Making Second Hand Fashionable

Goodwill thrift shops are not just for strict bargain hunters anymore. They’ve witnessed an increase in sales as re-branding initiatives to change perceptions of the second hand emporiums have taken hold. Several Goodwill stores have begun advertising campaigns to position themselves as “discount retail” rather than dusty charity shops. Others are working to frame Goodwill as a valuable fashion resource. Joe Boxer founder Nicholas Graham has even partnered with the chain to create of a line of clothes made out of discarded items, under the name William Good.

The New York Times reports:

In the first eight months of 2008, sales at Goodwill stores in the United States and Canada increased by 7 percent over the same period last year. While that obviously runs counter to trends being reported by most retailers these days, it’s hard to say whether it counts as good news that more people are evidently buying secondhand goods. After all, many of us probably don’t think of Goodwill in terms of retail; we think of it in terms of charity.

But operators of some Goodwill stores have been making efforts to prod us to think a little differently, or perhaps more expansively, about the brand — and quite possibly the present economic gloom has primed us to be more open to that idea. Washington-area Goodwills, for instance, promote their stores with Webcast fashion shows as well as a popular blog, dcgoodwillfashions.blogspot.com, which highlights great bargain finds at their shops.

New York Times: “Goodwill Hunting”

[via Murketing]