“I’m just a Raggedy Ann Doll in a Barbie World.” The Niche Lady
Researching Information of local haunts
The Internet is a vast wealth of information on everything and anything imaginable. It can be overwhelming to locate the right kind of data a consumer needs to research a collectible item. Most sites use SEO to ensure their sites are found on the web by using keywords on the first page of the search engines.
The Rise of e- Commerce on the Internet
During the 1990s many online retail companies began their quest to grow and expand their online retail businesses by making their web shops more accessible to customers. Through tech innovation, web stores included 24 hours 7 days a week shopping with online payment card processing. One online business that became a retail giant and continues to be popular among collectors is eBay, which began in 1995. A year after retailer bookstore Amazon began on July 5, 1994, another online retail giant.
The rise of these online Thrift and secondhand shops has fueled the U.S. economy by creating a secondary retail market where consumers can upload and sell their wares online. Many collectors use eBay to find their collectibles instead of going to the yard, estate, and flea markets to find their items. There are now many similar online Thrift shops that cater to consumers of all levels of society from latest items to used secondhand goods. The rise of these sites has created a collector class that seeks out items for their collections.
There are many average consumers creating a side hustle dealing in antiques and collectibles due to the advent growth of eBay and many other niche sites like Etsy.
Why should we shop locally and in our own back yard.?
Shopping online can be a lot easier and more convenient than shopping at a mall or store, but it can also be a determent to local businesses who must run daily operations and sales. Local businesses are forced to compete with non-brick-and-mortar shops and private citizens for sales.
As a society, we need to shop online but shop at the local establishments within your community to support local businesses. As Consumers, we fail to realize that if we do not support local businesses, free commerce will decline. The online retailers will continue to grow and drive their competition out of business. The loss of competition would be bad for all of us. Consumers since online retailers must no longer make their prices competitive for consumers to shop and save.
Supporting your local community business helps the whole community because many of these businesses donate either time or funds to local charities within that local community.
Many of these local Thrift stores support an organization that creates jobs, by providing training or other aid.
Some Local Antique and Thrift Store Malls in and Around Ocala, Florida.
I love thrifting in Ocala Florida. I have found some great spots to shop at the local Thrifts. Some of my local haunts include Divine Providence Ministries. This Thrift has a Facebook page that announces their weekly sales. Helping Hands Thrift and Consignment right next to Divine Providence offers high-quality furniture consignments along with clothing, shoes, handbags, housewares, and collectibles.
Habitat for Humanity Restore on Hwy 200 offers great furniture, appliances, and home improvement items at great discounts. Habitat has another store location in Ocala around NW 27th Ave. Habitat has an online web store at habitatshop.org.
The Sheriff’s Thrift Ranch in Steeple Chase Plaza on HWY 200 highlights a lot of vintage furniture, clothing, books, DVDs, old record albums, and collectibles. There is even a great coffee bar shop they opened in the front area. I love to shop here, I visit often.
The Hospice Thrift on Jasmine Plaza sells lots of quality clothing at reasonable prices and has a points rewards system as well as weekly sale discounts on their whiteboard when you come in. I found a pair of Chicos capri pants for 6.00 dollars originally priced at 8.00 but with the discounts lowered to 6 dollars. Shop for clothing at this Thrift. You can’t go wrong.
The Goodwill Store on 27th Ave. Near Paddock Mall has rows and rows of clothing at different very reasonable prices, they sell housewares, furniture, handbags, shoes, books, and many other items.
The Goodwill Outlet or Bins on E. Silver Springs Blvd. Sells items by the pound. Plastic bags are given to the buyers to place their items in the bags where they are weighed and priced. I confess the last time I went in there I went hog wild and spent 96.00. The volume is overwhelming. Whatever is not sold at Goodwill, it winds up at the bins.
Salvation Army, Brothers Keeper, and The Humane Society along Bonnie Health Blvd. Off Pine Avenue are three Thrift Stores right next to each other. Each Thrift has its own unique vibe and great treasure finds.
The Salvation Army had more clothing and jewelry than the other Thrifts. They had house wares and collectibles.
Brother’s Keeper had lots of furniture in the front and back area, electronics, clothing, crafts, and housewares. Nice sturdy furniture at reasonable prices.
The Humane Society Thrift looks like an Antiques Mall, set up with different vignettes in small booth areas nicely displayed. They had lots of books, records, housewares, clothing, handbags, and unique collectibles. It was loads of fun to shop.
Ocala Auction is an auction house that sells in volume, auctions start at 6pm. They do accept consignments and have a Facebook page displaying the items up for auction sale.
Ole Cracker Antiques Mall has the distinction of being the oldest Antiques Mall in Ocala. This mall has many booths with beautiful vignettes and many dealers at this location with loads of vintage antiques and collectibles. I saw a Holt Howard Pixie vintage 1950s condiment dish for 47.00 when I last went. What a deal. On eBay, it sells upwards of 75.00 to 350.00 depending upon rarity.
Toy Universe in Jasmine Plaza is a fun nostalgic trip into vintage 1960s-1980s toys and collectibles. They sell baseball cards, memorabilia, and comic books. You feel like a big kid when you go in there. It’s Loads of fun.
Some other honorable mentions of Antiques and Thrift shops include Renaissance Consignment, Florida Marion Antiques, Ocala Mall, Ocala Antiques Mall, and Estate, The White Elephant Store, Needful Things Thrift, and Two Sisters Vintage.
I have not visited these Honorable mentioned Thrifts yet, but I plan to soon. That is another day and another blog post.
So Many Thrifts So little Time
I have named many Thrifts and Antique Malls but there are countless many more in the Ocala and surrounding areas. There is Belleview and Dunnellon not included on this list. There are just too many Thrifts to name them all, but all of them offer amazing treasures at great deals.
Remember when Thrifting, just have fun.
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