Savers: A Topic Worthy of Discussion

The old adage “one person’s trash is another person’s treasure” is never so true as when one walks into Savers, a second-hand store off Imperial Highway. The surplus of donated items that overwhelm racks and shelves are mini goldmines that, with an abundance of patience and time, can yield amazing treasures. Savers houses thousands of products, everything from cooking supplies and appliances, to clothing, to furniture and decorations. In short, it is a shopping mecca for those who, as the store is properly named, want to be “savers.”

In a way, Savers is like a museum, many items are frosted with grey dust and show the wear and tear of a previous life; the Tupperware, which looks so clean and new on the outside, only to be opened and release a stench of garlic and rot, the clothes that have a less than mediocre color palet after years of abuse in laundry machines, the furniture that shows cracks and scratches in leather, or small holes and stains in fabric. Aside from the items that seem a little rough around the edges, a true shopper at Savers learns to look past those things and sees them merely as hints of detail that add character to each unique artifact. Not only is Savers a popular place for large families looking to get great deals on back-to-school clothes for the kids, it also serves as a graveyard for every indie hipster to find neat retro clothes and accessories.

More than just a retail thrift store, Savers foundation is based on a good cause. According to the Savers website, their “recycling program prevented 262 million pounds of unsold merchandise from ending up in landfills last year by reselling domestically and internationally where the goods could benefit people in need.” Not only do consumers benefit from finding cool stuff, but our environment is saved from the clutter of material things. Mike Smith, a current employee at the Savers off Imperial, added that, “whatever doesn’t get sold in the store, after being marked down numerous times, gets donated to 3rd world countries.” According Kelly Kearsley, a reporter for the News Tribune Online, wrote an article two years ago entitled “Where the Used Shoe Fits” in which she talks about various thrift stores in the country and their ways of recycling. Savers is mentioned as shipping “bales of compressed clothes to…50 countries, including India, Pakistan and United Arab Emirates.” Places like Savers are definitely doing their part in the fight for a more environmentally friendly planet. What are you doing to help?