Thrifting is a sustainable way of shopping that is cheaper, better for the environment, and fun! There are many locations in Rochester that sell secondhand clothing, furniture, media, and electronics. My goal of this article is to visit as many thrift stores in town as possible, and rate them out of 5 stars based on 5 categories: Brands, Cleanliness, Pricing, Diversity, and Staff. I will also keep track of any special sales, clubs, deals, special merchandise, or whether or not the store is a nonprofit organization. I visited Savers, Goodwill South, Piece Boardshop, Plato’s Closet, and Kismet Consignment Boutique.

Savers offers more than most shoppers realize.

My first stop was Savers. Being very close to Mayo, this would be a great spot for some shopping during an open hour! Savers accepts donations and has a club called the “Super Savers Club;” those in this club earn 1 point per dollar they spend and when they hit 100 points, they get 20% off a purchase. 

Brands: There was a nice amount of good quality, well known brands such as Wrangler, Levi’s and Gap, but I also saw some fast-fashion brands mixed in. ⭐⭐⭐

Cleanliness: The clothes themselves were mostly in decent condition, although I saw a few tops with holes or rips. The store itself was not the cleanest, there were hangers, tags, and dirt all over the floor. ⭐⭐

Pricing: Savers is a for profit brand, but all of their merchandise is donated, meaning they get it for free. I noticed that brand name items were priced much higher than other items (ex. Vans T-shirt for $7, Walmart brand for $3.) This means that you can get some very cheap clothes here, they just won’t be the best quality. Their media was also a bit expensive for my taste, their CD’s were 2 times the price of Goodwill’s. Personally I think that the store as a whole was a bit too pricey for the classic thrift store experience. ⭐⭐⭐

Diversity: Diversity in sizes, styles, and merchandise were all good. They have a glass case with watches, jewelry, and other trinkets, which is something similar stores do not have. Their media selection was also good, if you enjoy thrifting vinyl records, the ones here are only $3, and I personally found some pretty good albums. The men’s and women’s sections were both about equal sizes. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Staff: Although self checkout only, the staff was kind and helpful. There were not many to assist in shopping, but many were around restocking the racks.  ⭐⭐⭐

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐

Goodwill’s low prices are worth checking out.

The next place I went was Goodwill South. Goodwill was very similar to Savers, they take donations and have a VIP club that members can join. A few key differences are that Goodwill is a non-profit organization, and they have Tuesday tag discount days. For example, they may have 20% of all green tags one week, and 20% of orange the next week.

Brands: I found more fast fashion brands than I would like to see here, but there were still some better, high-quality vintage items mixed in. ⭐⭐

Cleanliness: Unfortunately I found multiple clothes with rips and stains. There were also chips in many of the glass and ceramic items. The store itself was okay, but some of the merchandise needs a better screening process before going on the floor. ⭐⭐

Pricing: Overall I would say that Goodwill was cheaper than Savers. It was the cheapest place that I went to and I felt you could definitely get good deals if you are willing to spend some time there searching for what you want. This is also where I found the best priced CD’s if you enjoy thrifting those. Only $1.50! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Diversity: There was a good amount of diversity in the store, lots of shoes and bags, but they did not have a case for accessories or jewelry. I also thought that there were more women’s clothing options than mens, but both were decently sized sections. They had lots of books and CDs but not as much vinyl. Goodwill also had furniture, but not in the best condition. ⭐⭐⭐

Staff: The Staff was helpful for checking out, but I didn’t see many of them around the store helping out. ⭐⭐⭐

Overall: ⭐⭐½

Plato’s Closet provides helpful service.

My next stop was Plato’s closet. Plato’s has a different way of getting their clothes than the rest of these stores, they purchase them from their customers. People can come in with clothes they want to donate, and then walk out with cash in hand.

Brands: I found mostly high quality brands, but a bit of fast fashion mixed in. I noticed Free People, Nike, Hollister, and Lululemon.⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cleanliness: Both the Clothing and Store were very clean, I found nothing wrong with either. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Pricing: The pricing was definitely cheaper than buying new, but also more expensive than Savers or Goodwill. This probably has to do with the well known brands and high quality items. ⭐⭐

Diversity: Unfortunately this was a bit of the downside of Plato’s for me. They have exclusively clothes and accessories. No trinkets, electronics, furniture, or media. Of the clothes they had, almost all were women’s clothing, in a very specific style. ⭐⭐

Staff: The staff was welcoming and offered their help numerous times. I didn’t see any new clothing put out in the time that I was there. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐½

I then made my way to a locally owned store on Broadway Avenue called Piece Boardshop. It had a completely different vibe than any of the other shops I visited. They also screen print their own shirts with the stores’ logo on it! Depending on your style and budget I can definitely see this being a new go-to place for thrifting!

Brands: The brands here were very good, lots of vintage and high quality pieces. I noticed Nike, Levis, and Adidas.⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cleanliness: I did not see any items with rips or stains that were unusual for how old some of the pieces were. The store itself also was very clean with a fantastic atmosphere. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Pricing: Because it is a consignment store, many different vendors bring in clothes to sell here for profit. This definitely increased the pricing. I saw T-shirts as low as ~$10 up to $200 for a jacket. ⭐⭐

Diversity: I would say that this store definitely had more men’s clothing than womens. It was also all a very similar style, lots of jackets, jeans, and T-shirts. They also had skateboards, skate supplies, art supplies, spray paint and more here too!⭐⭐⭐

Staff: The Staff was very welcoming and kind, I saw that they were screen printing shirts in the back for the majority of the time I was there. ⭐⭐⭐

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

My final stop was Kismet Consignment Boutique downtown. This was a place I was very excited to see as it had been recommended to me numerous times.

Brands: While there were not many well known modern brands, the clothes I found were definitely high quality. Some brands I noted included Scully, Michael Simon, and Johnny Wes. There were a number of handmade pieces that I noticed as well. ⭐⭐⭐

Cleanliness: The atmosphere and cleanliness of the store were both fantastic. I loved the vintage look of the entire store, and the clothing was not torn or stained at all. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Pricing: The items here were definitely on the pricey side, but that makes sense because it is a consignment store where vendors are looking to make profit. Plus because the clothing was all very high quality, it makes the price a little more reasonable. ⭐⭐⭐

Diversity: They had home decor, accessories, jewelry, and clothing here. I did notice that it was heavily leaning towards women’s clothing, but I am told that Chappies is a consignment store for men that has the same owners as Kismet. Unfortunately Chappies was closed the day that I was there. ⭐⭐⭐

Staff: The staff members were all very kind and courteous. They helped me find what I was looking for and seemed to know a lot about the store overall. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Overall:⭐⭐⭐⭐

Overall my favorite store was Piece Board Shop. The types of clothes there really aligned with my personal style, and even though the pricing was higher I still found that the quality was worth it. I definitely recommend all of these stores, as each caters to a different demographic in town. It just depends on what you are looking for in your thrifting experience!