Shopper sparks outrage with photos of bizarre discovery in thrift store: 'Absurd'

There are endless reasons to love thrifting: There's the satisfaction of finding a good bargain; the rare, priceless hidden gem; and the general thrill of finding value in something that was destined for a landfill. When a thrift shop robs consumers of those joys, it incites genuine frustration.

"Could literally buy a better speaker brand for way cheaper," a shopper said, posting a photo of some speakers on r/ThriftGrift, a community dedicated to calling out overpriced thrift store finds. "Looks like this thrift store has new management unfortunately."

The speakers in the photo are listed for $299.99. The original poster didn't list the exact model of speaker, but similar speakers can be found brand-new online at a similar price point.

Consumers are drawn to thrifting for many reasons. You can save money, but you can also thrift to participate in an industry that doesn't contribute to the 92 million tonnes (over 101 million tons) of textile waste disposed of by the world annually. Thrifting is also a way to discover styles and brands that don't exist anymore, or if they do, aren't being crafted with longevity in mind.

When thrift stores like Goodwill price items unrealistically, they are frustrating their loyal fanbase. One thrifter put it succinctly: "And they'll end up getting tossed." This is the sad reality of thrift-shop greed. Donors give away items to thrift shops to avoid landfills and help those in need. Corporate thrift shops have been criticized recently for abusing this and not following their own mission statement to help people.

"Absurd," said an experienced thrifter who had recently purchased speakers.

"They're not even worth a tenth of that price," another Reddit user said.

Fortunately, this kind of situation is still the outlier. For every overpriced speaker, there are countless success stories of shoppers finding designer clothes for a fraction of retail prices or quality furniture at steep discounts. Thrifting is still a great way to save money on everything essential and not.

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