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Selling or trading your clothes at thrift shops is a New York pastime. You never know what kind of valuable hidden gems are laying in the back of your closet. A few nice pieces of vintage clothing could give you enough store credit to spruce up your wardrobe. The best part? A portion of the profits made by New York thrift shops go directly to charity, meaning that your shopping addiction can actually make the world a better place.
Anyone who's sold their old clothes at a New York thrift shop knows that the value of their items is anything but objective. One shop might love that funky vintage mumu that you've been holding onto, while another might turn it away. In an effort to help you determine how, when and where you should sell your old clothes around New York, we took the same 16 articles of clothing to three of Brooklyn's most popular thrift shops (Beacon's Closet, Buffalo Exchange and Crossroads Trading Company) and compared the prices offered by each.
Each of the shops featured in this piece have slightly different rates. Buyers will provide a retail value for each article of clothing you bring in, which is what they'll price it at on the shelf. At Beacon's Closet, you get 55 percent of that price in store credit, and 35 percent in cash. At Buffalo Exchange, those figures are 50 percent and 30 percent, respectively, and Crossroads gives 50 percent in store credit and 33 percent in cash. Below, we'll provide the retail price for each item that received an offer at one of the three shops.
It's important to note that prices offered by thrift shops are subject to any number of factors, including the season and sometimes the particular buyer that you encounter, so don't take this list as a hard and fast guide to selling your clothes in Brooklyn. Instead, it's meant to give you a general sense of the best practices for getting the most out of your local thrift shops.
Vintage Versace black leather pants
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: $29
Buffalo Exchange: $55
Crossroads Trading Company: Did not offer
Vintage Dolce & Gabbana red, checkered turtleneck
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: $34.95
Buffalo Exchange: Did not offer
Crossroads Trading Company: Did not offer
By Corpus navy floral dress
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: $15
Buffalo Exchange: Did not offer
Crossroads Trading Company: $24
Vintage Moschino grey jeans
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: $29
Buffalo Exchange: $30
Crossroads Trading Company: Did not offer
ASOS black cut-out long sleeve blouse
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: Did not offer
Buffalo Exchange: Did not offer
Crossroads Trading Company: $24
H&M copper cami
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: Did not offer
Buffalo Exchange: Did not offer
Crossroads Trading Company: $10.50
Oxford Circus tank
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: Did not offer
Buffalo Exchange: Did not offer
Crossroads Trading Company: $10.50
Keepsake neon yellow dress
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Beacon's Closet: Did not offer
Buffalo Exchange: Did not offer
Crossroads Trading Company: $18.50
The stuff that no shop would take
Photograph: Kelsey Dubinsky
Exactly half of the items we brought in did not receive offers at any of the three stores. Here's a run down of what they were:
Gap navy blue long sleeve button-up
Ark & Co. white dress
Classiques Entier sea foam green blazer
Red Balls On Fire striped black suede pants
Marc Jacobs grey jacket
Blue Sky quilted skirt
DKNY black and grey zip-up vest
Cotillion Footwear salmon heels