What Is The Donation Motivation?
Without a donation, there is nothing for a thrift operation to sell. And if there’s nothing to sell, there’s no way to provide dollars to your non-profit. So it stands to reason we want to appeal to a donor in every way possible, right? We recently discussed three key motivations in the decision for where […]
The More You Process = The More You Sell
It’s simple. The more donated product you process, the more you sell, right? While that statement is true for the most part, one has to add several caveats. The quality of donations must be relatively high and the pricing must produce an average ring that can reach sales goals. The quantity of donations will provide the volume of goods needed to keep the […]
Do Thrift Better
Dear partner, Wow! What a year for tangible donations. With all the turmoil in our country today, it is good to see people donating so generously to so many causes. Let me begin by saying thank you for caring for these donors. Whether it has been through an exclusive partnership with PickUpMyDonation.com, or by taking advantage of the 5,000+ […]
You Can’t Sell From an Empty Wagon (Part 2 of 2)
With the four components – volume, quality, diversity and delivery – of your donation stream identified, let’s look at how we can proactively address potential problems and keep our wagons full. Location The first consideration related to all four components is location. If you’re locked into an existing location, the first option is to locate a […]
You Can’t Sell From an Empty Wagon (Part 1 of 2)
This age old credo is still true and retailers of all types are bound by this principle. For most retailers, it is a matter of locating and purchasing from wholesalers the appropriate stocking levels and keeping enough inventory ready-for-sale. But for the thrift industry, one must deal with a much different supply chain – donated goods. Donations […]
How to turn a $500K thrift store into a $272K one that barely breaks even
First, you take the 20% of the inventory that makes up 80% of the stores sales (the best of the best donations) and flat price those items with similar items. Price all shirts at $3.99 and all pants at $4.99 rather than pricing them for a 1/3 of normal retail prices. This step reduces what the items […]
Identifying your Customers
One of the most valuable pieces of information to a successful retail operation is to know your customer. Retail chains spend millions of dollars developing a profile of their customer so they can target advertising cost effectively. Developing an accurate demographic, as well as psychographic, model of the target customer influences everything from product selection […]
Do your employees know why they do what they do?
It’s easy to assume most of your employees would give a quick answer to this question. In fact, some of your employees might be offended by the question. But the reality is, if you asked 10 people this question, don’t be surprised if you hear 10 different answers. One employee may say you sell merchandise to […]
Why does your thrift store exist?
The WHY question is an important question in any business, be it for-profit or not-for-profit. And it is especially true in the ministry-owned thrift store industry. The reason being the genesis of most ministry owned stores was threefold. To provide a source of inexpensive clothes, furniture, and household goods to a needy population. To provide a […]