\n<\/p>\n
I was at a tip shop looking for a whisk, expecting to find one for $1, maybe $2, when a small pair of tongs caught my eye. The price, written on the metal with permanent marker, was $10.<\/p>\n
I snapped a photo and sent it to a group of op-shopping friends. \u201cTip shop pricing!\u201d I wrote. \u201cTell \u2019em they\u2019re dreamin\u2019,\u201d one quipped. After all, a pair on Kmart\u2019s website that looked the same \u2013 but cleaner \u2013 cost $1.75.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve since heard numerous stories of op-shop and tip-shop pricing that\u2019s so high it\u2019s often cheaper to buy identical items new. One friend saw a Spider-Man toy at an op shop for $15, then at a supermarket for $10, and many report Anko clothing costing more secondhand than new.<\/p>\n
Then are the \u201cvintage\u201d items, which are sometimes unique treasures but at other times seem more like unique trash.<\/p>\n
\u201cWillow\u201d bakeware might be sought after on Etsy but is that grounds for charging $12 not $2 for a rusty cupcake tin? And German-made Kakuro trucks might be collector\u2019s items online but what are the chances someone will pay $27.50 for a grimy one in a tip shop that, as noted on the label, is also cracked?<\/p>\n
I saw a Lego box priced at $4 and thought it too<\/em> cheap \u2013 until I saw \u201cbox only\u201d on the tag. <\/em>A friend once tried to buy some old urine-stained carpet to use as weed-mat until the tip shop wouldn\u2019t go a cent under $40.<\/p>\n These are extreme examples and, because none involved items people really need, I found them more entertaining than concerning. Part of the fun of secondhand shopping is how unpredictable it is.<\/p>\n Besides, prices aren\u2019t always fixed \u2013 I\u2019m sure most seasoned op-shoppers have taken an item to the counter only to have staff exclaim, heavens, that\u2019s far too much, then slash it to two bucks. One friend, after deciding to fork out $80 for an old oil painting, says the person at the counter changed the price to $8 and said \u201cThat\u2019s better!\u201d before charging her.<\/p>\n Jaharn Quinn, an expert thrifter, has noticed prices rising in the last five years. She says the cost of secondhand items \u2013 furniture especially \u2013 is often close to the retail price. She worries that some op shops and tip shops are pricing out those in need and forgetting their purpose but says she\u2019d never complain. \u201cThey are doing so much to help local communities and I value all the hard work they do, even if I don\u2019t agree with their pricing.\u201d<\/p>\n Ryan Collins, the head of impact and research at Planet Ark, says there are problems with pricing secondhand goods too high or too low. Too high and those who rely on them may not be able to afford them, plus people might choose to buy new items instead, driving further consumption. But if pricing is too low it can undermine the value of reuse and make it hard for enterprises to cover costs and stay sustainable.<\/p>\n He says those setting prices should consider quality, durability, brand, condition, functionality and market demand, as well as the environmental and social benefits of keeping materials out of landfill and supporting local jobs in reuse and repair.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Sign up to Saved for Later<\/span><\/p>\n Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia’s culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain information about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. If you do not have an account, we will create a guest account for you on theguardian.com to send you this newsletter. You can complete full registration at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.<\/span><\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n When consumers encounter higher-than-expected prices, it may be because an item is better quality and will end up being cheaper per-use than a newer version. Even if that\u2019s not the case \u2013 even if it\u2019s cheaper to buy the same item new \u2013 \u201cyou\u2019re not just buying a product\u201d, Collins says, but \u201cinvesting in a system that reduces waste\u201d and benefits the community.<\/p>\n Rena Dare, a director of the Recovery Circular Hub that\u2019s home to Australia\u2019s longest-running tip shop, says saving the Earth costs money and sacrifice. The locally owned business runs without tax breaks and pays wages to a team of experienced workers. Prices are determined using detailed guides and aren\u2019t negotiable. When an item isn\u2019t covered by a price guide, the staff, who are keen op-shoppers themselves, consider its quality and condition and search for comparable items online.<\/p>\n Over 35 years, Dare has come to know what items will be on sale on Monday and in landfill by Saturday \u2013 and she and her team price them accordingly. There are even some items she refuses to resell. Some fast fashion, for example, releases so many microplastics when washed, it might be better to bury it and keep it contained. \u201cSome things don\u2019t deserve to be put back into circulation because they shouldn\u2019t be made in the first place,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n After doing \u201csomething like 40,000 salvages\u201d, there\u2019s not much Dare and her team haven\u2019t seen. If they do come across something for the first time, it\u2019s likely to be rare and will attract a higher price. I think of a $110 hat I noticed before we spoke. Then, I considered it massively overpriced; now, I wonder if it\u2019s actually a steal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I was at a tip shop looking for a whisk, expecting to find one for $1, maybe $2, when a small pair of tongs caught my eye. The price, written on the metal with permanent marker, was $10. I snapped a photo and sent it to a group of op-shopping friends. \u201cTip shop pricing!\u201d I<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35385,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[2059,495,38,9323,269,10782,19950],"class_list":{"0":"post-35384","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-social-issues","8":"tag-australian","9":"tag-higher","10":"tag-lifestyle","11":"tag-pair","12":"tag-prices","13":"tag-secondhand","14":"tag-tongs"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35384","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=35384"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35384\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/35385"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=35384"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=35384"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=35384"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}