argh argh argh I just wrote a VERY long reply to a post about thrift stores, because I keep seeing the hot take that boils down to “rich people are ruining thrift stores and stealing from the Deserving Poor” which is incorrect on SO many levels, but tumblr OF COURSE ate the post and I do not have the energy right now to type it all out again
shortest possible version:
actual rich people do not spend 6 hours digging at the value village. they buy online or from stores that are already curated.
the person who thrifts for midrange designer pieces to resell on poshmark or whatever is not your enemy.
the vintage seller looking for clip earrings and pillbox hats and novelty salt and pepper shakers is not your enemy.
they are shopping from the same functionally infinite pool of used goods as you, and there will be a fresh truckload tomorrow.
your actual enemies are the corporations who dismantled the unionized garment industry in the 70s, and kept wages flat as cost of living rose so that ethically-made good-quality clothing is unaffordable even for the middle class.
Actually the people buying pieces from thrift stores to resell them at incredibly inflated prices are my enemies
