User talk:Mikahhhhhh

Value Village
Value Village is Canada’s largest for-profit thrift shop chain, also known as [| Savers] in the USA and Australia). Value Village collects its merchandise from individual donors, purchases it in bulk from non-profit charities and re-sell second-hand treasures to the public in a thrift shop format.

The company reduces waste and repurposes unwanted items by selling [| used goods] consisting of clothing, appliances, furniture, accessories and household items.

Contrary to popular belief, not everything sold at Value Village is second-hand, they also carry a large selection of holiday [| fast fashion] accessories, makeup and clothing during Halloween and Christmas. Value Village is well known for its extensive collections of Halloween Costumes as well as ugly Christmas sweaters during the holidays. They also sell other random accessories and essentials such as tights, socks and other accessories year-round.

History
Value Village was founded in 1954 by Bill Ellison in Renton, Washington. He sourced the companies inventory in bulk from small charities creating reliable income for the non-profits organizations. Within five years, the company blew up and became a widely known chain with locations popping up all across the States in Los Angeles, Seattle and Portland. Value Village expanded to Canada in 1980, with its first location being in Vancouver, B.C. In later years the company grew internationally and also opened up multiple locations across Australia.

In the [| Pacific Northwest] and [| Canada] the company operates as Value Village rather than Savers, however, Bill Ellison founded both companies. The company was later owned and operated by [| TPG Capital] after Bill’s retirement in 2000.

In 2019 the company sold to the [|Crescent Capital Group] and [| Ares Management].

in 2021 the franchise expanded to more than 300 locations across the united states, Canada and Australia, the shops operate under the names Value Village, Savers, Valu Thrift and Unique Thrift.

Environmental Impact
In 2020, Value Village saved 244 Million tops, 87 million pairs of pants, 27 million dresses, 20 million coats, 28 million pairs of shoes, 31 million accessories and 13 million pieces of kitchenware from the landfill. However, not every item donated to their shops gets reused or sold; a selection of unsold goods also gets thrown out to clear space on the shelves for new inventory.

Community Effect & Social Issues
Although Value Villages fits the definition of a [| charity shop] it doesn't reflect the same values and has much more profitable intentions compared to other non-profit thrift shops.

Value Village's misleading advertisements create common misconceptions that the company is a charity. When in reality it is a for-profit organization that contributes only 17% of profits to charities.

Thrift shopping originated as a resource to help supply the less fortunate with resources at an affordable price. The expansion of modern-day trends of second-hand and [| vintage clothing] has encouraged middle and upper-class individuals to shop at stores such as Value Village, raising demand and prices.

The popularity associated with thrift shopping at Value Village has created inflation and made second-hand apparel a conveniently inaccessible market for low-income individuals who previously depended on thrift shops. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Value_village_info_chart22.png