Pitt’s on-campus thrift store sells secondhand clothing that helps reduces textile waste, cuts carbon, and promotes a culture of reuse. sustainability, social justice, and vintage outfits for all.

Since the pandemic began, online shopping has been all the craze. Whether it be for clothing or other goods, we have become dependent on online shopping. While these online stores are convenient, they come at a cost – they’re rather unsustainable in a multitude of ways: economically, environmentally, and socially. In terms of fair trade, environmental costs, shipping pollution, and retail prices, plenty of companies have failed to align with many consumers’ moral compasses.

Luckily for students (and the general public) around the University of Pittsburgh campus, our little thrift store – the University of Thriftsburgh – has great picks, low prices, and is plenty sustainable. Being local is a big advantage, because not only is the walk to O’Hara Street to pick up clothing better for the environment, it also ensures that that cute jacket you want to buy doesn’t take three weeks (or more) to ship. Thriftsburgh is run by students and the store is a member of the Student Office of Sustainability (SOOS); we intentionally think about the footprint of every action we make. Our clothes are locally donated and locally sold. If garments are unable to be sold (sometimes they’re a bit too tattered), we send them to textile recycling facilities, and thus divert them from landfills. We’re also socially conscious of clothing accessibility. Our clothes have low prices, with a maximum of $10 for coats and jackets. Our store has also donated several boxes of clothing to other student groups this past semester, some of which went to help the homeless population of Pittsburgh.

However, like many businesses, Thriftsburgh had to adapt to the conditions of the pandemic, and we joined the online selling bandwagon. Technically, none of us were really trained for this — we had been hired to run an in-person retail store, not an online shop — but thankfully, we’re adaptable and creative college students who are well versed in social media.

We decided that our traditional method of transaction when someone came to pick up would work just fine — we accept cash, Panther Funds, and store credit. Donations were set aside in the store to quarantine for several days before we went through and processed them. To ensure social distancing, we put a table in front of our entrance and used it as a selling counter of sorts, while employees could work inside the store.

As for the actual promotion and selling, we came up with a whole process that became quite successful on Instagram. We decided that for each post, we would have around ten items for sale, with basic information on their pictures like a description, size, brand, and price. Then, we set up a schedule and posted several times a week, whether it be a new round of sweaters or outdoor wear. We kept track of the clothing for sale, such as what had already been sold, on a shared spreadsheet.

A little birdie told me we’re working on an online store with more items, a smoother buying process, and an overall more polished system. Stay tuned for news to come!

So, how can students help to be more sustainable and help our University of Thriftsburgh store? There are plenty of ways!

• In addition to thrifting, choose garments that favor durability over a short-lived trend. Yes, that fast fashion top might look cute, but is it really worth it if it’ll fall apart in a few months?
• Mending and altering your clothes to elongate their lifespan will keep them out of landfill, and keep you from purchasing a replacement you shouldn’t need so soon. It’s great for your wallet ​and​ the environment. Thriftsburgh even has a sewing machine in store — let us know if you need help with mending and altering!
• Choosing clothing with natural fibers is also a good move, since unfortunately most synthetic materials are plastic-based, and these shed plastic microfibers, especially when washed.
• As mentioned before, shopping secondhand AND local is great — so when we start selling clothes again, be first in line- probably ​on​line, that is- to check out the thrifted goods.

With all these clothes, we can make some pretty great outfits- and we’ll hopefully supply plenty of sustainable purchases as well!

Read original Pitt Big Idea Center blog post by University of Thriftsburgh student workers article Kira Klein & Hannah Lempert.