Adventures in thrifting income from the pay per pound Goodwill.
Since STEEM has dropped it is time to go back to my old strategy of going hard into my side hustles and then posting on Steemit about them.
Make money then make some more by blogging about it. :D
My wife and kids have left for England to visit her parents for a few weeks. That gives me time to experiment with my life. Last time they left I performed the SNAP food budget challenge which was to eat for just $29 per week. I blew that out of the water! I ate for 3 weeks on just two weeks' budget.
My experiment this time will be to go to the local Goodwill outlet every day to search for profitable items. I will then list them on eBay that same day. I will keep a running total of the amount spent and amount sold/earned.
It should be fun and interesting.
The Goodwill outlet is where they bring all the items that didn't sell at the normal Goodwill stores and price it by the pound. Clothes are $1.49/lb, Glass is $0.29/lb, and everything else is $0.89 per pound. I also think some things get sent directly here as well.
Today is March 18th and it is Day 1. Let's see what I found this Sunday.
Goodwill Outlet Income Experiment: Day 1
Weekends are always rough there. More people are off work so the place gets a bit more crowded than during the weekday. Still, you never know what is out there and they are always bringing more stuff to the floor.
Today I found a few things that I am going to keep.
That air filter is the exact size that I use in my house. They cost around $6-7 in the store, but since I paid per pound I must have paid less than $0.25. As Benjamin Franklin said, "A penny saved is a penny earned." Actually, it's better nowadays as there was no income tax back then, plus there is no sales tax charged either (which is 8.1% in my area).
The other thing I am going to keep is that cool old wine crate. It's from 1972!
Besides those two items, I mostly found vinyl records. Most of them are in bad condition, but there are the original pressings of classic rock favorites! I couldn't let them get thrown out!
That top left on is Santana Abraxas and it includes a mint condition poster! Sweet!
Besides that lot, I found a few records from the 80's that I might make a few bucks on. Anyone ever heard of 'Level 42'? I hadn't.
After the records, the only other items I found that were worth anything were two remotes and a radio for a 2002-2004 Toyota Camry.
People are always losing remotes, so if I can find ones in demand for less than a quarter I pick them up. They usually sell for between $10-20, depending on the specific remote. Turning a quarter into $10 is something I would do all day if I could. Of course, there are other expenses like eBay fees and shipping, but the percentage of gain is still excellent and they are easy to ship.
Radios are always a gamble. They weigh a lot and you can't test them in store. This one was good though.
Day 1 Totals
Total Spent: $15.47 (includes the two items I am keeping)
Total Listed Price: $105.40
Total Sold: $0
Let's see what I can earn from this in a month. Tomorrow is a new day and a new thrift!
If you have never seen the inside of a Goodwill Outlet, here ya go!
