Savers

Savers on Sydney road is one of my favourite op shops and it is unusual for me to leave without an armful of purchases!
This place is HUGE and you need to be in the mood for browsing. Clothing is well organised by type and size however there is SO much there that you need to sift through lots of items!
On Sunday students get 10% off if you have a student card!

Used to be way better before 2^nd hand came into vogue and stopped being pov and gross with the cool kids. Now most of the clothes are overpriced junk, still it’s large enough you will usually find some bargain like a 50c graphic novel or $ 1 cricket ball if you browse long enough.

If you’ve never been, I highly recommend checking out a Savers. Their range is humongous (clothing, books, furniture, toys, shoes, homewares), I’ve never had an issue with the cleanliness at a Savers, and the clothing is separated in size order. I appreciate that.
Savers on Sydney Rd was huge, crazy, and cluttered — like all Savers’. I found a few good pieces and smuggled them out before someone else could pounce on them; the place was busy! Some of the furniture here was really great — I’d recommend giving it a go if you’re in the market for a funky dining chair or footstool — and the homewares were of impressive quality; I managed to find a gorgeous silver tea tray for $ 6!
If op-​shopping is your jam (like it is mine), check this place out!

Everyone knows Savers is very ‘hit-​or-​miss’ but Sydney Road Savers is usually a safe bet on leaving empty handed. This is not a reflection on Savers in general, it’s the area:
The overall quality of the items is lower, the best are very quickly picked over by the hoards of indie kids roaming the area and it’s not a convenient place to donate unless you live close — and who lives close? Mostly students and young couples.
I find it a LOT more rewarding to lurk in the outer suburb stores, where the population have been in a single homes for a long time and have accumulated vintage goodies. Also Brunswick NEVER seems to have more than a couple of sewing patterns??? Other stores have hundreds constantly turning over.
I have snapped up some incredible finds at my local savers — vintage noritake crockery, 70’s cookware and tupperware, 50’s dress patterns a plenty… The other day I picked up a retro alarm clock in perfect order! Savers in general is worth a look, for sure, but also travel a little further a field and you might find some gems.
Also, please note that while Savers do donate to diabetes research, they aren’t a not for profit organisation or charity.

Huge op-​shop reminds me of Value Village back home. Has pretty much anything you’d want from shoes-​dishes and bunch of clothes in between. Make sure your goods have a tag on it though cause if not the cashier will steal it away and it wont go back on the shelf till the next day. Heartbreaking for me when I found an amazing t-​shirt.

I couldn’t believe just how big this ‘op-​shop’ was.
Located toward the bottom city end of Sydney Road, Savers is a sight not to be missed. There truly is something for everyone.
You’ve got Mens, Women’s, Kids and even items for the household. The only issue you face upon entering this humongous used garment feast is that you have to spend some quality time rummaging through the racks to find those hidden gems.
Once you’ve found the items you spent so one looking for, you must wait to use the change rooms. There’s eight in total but usually a line with about a 5 — 10 minute wait.
The Wrangler jeans i picked up for $ 9.99 are great (after some tampering with). In conclusion, this is a great find in Brunswick for those bargain hunters out there!

When it comes to op-​shops, the name on everybody’s lips is always Savers. Billing itself as «The Recycle Superstore», it gives a new meaning to the phrase ‘opportunity shop’. In essence, Savers is a barrage of goods masquerading as a shop.
Sometimes it’s hard not to get lost in the avalanche. After all, there’s so many of everything and there’s only so much time and energy you can expend hunting through the racks and shelves to find the true bargains amongst the all the muck, of which there is plenty. But by sheer virtue of numbers, Savers will generally throw a gem or two your way, particularly if you’re in the market for costume or other novelty items (but beware: ugly clothes that would otherwise be priced on their ugliness are often marked up due to the roaring nature of their costume party trade).
Savers can also be crowded during peak times and on half off days, which crop up every other month, and during these periods you could probably polish off a memoir in the time it takes to get behind dressing room doors. The prices are also slightly higher than more traditional op-​shops, and can sometimes seem more than a little arbitrary. Most of the clothing will be your typical department and chain store cast offs that found their way to secondhandville after a few good years of wear, so quality must always be assessed. Yet every now a stunning deal the price-​taggers overlooked saunters along, like the time a friend of mine got a pair of genuine Versace jeans for only four dollars. However, given the total lack of secrecy surrounding Savers, these moments come less frequently than they do at non-​giant, less conveniently located op-​shops.
All and all, what it really comes down to with Savers is that you’ve got to be in it to win it. So go on. Jump on in.

If you are one of those people who absolutely loves to rummage, revels in the thrill of the retail chase and lives to bag a bargain, this store is for you. Sadly, it’s not for me.
I like my retail mass-​market, y’all. Give me a chain store over vintage any day. Please don’t judge me.
BUT…but. I CAN appreciate Savers in all it’s overwhelming, racks-​filled-​with-​crap glory. I have found many fancy dress outfits here. One of best friends, a renowned fashion blogger, swears by this place, and she doesn’t like to look like she’s wearing fancy dress.
If second hand is your mecca, Savers is your saviour. I’ll leave you to rummage while I head to the GPO, ok?

They’re pretty clever down at Savers. They know females love to shop and they have catered for it perfectly, with roughly two-​thirds of the store set aside just for women’s clothes it’s a paradise for ladies — and I use that term loosely.
For blokes, the options are somewhat more limited. There’s a fair bit of choice but once you look you realise that unless you’re on a bad-​taste spree for a party or looking for fancy dress there really isn’t much worth bothering about. This isn’t the place for finding hidden gems like some second-​hand places can be.
The ‘homewares’ section comprises items that look like they’ve been scavenged for out of the local tip and given a clean up and really isn’t worth bothering about. On the other hand some of the furniture is in pretty good nick and worth a look.
If you go in with low expectations you won’t be disappointed, you never know what you might find.

Set aside at least three hours, and come unburdened by handbags, umbrellas, children, anything that’s going to need your hands and/​or attention. Don’t even bring your wallet, just stick a $ 20 note in your pocket because that’s probably all you’ll need to buy the load of clothes and bric-​à-​brac you’re inevitably going to find.
This store is enormous and it’s full of crap. I’m not being mean, I’m sure they’ll tell you the same. The fact is, if you have the eyes and the patience to spot the diamond in the rough, and you don’t mind trawling through racks and racks of rough stuff, you’ll get your bling, and you’ll proudly tell people that it only cost you a fiver… even less possibly, 20% less if you’re a student and you buy it on a Sunday, or a senior and buy it on a Monday.
Savers provides little red baskets on wheels for you to drag your loot around in until your arms and shoulders are shaking with exhaustion and excitement, and you know there’s nothing left to do but to queue for ages (sometimes) for a change room to make sure that flowery, mid-​80s, Sussans shirt goes with the long, Indian skirt you found in the Long Indian Skirts aisle. This goes with that, you know the jingle.