Value Village

I’ll never shop at Value Village again.
Everything is way overpriced. If it wasn’t for people the donate their stuff they wouldn’t be in business.
I thought they were here to give customers items for a fair price?
Clearly they’re in the business to make BIG profit. I’ll never donate here ever again. I don’t recommend people shopping here.

Thrifter aficionados will feel right at home here with the wide selection and great service. Staff is very attentive and are quick to re-​stock discarded items from selfish douches who act like their mother works there.
I scored a few diamonds in the rough here and will definitely return again and again.
Prize find: nicely worn Danier leather jacket — ¾ length — only $ 30!
Gets busy on the weekend but I never fret, it’s not the type of crowd that would scoop items I’m interested in ;-)

Huge store, clean and I was shocked as I saw HOW MUCH stuff there was, the variety of it all — and it was all pretty well organized, considering.
There were sections of clothing for anything and everybody that you could want. Purses, coats, shows, BOOKS, belts, pet supplies. I spent most of my time here with the books and came out with a few treasures, reasonably priced too. (Buy 4 books, Get 1 free!) Cookbooks, Travel, Fiction, Teen, Romance, Sci-​Fi, Spy and War etc and all into their own respective areas! LOVE!
I love looking through the cookwares section also, mostly for the nostalgia, «Hey, we had that pot and those drinking glasses when I was 5 years old!»
One time in another Value Village I found a Vintage Orange Le Creuset Pot which is still one of my fave finds to date!
The toy section is cool too, even if you do not have kids, chances are someone has likely cleaned out their basement from 30 years ago and you will see something familiar! Weebles! The Fisher Price Farm Set — ok, missing a chicken or 2…
You do not have to feel cheap, or less fortunate to come look through these types of stores (I think my husband is embarrassed to come inside?)(But I make him, lol!)
It is a cross between a walk down memory lane and a treasure hunt at the same time. You never know til you give it a chance! (They take credit cards — yay!)
Bonus if you get to see Ronnie from Ronnie’s Franks with the hotdog cart just outside the main doors of the store. What a gentleman and he makes a mean all-​beef hotdog!!!

I can’t lie, I’m a total sucker for Value Village and this location is probably the best. There is absolutely loads of stuff packed in here and for those who are willing to spend hours hunting (like me), there are tons of treasures to be found.
I’d say the pricing is good for the most part. I believe all of their pricing is done based on employee’s best guesses, so there’s going to be a lot of screaming deals and lots of stupidly pricey things at the same time.
It’s best to go in expecting to spend a long time there and also knowing what to look for. I’ve found amazing vintage and high end brands for cheap right next to the massively overpriced mall crap. Authentic Marc Jacobs dress for $ 30? score! Old Navy jeans for almost the same price? WOW, that’s more than they cost new!
As for the store itself; it’s got terrible lighting, everything smells of every laundry detergent known to man mixed together (better than cat pee so.) and the staff range from polite and helpful to downright surly. Not really outside the realm of what’d you expect in a place like this.
So check it out if you’re in the mood for some digging and discovering; avoid if you’re the type who wants everything laid out for them, doesn’t have time or cash or can’t stand the thought of used clothing.

My grandma was a thrifty person, and her ways has rubbed off quite a lot on me. That being said I know a lot about spending time in thrift stores and finding the treasures within.
When going to Value Village make sure you have hours to spend there. If you’re anything like I am, you’ll love looking at everything. Another good thing to do is set yourself up with a budget, so you know exactly how much you want to spend, because you might find a lot.
The first thing to check out is the decorations, because houses can always use added eccentric flare. Don’t become a crazy collectable hoarder though, that’s a bit scary. The good thing about thrift store finds is that you can always re-​thrift them when they no longer appeal to you. Make sure to check out the artwork too, you never know. If cut for time skip everything and go to the t-​shirt aisles. You can always altar, sew, and customize a tee. Don’t just limit to the womens section, check out the mens tees as well.
Other tips: Always take note of the prices, because some items are overpriced.
Check the clothing articles for any rips, stains and unbearable things.
Don’t buy anything that smells extremely gross, you might not be able to get the smell out just by washing it.

Yikes! I thought I’d buy myself a book, but couldn’t afford it here! Try the Mennonite store in NE. Only $ 2 even for Best Sellers. On the half-​price day you get it for half-​price. NOT like Value Village — they don’t allow books on for half-​price. Tsk. Not a good place to shop as far as Thrift Stores go.

LOVE it here. As all bargain hunting goes, everyone knows what to keep their eyes out for. I love hunting and finding and this store has all the right materials. Facility is clean and organized by size and type. Staff are also friendly, but the only reason for four not five stars is something about the sound of a metal hanger moving over a metal hanging rack is a little unerving.

Yet another great find at Value Village. I wanted to find old school games, and so I headed to Value Village bright and early.
I headed on over to the books section and stacked neatly in rows next to them, where all kinds of great flashbacks to my youth were happening. I walked to the front of the store barely able to see over the armload of boxes stacked in my arms.
As is customary of this VV location, everything was well labeled and neat. It continues to impress me with quality and selection!

I like shopping at VV once in a while — but there are other used clothing and items stores with way better customer appreciation. I think a prerequisite to work there is to be cranky and let the customers know clearly that you despise their presence in your store. When did it start costing them extra to be polite and friendly to the customers?

What the heck? What happened to low prices? I am grateful to be able to afford new clothing when I choose, but I enjoy thrift shopping and many of the prices I saw here today were the opposite of bargain. I used to be a Value Village junkie and now it seems ridiculous as many of the shoes, boots and coats were the same price as something would be on sale in the mall. $ 30 – 35 for worn boots or shoes? I couldn’t believe how many were even tagged at $ 20. And same with the coats. I don’t think so. How is it that they think low income Calgarians can afford to pay some of these prices? It just seems wrong to me. One low income client of mine comes to mind and I know she’d leave and shop at a dollar store.
I do remain impressed at how organized they manage to keep the place and the housewares section still has a lot of good stuff. However, these are no longer the things that attract me to Value Village and I cannot enjoy what is supposed to be thrift shopping when I feel so many items are overpriced. What population are they catering to?

There are 3 Value Village locations in Calgary; we prefer the location off 58^th adjacent to Chinook Center but honestly, all three are full of potential treasures — often just luck of the moment whether you find that perfect item or not. Excellent selection and seasonal discounts. Check out the Victoria VV — found Ellie Tahari, Teenflo and more there!

What to do on a freezing cold Sunday when you need to get your kid out of the house and you don’t want to spend much money? Well, as of yesterday, it’s head to Value Village!
I can honestly say that this VV is the nicest one I’ve been in — it’s huge and clean and well organized. I didn’t find my intended target (coffee table) since the furniture section is lacking, but I did find a bunch of other stuff that made me happy (including a beautiful plaid wool scarf made in Scotland for $ 3!) My young son was angelically behaved and this was because of the toy section and their rolly carts… did he yell and scream for things he wanted? No man, he just grabbed a toy, put it in the cart, and merrily rolled it around for 2 hours. Family friendly? A+
My favourite part of VV North was the book section. Though I read a lot, I don’t tend to buy books at thrift stores or yard sales because they are usually an overwhelming mess. My brain needs clean rows of books and I was amazed at VV’s organization. Rows and rows of books lined up in perfect harmony. I found three; I had to stop myself and walk away when I realized my son was rolling around bored on the floor, getting pretty dirty.
My only advice is, if you see something you like, grab it right away! I found these awesome wine glasses (clear stems, green tops) and I said to my companion «I am going to pick those up for sure!» I turned around and a woman who had been watching a few feet away swooped in with her daughter: «I think you should get all 3!» There went the awesome glasses. But hey, it’s VV and there a lot of treasures to be found on a cold cold Sunday…

Code name amongst friends VV. Once a month my gaggle of women friends congregates together to shop at VV. We pile into one person’s vehicle and spend most the time sharing separate conversations of what we bought the last time at VV. No one listens to each other and we are all lost in our own thrilling worlds.
When we finally get there, we all grab carts huddle together in a circle and synchronize our watches to meet again at the same spot in 3 hours. We have code sounds too in case the others are in the opposite parts of the store and we want to let them know we have found a treasure. It’s a shrill whistle. If you are there at VV and hear this lookout for me.
I usually wear tights and a t-​shirt for fast changes, to avoid the huge line ups for the changing rooms. I am lurking beside with a heaping cart monopolising the three quarter mirror and trying on clothing.
My elderly friend insists on coming with us and of course is always welcome, especially on Tuesdays when seniors get discounts at 30% off.
I heart Value Village especially this one, being an Aries; I think it’s the chase.
Lastly I must admit I have gloated from the many compliments I have been given from my sought out items. A must! Especially during these economic times.

Okay friends, this one is a bit hard for me because I’ve got issues shopping at Value Village, Winners, and any other store that makes you fend for yourself in the midst of rack after rack of disarray, but I’m TRYING (hard, at that) to review this completely objectively.
Assuming I was someone who had the special skill required to find the needle in the haystack, the diamond in the rough, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, then I would say that Value Village is a pretty neat place to shop.
They have a bit of everything, and they have a vast assortment of sizes. They also have the latest fashions, and the greatest things to throw a Halloween Costume together with!
This however WILL NOT change the fact that I refuse to shop here. It’s not because I’m trippin’ on myself or because I think I’m holier than thou. It is simply because I get frustrated and discouraged because I don’t have the patience to go from one rack to the next looking at each piece of item and seeing if it’s something I would want.
I’d much rather things were on display, and racks were organized according to what’s where.
But seriously, if you get a thrill out of scavenger hunts, or you’re exceptionally good at finding things where everyone else has already looked, then DO IT. Get your butt over to the Value Village and take advantage for all that it is!

This place is huge and has a healthy selection of used or slightly odd clothes at decent prices. It’s really not as cheap as I thought it would be. Ah, but the pants, yes the pants. They specialize in those. They have row upon row of pants in every shape and size. Except mine of course, because I’ve come to realize my size is pretty popular. But I don’t think I’d buy pants from Value Village. They also sell underwear and I saw a pair of Stanfields on a coat hangar looking pretty sharp…
Anyway, they do have one-​of-​a-​kind stuff and from time to time you might even uncover a treasure at this place. Fun to look, in any case…

Never be afraid to enter a used clothing store… including Value Village. Who knows what you’ll find! One time I found brand new Italian leather shoes for like $ 5.99…I still wear them!
Look for quality items that people might have gotten for gifts and donated because they didn’t like the item.
Also, go to Value Village for Halloween costume ideas. At Halloween the store is packed with NEW costumes and accessories just for Halloween.