HURST, Texas – A group of North Texas entrepreneurs is trying to make giving a little easier for folks this holiday season by putting a new spin on an old concept: the charity thrift store.
The base idea has been around for years: a store where people can donate their old stuff and the store than gives a percentage of what they sell it for to charity.
Malachi Mack’s team decided, though - why not let customers pick the charity?
“As people donate items to us, they get to select any charity of their choice to get 25% of the proceeds,” said Mack while walking through the store on the Hurst-Bedford city line.
Walking into Thrift for Good, shoppers will find that each price tag on each item lists the individual charity that its sale will benefit. At a quick glance you’ll find items benefitting pet rescues, food shelves, and local churches, just to name a few.
Mack, a young professional who joined Thrift for Good as a marketer, said when he saw the concept behind the store, it made him quickly sign on to become a “thrift store guy.”
“What I really have a passion for is the heart behind the business,” said Mack.
The store’s young creators have always been fans of the second-hand store style, and decided to use their tech knowledge to bring their concept to life.
Mack said they created an entire system to organize the massive undertaking and assure that each item people donate sends a charitable gift to the correct organization.
Additionally, Mack said they’ve coordinated so that unsold items are sent to other organizations that can make use of them, but the proceeds from the item still go to the charity designated by the donor.
The group starts the business at a time when most charities can certainly use the help.
Several major organizations are bracing for a tough end to their year as the COVID-19 pandemic has left many jobless and others struggling economically.
As leaders with the Salvation Army said this month in Dallas, they’re expecting a 151% increase in people coming to them for help this holiday season, while many are unable to give what they normally would to help.
Mack hopes their store will help that conundrum a bit. He believes the thrift store can be a good option for cash-strapped people looking for gifts and wanting to contribute to a big cause, and in their case, a way for people to donate what they can afford and see the money go to a cause that they believe in personally.
“You may not have a lot to give, you may not have the few dollars to donate to a charity, but if you have things in your house that you can sell, you can bring them and make an impact,” said Mack.