I did it! I went thrift shopping for the first time in almost 4 months! Going back was a little scary but overall, it felt really good to step into a thrift store again. In-store shopping during the coronavirus is an all-new shopping experience. People must wear masks, maintain social distancing, and limit the amount of items that they come into contact with in order to minimize the spread of the virus. During my shopping excursions over the last few months, I have had to take on some additional precautions and I wanted to share those with you today along with my thrift shopping experience.
Let me start by talking about my thrift shopping experience during the coronavirus. First and foremost, it was not like a normal thrifting experience. When I entered the store, there were many signs advising customers to maintain social distancing and also to wear a mask (as it is mandatory here in NY). All of the cashiers had clear screens in front of them and there were cart cleaning stations located all over the store. There weren’t too many people in the store when I went so crowd control didn’t seem to be an issue.
While shopping, I took some additional precautions to ensure my safety. The most important precaution that I took was that I wore disposable gloves while shopping. I had a strict procedure in place where I was not to touch my phone (so I couldn’t look up comps) or any of my personal belongings in order to keep all germs contained to the gloves. Once I reached check out, I placed all of the items on the counter, removed the gloves, placed them in a bag, sealed it and threw it away once I went outside. I, then, applied hand sanitizer to my hands as soon as I got in my car.
Once I arrived home, I brought everything in the house and immediately, threw all of my new clothing items into the washing machine. It is advised by the CDC to wash clothing in hot water to inactivate the virus so I followed that precaution. To disinfect the shoes that I bought, I sprayed them with Lysol and then let them sit for 48 hours to kill any potential germs from the virus. Once the clothes were washed, I placed them in the dryer (as the high heat should help to further inactivate the virus). You do have to be careful with fabric content before doing this or items might shrink. Finally, I placed everything aside for an additional 48 hours before adding it into the rest of my inventory.
This may sound excessive but I am trying to take all necessary precautions in order to ensure that both myself and my customers are safe. If you have any questions about shopping during the coronavirus, visit your local state/county sites and/or the CDC website. There are so many great resources out there! Be sure to check them out and happy thrift shopping!
If you don’t already, be sure to check out my Instagram for more Reselling Tips at @ RecycledRosesGuide (Click HERE)
To get email notifications for my next blog post and to receive a Reseller Recap Every Friday, sign up for my emails below:
Baci,
Bianca Ida
Leave a Reply