Wednesday, January 16, 2013

The 10 Types of Second-Hand Shops: Your Handy Thrifting Guide

Some hunt second-hand for low priced necessities, others to find antiques and valuables. Whatever the reason, there are a plethora of second-hand shopping options available with a confusing array of titles for each type of store. I live in the south eastern United States, North Florida. Terms for second-hand shops differ regionally and I would love for you to correct my list or share your terms for different types of second hand shops!


1) Antique Store: Sells mostly items that are at least 100 years old, sometimes mixed in with antique-inspirations, retro items, and local art.

2) Antique Mall:  Divides store into "booths" rented by different vendors. Most vendors sell retro items and antique-inspired merchandise as well as art and hand crafted work. Usually not many real antiques.

3) Antique Auctions: Antiques and older retro items auctioned off to bidders. Also called: Antique shows.

4) Antique Markets: Annual or Seasonal markets not limited to antiques, often older retro goodies displayed. Comprised of different vendors. Also Called: Antique shows, antique bazaars

5) Consignment Shop: Comprised of (usually) second-hand merchandise bought in by different individuals or vendors. The shop splits the profit of each item with the vendors and chooses what will fill the shop. Common types sell furniture and clothing.

6) Flea Market: An often outdoor market where vendors meet to sell a wide variety of items. Sometimes they are indoors or are indoor/outdoor. Retro and antiques finds are often in the mix of items.

7) Junk Store: A sometimes wildly disorganized store selling a wide variety of items. Retro and antique goods are often in the mix.

8) Retro Shop: Sells mostly items that are at least 15 to 20 years old. I classify a shop as retro when items inside are not old enough to be considered antiques. Also called: vintage shops

9) Thrift Store: Sells goods donated by the public for prices much lower than retail. A wide variety of items can be found, though some specialize in certain items.
Also called: Charity shop (UK), op/opportunity shop (Australia/NZ), Hospice Shop (Canada/USA), Junk Shop (USA)

10) Yard Sale: Homeowners sell unwanted goods from their household. Prices are typically low, sometimes antiques and retro items are in the mix.  Also called: garage sale, boot sale (UK) rummage sale, tag sale, lawn sale, attic sale, moving sale, garbage sale, junk sale (USA)

What terms do you use for second-hand shops and thrifting where you live? What do you have to add to this list? Let's Discuss!
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27 comments:

  1. I think you've pretty well covered the bases :)
    I guess there are Salvage Yards. I've found a treasure or two at a local one specializing in metal.....

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    1. Hm, that's a good one too Rebecca, and one I should investigate. I've never been to one.

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    2. Banana box stores: they supply the salvage stores with their products from like rite aid, walmart,CVS, etc

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  2. Great list-- did you leave out estate sales? Owners want to unload a household, but they want to turn a good profit, unlike a garage sale. Not the best for resellers, but sometimes you hit some deals!

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    1. Oh you're right, I did! I forget about that one since I rarely go to them.

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  3. I was thinking estate sales too. Very thorough list.

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    1. Yep, that was an important one, especially for the vintage hunter! Definitely need to add this one to the list soon.

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  4. Love this!! Really great list. I sometimes dread going to antique malls because often it's literally a bunch of crap, really. Filled with crapola! It really gets me down when I have too look at junk :( lol

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    1. Yes, I may have to do a follow-up on that. Most antique malls are NOT well-curated like a retro/vintage shop tends to be. And the junky one tends to do better since shoppers know they'll likely score some vintage for cheap in these ones.

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  5. I think there should be a subcategory for the Junk store that I like to call "The Hoarder's Excuse Store".The owner has a ton of stuff but doesn't really want to sell any of it.There's a guy down the street with a store like that-he buys out estate sales after they're done.The store is literally filled to the brim with stuff.I only go when the guy has his employee working because they are not attached to the stuff.The last time I shopped when the owner was at the register he gave ridiculous prices and looked one thing up on Ebay to show how valuable it was.

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    1. I like the idea of a "hoarder excuse store" as a new category, I've definitely encountered those types as well. If people want eBay prices, why not just sell it on eBay?

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  6. Thanks for this list...really sums up all the terms! I'm in the process setting up a booth in an antique mall. It's not your typical marketplace; it's in an old JJ Newberry's building in historic Owego, NY (The Coolest Small Town in America!) I'm sooo excited about this venture...first time selling in a B&M; I sell online at Etsy. Check out the progress on their blog :-) http://www.earlyowegoantiquecenter.com/

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    1. Congratulations Sandi, I can tell your booth is going to be AMAZING!

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  7. Love your list!

    We have a sub category for our thrift stores: The Bedbug Store

    This is the thrift store that doesn't wash or clean anything, just prices it and puts it out on the floor. It's the store you only go into when armed with some Febreeze and a can of Raid.

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    1. Oh, the bedbug stores are kinda scary! And who knows how many are really out there. Hmmmm...

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    2. Thank you for the involuntary full body shudder.lol

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  8. Great list, estate sales are my personal favorite ... but actual estate sales, not the we-want-a-lot-of-people-to-show-up-to-our-subpar-yard-sale-so-we-will-call-it-an-estate-sale-on-Craigslist type of estate sale. My mom calls thrift shops Sallies, as in Salvation Army, & even though I don't support that particular organization I tend to call them Sallies as well.

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    1. I need to make a point of attending estate sales. The real deal, not the fake yard sale ones!

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  9. My experience is that antique malls vary greatly in quality. Many around here are wonderful. I definitely don't assume they're always worthless.

    What about outlet thrift, too? I recently went to my first Goodwill Outlet. I'm a pretty dedicated thrifter, but that was too much for me. People bumping into each other, grabbing stuff from the table in front of you. Ugh. They could have the best finds in the world but if the shoppers treat each other like dirt...no thanks.

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    1. We call them Goodwill pound stores. I was pretty put off by the environment of them at first, but they have security on hand now to keep the craziness at bay. I may have to do a "types of thrift stores" next.

      Antique malls definitely vary greatly in quality, especially between booths.

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  10. Church Bazaars. Not sure about everywhere else, but they have them usually bi-annually at most churchs here & are highly looked forward to & attended. People wait outside for hours. People in the city hold "porch sales", since they lack lawns, garages, yards & well, sell of their porches.

    Also swap meet... but that could fit under flea market?

    I never call them antique malls. I always call them antique markets even if they call themselves antique malls. Just so used to it.

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    1. Church thrifts and bazaars are definitely good ones I don't take advantage of enough. Thank you for the feedback, will have to include antique markets in the vocabulary as well.

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  11. How about dumpster diving/garbage picking? Yes, I have no shame, and every so often, I drive by an irresistable goodie.

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    1. Very good one! There's no shame in curbside hunting for goodies, my eye is always on the curb for something good.

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  12. Great compilation. Haven't heard of all of these. Another one to add to your list are pawn shops, although again, I've never visited one, so I don't know how the prices are.

    I usually attend thrift stores, estate sales, and garage sales to find secondhand goods for reselling. In two weeks, I (and a bunch of other eBay sellers) will be attending an annual warehouse sale held by a local museum. The museum collects donations all year round, and once a year, they have a huge sale of all the stuff they've collected. A real treasure trove. So looking forward to it!

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