TOWN OF TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Thrifting clothes is one of the most popular ways of shopping for Gen Z. Now, parents are hopping onto this growing trend to help save money for back to school shopping. For some parents, the shops have been their hidden gem.
South Buffalo resident Aubrey Ray has been following the trend of consignment shopping since before it became a trend. Consignment shops are what she likes to call "her go to spot".
"This is the place to go," Ray said. "Hands down."
One of the main reasons why Ray has relied on shopping at consignment stores is because of the variety of clothes offered and the deals.
"There's a lot of options," Ray said. "Plus there's so many good quality brands here. I just bought [my son] Timberland boots. He's going to grow out it, but it's awesome. They're great price for Timberland boots".
Kid to Kid Manager Eliza Domros has been working at the Tonawanda location for almost four years. She told me that back to school season is — without a doubt — the busiest time of year for the store.
Most customers who come during this Fall season end up being returning customers throughout the year.
"This is our busy season. August, September, and even into October," Domros said. "[Parents] say "I'm going to come back" or "we're going to come back" and they do. They make a couple trips because it's so much cheaper".
Just how much cheaper you may be wondering? Take a look at these three items.
The shirt and pants are both from Old Navy with the original price tags on them. The shoes are from TOMS Footwear.
Here's the price breakdown of each item:
| ITEM | PRICE AT BIG BOX STORE | PRICE AT KID TO KID |
| SHIRT | $20 | $6 |
| PANTS | $35 | $6 |
| SHOES | $38 | $15 |
The total price comparison shows a major difference. In total, shopping at Kid to Kid would save a consumer $66 (before taxes).
When talking with Kid to Kid shopper Laura Cedrone, she told me that there was a sense of hesitancy when she first tried going to a consignment shop to get clothes for her kids.
She decided to give it a try and she hasn't turned back since. That's her advice to parents who may have been like her before she tried it out.
"I say just try it," Cedrone said. "I feel like you're going to find something that's going to work and you're going to be shocked at how much you save".
This trend is not going away anytime soon. According to ThredUp's annual resale report for last year, second hand shopping is expected to grow by 127% by 2026.
Kid to Kid is offering a special for the month of August. If you sell clothes back to the store and decide to take store credit instead of cash, you get 40% more added to that total. If the value of your clothes is $10 and you decide to turn it to store credit, you will get $14 in store credit.
