Three Great Donated Categories to Feature at the Checkout in Thrift

Retail impulse sales help customers and the bottom line

More and more stores are creating aisles that people have to go through to get to the cash registers. As a customer I find them frustrating, as a merchant, I see that they sell product.

There is a tendency even in thrift to put new goods in this space. While not necessarily a bad idea, there are great donated items that sell well in this impulse heavy high traffic area. Of course, donated has a higher gross margin than purchased.

The trick is a low dollar cost with wide appeal that is donated in abundance.

• CDs, and DVDs — It’s easy to merchandise a wide selection of genres so nearly anyone can find something they like.

• Paperback books — Like CDs and DVDs, it’s easy to merchandise a wide variety of authors and genres. An assortment of kids’ books can also be a winner.

• Toys/Games/Puzzles — As I mentioned in a previous post, these are super easy impulse goods. Kids can be great at helping close the sale.

Setting these up in distinct four-foot sections can be appealing and increase sales. Doing a 2 for the price can help even more.

Thanks for reading. I am happy to connect here, on LinkedIn, or on my Thrifter blog. You might also be interested in my Thrift Merchandising ebook on Amazon. It’s free with a Kindle Unlimited membership.

Tim Gebauer — The Thrifter