Shop Goodwill for Designer Clothes at a Bargain Price

I'm not so sure about my sense of fashion. When I was very young I refused to wear blue jeans. I thought they were just a little bit too poor white trashy. When I was in grade school the white Levi's craze came about and I couldn't get enough of them. Levi's, Ban-Lon shirt, and a pair of desert boots. Every stylish thirteen-year-old had to have them.

When I was in high school, I was a big fan of the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. When I found out that he had a clothing company, I so much wanted to have some of his clothes, but I couldn't afford them. So I had to settle for my uncle's hand-me-downs. He was a natty dresser so I looked pretty sharp in my cuff link shirts and my pleated pants.

When I was living with my mom and my stepfather, he was a pretty good clothes rack himself. He made no secret that he bought all of his clothes at Goodwill. He liked to brag that he was well-dressed and helped the disabled as well. I wasn't so enthusiastic at first. The thought of wearing clothes that someone else had worn really repulsed me.

Then I went out and started working and buying my own clothes. A few trips to Sears and Macy's not only emptied my wallet but made me think of Goodwill again. Especially my work clothes. I couldn't see spending $70 on a pair of pants that I would ruin after just one day working at the restaurant.

At first I just bought work clothes at Goodwill. You could get a decent shirt or a pair of pants for about three dollars. But then, over the course of about twenty years, Goodwill has changed. I recently spoke with Brenda, an employee at one of the Goodwill stores here in St. Louis.

She told me that it used to be that poor people shopped at Goodwill to get the basic things. Now the clientele is more upscale. They are well to do folks from the county that want to get designer clothes for just a few bucks.

Brenda said that when they get donations of clothes now, the ones that have a Wal-Mart, K-Mart, or even a Sears label are donated to the poor. They only keep the designer stuff. The poorer quality doesn't even sell anymore.

Goodwill has become like a yard sale to me. If I want to get work clothes I go there, but I'm not against getting a casual outfit or a pair of jeans either. Sometimes I'll browse through the books or look at silverware or china. All my china and silverware (real silver for 50 cents each) comes from there. A little polish and you're good to go.

So if you want to save money in these troubled economic times, go where the rich folks go. They know how to save a buck or they wouldn't have money now would they? Oh, you'll also be doing a good deed by helping employ the handicapped.

Source: Walt Crocker