Okay, so here's the recap for Athens, OH in terms of thrift store quality.
For being a smaller Goodwill store and being somewhat expensive...
Goodwill: 2 out of 5
For a small yet eclectic college experience without the dirt and grime of a real thrift store...
Athens Underground: 1 out of 5 (thrift store rating)
For being a combined standard thrift store experience...
Columbus Rd thrifting experience (including New-To-You Thrift Shoppe and Re Use Thrift Store) 3 out of 5
Athens thrift stores combined score: 2 out of 5
I feel a little nice giving Athens a 2. In reality, Athens has an awful collection compared to larger cities. In all fairness, it makes sense that the amount of collection is correlated with how big a city is. If you do want a good thrift store experience, go to a city. The closest and best would probably be Columbus.
For the visual learners, here's some Athens thrift store pics.
These two being only 50 yards apart I will review both as one thrifting experience instead of two separate stores. If you are going to go to one, then there is a good chance that you will go to both.
Before I start, I will encourage the thrifter not to walk from Athens. It's generally too far away for legs. I would encourage to go by automobile. I walked there. It took forever and there's a good chance people thought I was some sort of drifter as I hugged close to the hill on the side of the road. On the good side though, I got some good exercise and the landscape was "perdy."
First, New-To-You Thrift Shoppe (NTYTS) is a good standard thrift store. It's not the cleanest place nor the most organized. By my book, that's fine. After going to Athens Underground, this place really felt like a good thrift store.
NTYTS (sounds like n'tits) had a small amount of disorganized clothing, some random shoes, but a decent amount of bric'n'brac. The clothes were thrown in somewhat of an organizational pattern with standard women's, men's, and children's section. Unlike the large chains, the clothes were not organized by size or by color.
The store had a decent bric'n'brac section with movies, cups, chairs, toys, books, statuary...blah,blah, blah, you know...the usual stuff. It wasn't an overwhelming selection but again, decent.
In fact, I made purchase there, a movie called BLAST: The Final Comedown, and no, it's not a porno you sick weirdos. It stars Billy Dee Williams and explores rascism, like Crash, except with Lando Calirissian as a martial arts master named Johnny Johnson. A great thing about this thrift store is that all purchases at NTYTS help foster children, so you can't really go wrong if you buy anything (unless you hate foster children). So altogether NTYTS gets a pretty standard 3 out of 5 for being an average-sized store with average selection that happens to give money to foster children. Also because I found a movie with Billy Dee Williams there...oh yeah...
Re-Use Thrift Store is one of three Re-Uses in the area. The others are located in Wellston and Albany, towns relatively close to ole' Athens town.
Re Use greatly lacks in the clothes department. Random racks are set up and are hard to maneuver around. I didn't really see anything that caught my eye at the clothing section.
Re Use does have a great amount of bric'n'brac and rare random finds. For example, it has one of the best book selections I have ever seen in a thrift store. It also has VHS tapes there. Re Use has a lot of VHS tapes. This is great for the three people in college who still use a VCR. I personally would advise everyone to look at the books behind the counter. These oldish leather bound books are very classy looking and any selection there would add character to any bookshelf.
Re-Use also has tons of furniture and some of it is naturally not in the best shape. If you need a new toilet, look in the back. I don't personally, but I'm sure someone out there is clapping in happiness after reading about cheap toilets...perhaps. Anyway, for a good bric'n'brac selection, tons of furniture, a kick-arse book library, but lackluster clothes, another standard 3 out of 5.
To sum it up.
New-To-You Thrift Shoppe: 3 out of 5
Re Use Thrift Store: 3 out of 5
Columbus Road Thrift Experience: 3 out of 5 (two standard thrift stores make for a standard experience)
Side note: People should be paying attention to this. You've got til the 17th to input ideas...
I have a love and hate relationship with Athens underground. I love the weird clothing and the atmosphere. I hate the fact that it's not a thrift store.
First of all, Athens Underground is technically a vintage clothing store. The clothing there is generally not donated. The money earned there does not go to help the poor in any way except right at this moment courtesy of "Homecoming for the Homeless". Rather, the owner, or the little old lady who hangs over your shoulder watching your every move as you walk around, finds the clothes from auctions and sometimes from wholesale suppliers. This lady, or this "Barbara", was originally from New York and owned another vintage clothing store until she moved here to buy up the old vintage clothing store, Secondhand Row.
Apparently, Athens Underground (AU) was not the first vintage clothing store in this area. Instead, the dingy basement that is AU has been a series of different vintage clothing stores for the last 20 years or so.
Anyway, if you have been there, you will notice that AU is not set up like a thrift store. It does not smell like a thrift store. It plays eclectic Arabian music, not elevator music or 90's hits. It's bright and happy. Worst of all, it's expensive. Apparently, some of the stuff on the shelves is completely new, a sin in any thrifter's handbook. This place was made for college students, to entertain college students, and to steal college student's parent's money because most college students are afraid of mingling with poor people. I must say, the business model works. Ask anyone about AU on OU's campus and you get, "Athens Underground! I LOVE IT THERE! It's so hipster!"
Well, you're right. It is hipster.
One major problem I had with this store is lack of good clothes for men. Yeah, you got suit jackets and vests and shirts and pants. BUT, and this is a large but, most men can't get away with wearing a bright red jacket or the other weird eclectic clothing there. If you can, more power to you. I personally can't, so I stared at the clothes and just moved away to the weird vintage books. Women probably have a heyday in this place with all the different fashions. Like women really need more clothes and shoes.
Anyway, as I offend all my lady readers, here's the final rating.
Athens Underground: thrift store rating: 1 out of 5
Athens Underground: vintage store rating: I don't know. I don't go to vintage clothing stores. I hear it's good though.
"Shaking my fist..." Curse you Barbara! and your surly glances!!
I've got this three and a half pound lump of gray matter sitting in my skull. It irritates me, bites at me until I've got to write something. Well here is that something.
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