Thrift Thieves

WaterRaven

WaterRaven

Bushwoolie
Joined
Mar 18, 2013
Messages
481
Hello everyone!

I have been to four thrift store this evening and none of them had my little ponies. I made some inquiries and the store clerks told me they did have mlps, but they were gone quick.

I was looking for a G1 Fizzy and I found her on ebay and it turned out the seller was local, sure enough she had an add on Kijiji (free local advertising in my area). She was selling the pony for $30 on ebay, but $12 on Kijiji, so I inquired from the Kijiji ad.

I went to purchase the pony and she told me that her daughters use to play with them, but they had since grown out of them.

She contacted me today to tell me that she "found more" and that if I'd like to take a look, I can look at her new ads on Kijiji.

I think what's happening here is that she's buying them at thrift stores and selling them online for more:tongue:. She's thrifty, fair enough, but having gone to four thrift stores today and finding all the ponies gone so suddenly, I'm definitely thinking she's not the only one.

Have any of you noticed this? I use to see MLPs in the thrift store all the time before I decided to get into customs and become a collector and now that I'm driving all over town looking for them, they appear to be gone.

What do you guys think? Is this happening to any of you? Noticed anything similar? Have any thoughts or ideas about the story?

Cheers!
 
I used to find a few ponies in a bag or loose at the local thrift stores, but late last year I couldn't find any at all! I later found out my dad had been buying them all and for Christmas and my birthday I got about 30 ponies, mostly g3. :smilepony: Now whenever I go and don't find any I accuse him of hiding them.

Hope you are quicker than that other person next time you go around to the thrifts. :LOL:
 
wlyteth said:
I used to find a few ponies in a bag or loose at the local thrift stores, but late last year I couldn't find any at all! I later found out my dad had been buying them all and for Christmas and my birthday I got about 30 ponies, mostly g3. :smilepony: Now whenever I go and don't find any I accuse him of hiding them.

Hope you are quicker than that other person next time you go around to the thrifts. :LOL:
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Aw!!!! That's actually a really nice story!!! <3

I hope someone's out there doing it for me >_> <_<

There's one store I didn't get to this evening that I plan on raiding tomorrow. Wish me luck!

:LOL:
 
Well, I wouldn't call it thievery. People buy stuff to sell second-hand for more money. People do this with new releases that haven't hit the wide market, people do this with thrift store/garage sale finds, too.

And as time goes on, less people will have G1s sitting around their house to get rid of, which means they'll be rarer to find in thrift stores. And parents who get their before you could very well be buying them for their children to play with.

It's just the luck of the draw, I guess.
 
Phekzhen said:
Well, I wouldn't call it thievery. People buy stuff to sell second-hand for more money. People do this with new releases that haven't hit the wide market, people do this with thrift store/garage sale finds, too.

And as time goes on, less people will have G1s sitting around their house to get rid of, which means they'll be rarer to find in thrift stores. And parents who get their before you could very well be buying them for their children to play with.

It's just the luck of the draw, I guess.
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The title was just a joke :smilepony: I was just frustrated that she was cleaning out the thrift store in my town (she lives down the street) and reselling the ponies to me for $12 and $30 on ebay. Her daughters were there and I asked the one "Did this use to be your pony?" and she just stared at me... all of them did :tongue: My friend and I laughed about it later.

Ah well. I'm just going to keep trying :winkpony:
 
oh my - join the club... you have to be quick to score ponies in thrift stores in some places = but that is what makes the hunt fun :)

but hey, at least you have places to shop and not nanny-state silliness that banned toys from second-hand stores like where I live - I joke all the good ponies get shipped west of the mississippi thanks to that silly lead-paint ban at places like goodwill etc.

you don't want to support someone else's thriftiness (and white lies) than get up earlier to hunt local or hang here for good pony deals ;-)

and welcome to collecting :)
 
You're all lucky you find ponies in thrift stores at all - you just don't get them here.
 
Vintage stuff I'll by regardless if I want it or not if the price is right. :) I resell them sometimes or give them off to friends. I do leave behind g3 ponies unless it's something I know for sure is special, not that into them and they're perfectly kid safe (no lead etc).
 
I don't find this with ponies, but with clothes, yeah. I am plus size and on a very tight budget so 90% of the clothes I buy are 2nd hand from charity shops/thrift stores. I can usually go into one and see the assistant there and if its a certain day and a certain lady is running the till's, yeah I won't be finding anything above a size 20 in that store!! I am pretty certain she's grabbing all the size 22/24 goodies :)
 
maycrestmom said:
oh my - join the club... you have to be quick to score ponies in thrift stores in some places = but that is what makes the hunt fun :)

but hey, at least you have places to shop and not nanny-state silliness that banned toys from second-hand stores like where I live - I joke all the good ponies get shipped west of the mississippi thanks to that silly lead-paint ban at places like goodwill etc.

you don't want to support someone else's thriftiness (and white lies) than get up earlier to hunt local or hang here for good pony deals ;-)

and welcome to collecting :)
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Banned toys from second-hand stores! How come?

LoL, thank you!

I am so excited and you're right about the hunt. I have been checking the store more now and even call the one woman at the Reuse Center. She said she'll keep an eye out for me and put them aside! What a sweet-heart. That woman deserves chocolates!:LOL:
 
FantasticFirefly said:
Vintage stuff I'll by regardless if I want it or not if the price is right. :) I resell them sometimes or give them off to friends. I do leave behind g3 ponies unless it's something I know for sure is special, not that into them and they're perfectly kid safe (no lead etc).
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I mostly bought clothes and shoes at the thrift store, the odd hand bag or plant pot, but not that I am on the hunt for ponies... look out! Rawr!

Hopefully I'll find some more :) :smilepony:
 
I have yet to score ponies in the thrift stores in my town :cry2: I think I'm going to try to go garage saling more instead this summer. They always seemed to be at garage sales when I was little.
 
Rhubarb Pie said:
I don't find this with ponies, but with clothes, yeah. I am plus size and on a very tight budget so 90% of the clothes I buy are 2nd hand from charity shops/thrift stores. I can usually go into one and see the assistant there and if its a certain day and a certain lady is running the till's, yeah I won't be finding anything above a size 20 in that store!! I am pretty certain she's grabbing all the size 22/24 goodies :)
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You know, I didn't think of that! How silly of me, the employees are sure to look out for the goodies!

Working a thrift store would be the best way to get your hands on vintage items for re-sale... maybe I'm in the wrong industry! Not that I would ever quit the vet clinic, but still! :LOL:
 
dragonkiss207 said:
I have yet to score ponies in the thrift stores in my town :cry2: I think I'm going to try to go garage saling more instead this summer. They always seemed to be at garage sales when I was little.
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That's a great idea. I am just going to have to find a way to convince myself to get out of bed early....

Plus, I find that garage sales are generally cheaper than the thrift store. People come packing quarters.
 
WaterRaven said:
You know, I didn't think of that! How silly of me, the employees are sure to look out for the goodies!
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My husband's grandmother volunteers at a thrift store in his hometown. She picks out so much stuff for everyone. Now that she knows I'm into ponies too she keeps a look out. :p
My mother has greater luck than me too.

There aren't thrift stores very close to where I live. Too much affluence. All there is are boutiques for clothes because it's vintage fashionable. Not like it's easy to find ponies in the stores either though, unless you want to drive a bit.
 
Raemarie said:
There aren't thrift stores very close to where I live. Too much affluence. All there is are boutiques for clothes because it's vintage fashionable.
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Same here. There's one tiny one not too far away, and a Goodwill on the highway which is rather far. But that's really it so no thrifting for me. And I seem to have terrible luck with garage sales.
 
A guy up here in Michigan told me just today when I bought a loose honeybuzz that they "go quick". So yeah... I know that they go fast!!!
 
I just about fell over when I found two small bags of vintage ponies at a thrift store about a month ago! Haven't seen any since, but for $6 I got to upgrade my pearly baby moondreamer, mermaid baby pearly, bright glow, little flitter with pink hair, glittering gem, and even a paint your own pony sky flier that someone actually did a decent job painting:) That's the first time in probably a decade of thrifting i've ever found anything good though! Chicago land is saturated with pony collectors:/

There's a local toy shop I visit ever now and then, and I guess I didn't realize it'd been so long but sure enough I got the "we just sold them on ebay, they've been sitting here for 2 years!" ugh:(
 
I find none anymore :( I used to find ponies all the time, that was 10 years ago and more. Kind of sad. But WOW that would **** me off knowing the lady down the street was getting them AND selling them higher? Man :madpony:
There is someone I know of in my city. She has job and she buys them online from kijiji and thrift stores and resells them to us collectors. She used to compete with me and SoccerChicka at a local event. Which wasn't fair to me. She had her daughter going on ahead and snatching them up faster than we could move. Sadly she got some of the 2nd set adult sea ponies with shells for most likely less than 10 dollars total. I know I shouldn't say what people can and can't do, but it doesn't seem fair to me. Let the collectors have them, don't sell them for profit unless you need the money or something. If they you know are there and you collect, they need to just back off your turf. They are just really selling back to us collectors anyway. I miss the days of of the find in real life without paying a premium.

WaterRaven what city are you from? Probably not here, no ponies in thrift stores anymore :(
 
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