{"id":11954,"date":"2025-12-07T14:15:19","date_gmt":"2025-12-07T19:15:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/?p=11954"},"modified":"2025-12-07T14:15:22","modified_gmt":"2025-12-07T19:15:22","slug":"what-can-100-buy-at-a-thrift-store-i-tested-it-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/2025\/12\/07\/what-can-100-buy-at-a-thrift-store-i-tested-it-out\/","title":{"rendered":"What Can $100 Buy at a Thrift Store? I Tested It Out"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

by Jessica Ciszewski<\/strong>, YourPace Student Contributor<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With food prices climbing and heating bills acting like they have something to prove, shopping for yourself \u2014 or for gifts \u2014 can feel like a luxury. I donate regularly to Threads of Hope, and each time I drop things off, I take a few minutes to walk the aisles for a quiet thrift-store hunt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One week, a pair of Clarks black flats caught my eye for $5. They still had their original stickers. A quick search at home confirmed they usually sell for around $100. That finding raised a question:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How far could $100 really stretch at a thrift store?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because Threads of Hope\u2019s proceeds support local food banks \u2014 where every 12 to 15 cents can buy about a pound of food at bulk prices \u2014 the experiment felt worthwhile on more than one level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trip One: Caribou\u2019s Thrift Outlet<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On a chilly Wednesday afternoon, with one hour before school pickup and a $100 bill in my pocket, I headed to the Threads of Hope Thrift Outlet in Caribou.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Large watermelon bins filled with clothing and toys sat just inside the door. Within seconds, a Bluey neck pillow priced at $1, a stuffed dinosaur, and a nearly new Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Puppy landed in my cart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople appreciate the prices,\u201d said Sandra Boxwell, a cashier at the Caribou store. After a few minutes of browsing, I could see why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nearby, brand-new winter coats hung neatly on a rack, and I found one in my size. I added puzzles, games, and a DVD of \u201cFly Away Home,\u201d a childhood favorite. A Vera Bradley purse and a small leather bag appeared next, followed by a Frozen backpack and a tiny bike helmet from the overflowing children\u2019s room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The d\u00e9cor section offered two wall signs that matched my home, a decorative cross, and \u2014 unexpectedly \u2014 a Power Air Fryer XL that looked barely used. A shoe rack between rooms held a spotless pair of white flats in my size, which quickly joined the haul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My mental total hovered around $38, so I grabbed a Pioneer Woman water jug and a Razor RipStik before heading to the register.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA full cart is $35,\u201d Boxwell said. \u201cThe RipStik is $5, so that makes $40.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was exactly right. Even itemized, the total didn\u2019t reach $50. To hit $100, I would have needed a piece of furniture or the $50 bicycle outside, listed online for about $250. But school pickup was waiting, so I left the bike behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I drove home thrilled with the deals, but the challenge still stood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trip Two: Presque Isle\u2019s Main Store<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few days later, I tried again at Threads of Hope\u2019s central location in Presque Isle. If Caribou is the discount outlet, Presque Isle is the curated version \u2014 still affordable, but stocked with more brand-name items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This store was the right place to test the $100 limit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My cart filled quickly with Pampered Chef microwave cookers, a stack of clothing, a winter hat, two pairs of name-brand shoes (Sperry and Dansko), a purse, two DVDs, a heated body wrap, a bottle of lotion, two games, a Harry Potter puzzle, a set of four brand-new plates, a cashmere scarf and a small wooden sign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is a place where people can get what they need at an excellent price,\u201d said Sharon Sharp, a cashier at the Presque Isle store, as she rang up my items. \u201cWe\u2019re glad to be able to offer that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At last, I hit the $100 goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later, I looked up the retail prices. My Presque Isle trip saved me more than $400. My under-$50 total in Caribou? More than $800 in retail value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not bad for two quick visits squeezed into a mom-of-seven schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Takeaway<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One hundred dollars at Threads of Hope goes farther than many shoppers might expect, especially for anyone willing to dig through bins and maneuver a squeaky cart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the impact doesn\u2019t end with bargains. Proceeds support food banks and community programs across Aroostook County, where a single dollar can translate into several pounds of food for families in need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other words, thrift shopping here isn\u2019t just about saving money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s about strengthening the community \u2014 one cart at a time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Jessica Ciszewski, YourPace Student Contributor With food prices climbing and heating bills acting like they have something to prove, shopping for yourself \u2014 or for gifts \u2014 can feel like a luxury. I donate regularly to Threads of Hope, and each time I drop things off, I take a few minutes to walk the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":11955,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7376,7377],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11954","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-opinion","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11954","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11954"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11954\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11956,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11954\/revisions\/11956"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11954"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11954"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11954"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}