
never say never tho
they have their own online resale site called e-com the site is shopgoodwill.com they have their stores send the good stuff to "e-com" and they auction it off on the website. its over for resellers and eBay too because eBay won't be collecting their cuts of the sales anymore either.
was that trunk killer!