Kind Exchange

The customer service has improved since change in staff and management. They have completely changed the location into streetwear central. If you are looking for unique fashionable items look no further than the Yonge/​Wellesley location.

I went here with a pair of barely worn shoes, with the intention of selling or trading them for comparable goods. When I enthusiastically approached the buy desk, I was greeted with a tone of annoyance and was told right off-​the-​bat, «we have shoes.» It was almost as though it was somehow absurd that I thought I could sell something to this store. Is that not their business model? She basically treated me as though I was trying to pawn my trash off on them. These were beautiful leather shoes with a full wood heel. They were not ratty, worn out gym shoes. I could not believe the disrespectful tone with which she spoke to me. I will never be returning to this, or any other Kind Exchange location. Rude staff, and it is basically an overpriced version of Value Village under the guise of having a charitable side.

I like the idea of vintage stores like this more than the actual store. First, there’s always that musty smell that all vintage stores have — no exceptions. Not a huge fan of the smell but I’ve had good finds in general in the past, so I come in for a peak everytime I walk by.
They have current season items front and center. The prices seem ok — there are some cool one-​of-​a-​kind type outfits hanging around. When I was there, I spent $ 30 on a jacket with ruffled back and sleeves, a deep burgundy with perfect fit. $ 30 could probably get me something brand new elsewhere, but the jacket looks amazingly expensive when paired with black heels! So a steal for me.
They keep their higher end items behind the shelf — I spotted a Prada bag going for about $ 300 there last time, but already had a hold on it, and was an odd dirty white colour.
I haven’t been tempted to sell my items there yet, though. The policy is something like 20% cash for what they plan on selling for, or 30% store credit. So if they think they can sell your tshirt for $ 10, you get $ 2 cash, or $ 3 store credit. Don’t quote me on that, though, call and ask.
So my 3 star rating is for my buying experience only, so far. Will update if I ever sell things there

Poor customer service. One sales clerk was sitting on the counter the whole time I was there and since I dropped some items off to sell one clerk made me wait until she helped other customers to help me even though I came first. She had no enthusiasm and I will not be coming back

This Kind Exchange location opened up recently at the end of my street so I was curious to check it out, as I’d been to their Queen West location in the past. The first time I went to this location was as a shopper and while I didn’t buy anything, I did try a few things on. I also looked at what sorts of clothing/​shoes/​bags/​accessories they were carrying and their price points.
As a shopper their price points are usually pretty good — you will find some one of a kind items, maybe even vintage. I did notice however, that the store seemed to have a lot of ‘FILLER’ stock, so you have to look through a lot before you find a treasure. It is similar to Value Village/​Winners in that regard of shopping and you actually have to LOOK. The store was relatively organized and fitting rooms tidy. Staff was friendly when I went as a shopper.
As a seller, my experience was as follows… I called to see if they took appointments and they said no, you just come in with your items. That’s fine as long as you know staff can take a look at your stuff right away but otherwise you will have to either A) Drop it off for inspection and come back or B) Lug it back home (they are not responsible for any items that go missing. Anyways, I gathered up 2 reusable shopping bags of items I no longer wanted hanging around in my closet. I had a pair of Michael Kors peep toes, a small Coach purse, 2 Coach wristlets, some costume jewelry, Diesel sunglasses, Mac n Jak sunglasses, Tokidoki purse, leather boots, kimono, some summer dresses, a few pairs of jeans, skirt and other various garments. Wasn’t exactly sure what they’d be interested in. They are located about a 10 minute walk from my house so I figured it was worth bringing in.
I arrived, greeted staff and then said I was hoping they could look at my items. It’s kind of a weird feeling of them going through your stuff and mentally assessing weather they will buy it or not. Similar to if you’ve ever sold to BMV bookstore. Of my 2 bags full, I’d say they accepted about ½ a bag. Some items I thought they would take they didn’t and others they did. After getting a second staff member to thoroughly look at my small Coach purse — asking if I had a receipt, dust bag… I know they were making sure it was legit, but I’m not going to keep a receipt from 5 years ago. I ended up leaving with about $ 25 for 7 items. And to give you an idea of prices for selling, I got $ 7 for the MK shoes, $ 4.60 for the Coach purse, $ 3 for the Diesel sunglasses, $ 4 for the Tokidoki purse… I know they will mark everything up a minimum of 4 times for retail pricing. I’d say if you are going to go there as a seller — don’t expect too much back if you are accepting cash. They offer ‘store credit’ and it is slightly higher than the cash value. I left about $ 25 richer and many of the other items I came home with will either be donated to Goodwill/​Value Village or I’ll see if any friends are interested in them. In terms of getting paid high don’t expect it, but you will be paid on the spot which is fine with me. I was able to purge some items I knew I no longer wanted, and my closet is happy for that.
Overall, the experience was a good one, and I’d go back both as a shopper and a seller. Staff was not overly friendly, but still helpful.