Recession Redefines 'Value' for the Holiday Shopping Season

MINNEAPOLIS - (Business Wire) Shoppers are expected to get creative with how they spend their hard-earned cash for the holidays this year, shopping at outlets that redefine the meaning of value.

Take thrift stores or resale shops, which aren't typically popular destinations for holiday shopping. The National Retail Federation projects that one in ten shoppers – 11.4 percent – will buy gifts or other merchandise at such locations.

"Many people are experiencing financial hardships and this is causing them to rethink their typical approach to holiday shopping," said Steve Murphy, president of franchising for Winmark Corporation.

According to Murphy, resale stores help people achieve this goal by offering gently-used, name-brand products for a fraction of their original price. In addition to the allure of saving the buyer money, used products are also becoming more accepted due to their recycled, eco-friendly appeal.

For example, for style-savvy teenagers and twenty somethings who have name-brand, designer clothing on their holiday lists, Winmark's Plato's Closet locations offer an assortment of pieces, including gently used high-end denim brands such as True Religion and Seven for All Mankind, for up to 50 to 70 percent off the original sticker price.

Parents who are frustrated by how quickly their children outgrow certain toys or clothing and want to give these more practical items as gifts, also stand to benefit from shopping at resale stores. At Play It Again Sports, shoppers can find a variety of quality-used sports equipment, such as hockey skates or baseball gloves, which can affordably replace the ones their kids out grew from last season. For babies and younger children, Once Upon A Child offers safety-ensured toys and equipment for half the cost of the original price.

"There's a certain 'vintage' feel to used goods, which lends a value-add to certain used merchandise, particularly high-end equipment," adds Murphy. He says that at Winmark's Music Go Round stores, for example, there are lots of one-of-a-kind guitars for musicians of all levels who are seeking instruments with character.

For more information about the Winmark Corporation, please visit www.winmarkcorporation.com.

Winmark Corporation
Merry Beth Hovey, 763-520-8500
Vice President Marketing
mhovey@winmarkcorporation.com