Thrift Trader

Maggie is awesome!!! I was in a sticky sitch. And needed money… I brought my 150 BCBG pumps I wore ONCE and decided two minutes later that I wasn’t gunna settle for $ 2… So bad review for thrift trader but excellent review for Maggie she broke protocol and let me give them the two dollars back for a pair of $ 150 Italian pumps I wore once. THANK YOU MAGGIE YOU ARE AWESOME

I just don’t get this place. They want $ 10 for a shitty warn out of brand black polo? Am I taking crazy pills? And it just keeps going through it the store. $ 10 for a off brand workout shirt? Huh? Horrible selection and priced like a vintage store which it isn’t.

This store is the best thrift store ever. In fact, its AWESOME!!! The first time I went here, I COMPLETELY LOST MY MIND because of their DVD collection (I collect DVD’s). I think they sell them for 2 for 5 $ and 5 for 10 $. After my first visit, I’ve always gone here if I want to buy DVD’s. All the staff’s friendly and they welcome you to the store every time! I always go here for their various amount of vinyls, CDs, and especially DVD’s. I highly recommend this place! A couple of my friends have sold their clothes here and they’re actually sold in a manageable amount and they’ve traded clothes here as well.
If you’re also looking for Disney DVD’s, once in a while they have them too instead of buying them outside (which can be very expensive). Haha!

I lost everything and I mean EVERYTHING. Litetally just had the clothes on my back when my ex of 16 years left our apt when I was out of town. If it wasnt for Thrift Trader I would have never had the opportunity to get some really nice clothes for great deals. Its been a year since I lost everything and I have since got a place, a brand new car, an awesome job and I STILL go to Thrift Trader. Just yesterday i got 15 shirts amd 2 jeans. All completely awesome. Only cost about $ 80. The only bad thing is they most all the time dont accept the clothes you bring them to sell or trade. Super picky… I end up donating the clothes even tbough theybare good clothes and would look good on someone I just dont where them and try to keep just things I wear. This is kind of misleading as if they only except certain clithes at certain times for veey specific reasons and for thst they deserve 1 star. Its a 5 star store for the value and selection I find there that far outweighs the trading experience. It is impirtanr to nite that do not expect mich from them accspting your trades but I get some awesome clothes for unbelievable deals. It also depends on when you go what your style is and how much you’re willing to look around. I have found it to be a true blessing for me

Thrift Trader is always pretty awesome! I find myself browsing here frequently, and have had great luck finding new favorite items for my wardrobe. The clothes are all in good (or better!) condition, and the prices are reasonable.
I have traded in clothes 2 times, and they have recently changed their store credit policy (though, I think this benefited me). The only weird issue I had was that they didn’t give me back the clothes that they DIDN’T want: I would have figured out other ways to purpose them, so it felt a little shady to not give them back to me.
Other than that, this place is a gem. My preferred thrift store in SD, hands down.

I liked the selection even tho most of the items were over priced but the man who works there was extremely rude. Before going into the dressing room I looked around for someone to ask if it was ok (cause I had a lot of stuff) and didn’t see anyone so I popped in and few min later a guy is knocking on the dressing room demanding I come out so he check my clothes in (by this time I had already tried on all 12 items). When I opened the curtain he was waiting to scorn me like a child about checking in first. I tolled him I looked for someone and didn’t see anyone and he told me he was at the counter the entire time, which is a lie. I don’t want to be argued with as a customer. He could have simply said no worries next time. Poor customer service made me not want to buy half the stuff I tried on. The OB store has much better manners and customer service. I won’t be returning to this store.

They always have the $ 2.00 records which is always hard to beat, they have such a huge selection of music. The clothes are always a good buy, I got a dress with ice cream cones all over it and that was originally from H&M, and it was only $ 5.00! I highly recommend checking it out.

I was so excited to find this thrift store my first time to San Diego. After a three mile hike and fighting parking, I happily walked in at 6:54pm only to find the cashier tell me, «We’re actually closing up right now» Welp, there goes a huge sale and a horrible Unilocal.I will never return, the sign was on and the door was still open. Very disappointed!!! Sincerely, World Traveling Thrifter

Nice.
I was just strolling along the street while waiting for my laundry to finish, and I decided to walk into this place to check it out.
They have plenty of clothes. I saw official Chargers jerseys for $ 10 each.
They also have a collection of books, CDs, and vinyls. I got a couple CDs from here. Great deals. 1 for $ 3 or 2 for $ 5.
They take card, but I would always try to pay in cash.
I should absolutely come back here the next time I do laundry nearby.

I love to dig and dig through racks of clothes.
You have to have that same love that I have for it in order to appreciate this store.
You will see some designer scores next too cheap stained tops, so fully inspect each -! And every piece you buy.
I bought a nice Guatemalan leather purse, Bandolino pumps and a few tops for $ 20.
They have a huge CD section too.
I love Thrift Trader!

Had some pretty cool finds. Must do lots of searching. I found two different pairs of boots and new conditions for less than ten bucks. Pretty stoked. It gets stuffy in there though. Wish they had ac. Otherwise cool

Probably the worst location out of the thrift traders. The clothes here are SO tacky and they’ve raised their prices. I brought in a ton of clean, new and intact clothes and shoes and they offered me 5 dollars when back in the day a batch of clothes like that would buy me the whole store. before they told me the deal, I looked around to see if there was anything worth trading for. NOPE. Everything was so dirty I didn’t even want to go through the racks. Pretty sure they’re super desperate for money now and trying to be more like buffalo exchange but they lack the decent inventory. Wish I would have taken photos of all the stained, worn-​out, crinkled shirts they tried pricing at $ 8.99… Hah! You’re better off just going to buffalo exchange.

They do have great deals here, but they are no longer a store that offers everything for $ 5.99 or 4 for $ 20. They have $ 7.99 items and boutique items for higher prices. This would all be fine except they keep their space barely above the atmosphere of a true thrift store. It is cleaner than most but they lack air conditioning. On warm days it’s sweltering inside. It is hard to find clothes flattering when your hair is pasted to your forehead. I’m an under average sweater (as in one who sweats), but their dressing room was un bearably warm. The location in Hillcrest is air-​conditioned. I recommend you make the trek there.

The employees are nice so I will start with that. Now I have tried many times to appreciate this place but every time I go I’m overwhelmed with the lack of organization and the music is way too loud. Recently I took a bag of clothes in to off load as I’m moving out of state. I don’t need the money but figured I would try it before donating to goodwill.
They took a few items which was fine but I was appalled that they only offer .50 per item (unless it’s designer in which you get $ 1 — ohhhlalala).
Now it would be one thing if they’re selling items for a few bucks but they buy pieces for .50 and the. Charge $ 5.99 + which is an incredible mark up if you ask me and yet they somehow can’t afford to pay employees to ensure the floor is organized?
It just seems like a very unreasonable and messy business that I’ve tried to endure and find a way to like as I’m a thrift store junkie but I just can’t. They need to get it together.

I went to their new location. Its in shambles, worse than the one before. The ceiling is falling down; the floors gnarly Its hot as hell. But that’s not why I came here! So I walked past three people that are working here and no one pays any attention to me. No one says hello or acknowledges my presence. Maybe I’m a ghosr! Boo! I look through some racks and I come back around looking for some assistance and I said hello to the middle aged woman. She turns around and looks at me as if to say, «Can’t ya see I’m trying to ignore you?!» It’s plain to see — I’m freakin’ bothering her. At least that’s how I felt. I asked her a question about the layout of the store, the clothes and was told I could find what I wanted in a certain area. I went to look and all I found in that area were clothes stuffed into racks, various sizes, various types; dresses were next to the blouses are next to pants, its just craziness. So, if you liked it before like I did, prepare to be let down. Hopefully things will shape up in the future but right now their staff is apparently overworked and grouchy. and the store, well the store is a wreck! I say stay away for now.
EDIT: Priscilla was kind enough to tell me that it had been there for years, all the more shame to them for being so mismanaged and unkept.
I highly recommend visiting the Hillcrest store. What a world of difference! Kind friendly people with great attitudes and a well managed inventory.

Overpriced much!!! reselling target clothes and shoes for $ 6 – 8?! Pricing should be based on quality of items. And quality of items was lacking as most goods came from target, rue 21, or comparable.

This place definitely has a lot better selection than the Thrift Trader on Iowa St nearby. but prices are a little bit steep than other thrift stores in general.
Most pieces range from $ 5.99-$ 15
Buy 4 pieces for $ 20
It is actually really neat in here too. They do a pretty good job in maintaining the clothes and making sure its not messy.
They have a pretty good amount of cute clothes and some not so cute.
They do also have clearance racks about $ 2.99-$ 5.99.
You can sell, trade or buy here.
TIP: If you want to sell or trade clothes here, (especially if you have a giant bag of clothes) make sure you check in with them first and drop off your stuff with them before you start shopping around because they take some time to go through all your clothes to see which ones they want.
TO TRADE:
Every two pieces of clothing they take from you, only counts as $ 5.99 credit for one item.
I brought a backpack full of clothes here and unfortunately they only took two pieces. I had brought a lot of cute dresses too, which they didn’t take because they already had a lot of dresses in their inventory. So don’t expect to get too much in trades/​sales here.
But overall, semi-​good customer service.

I filled a Bag of clothes for my husband, myself, and got extra costumes for the group for Coachella on the night before! I thought for sure everything would be picked over but I was so happy. We did themes and actually got published for our good costumes if you can believe that! Thanks to thrift trader!
It’s definitely a needle in a haystack thing so take the time to search before you give up! I told the young curly haired clerk I was hoping to find a pantsuit and he showed me where he usually puts them right in the front window bc they are very popular… I’m In love with that thing too! Thanks guys!

I’ve been to Thrift Trader a couple times, but haven’t gone back since a «not-​so-​great» experience I had a couple months ago. Before I talk about my «not-​so-​great» experience, here’s some basic info:
Their clothes are reasonably priced and they have some cute things (you just have to look). Overall, I find their quality is a little lower than Buffalo Exchange (you’ll find a higher percentage of more-​worn out items).
Things may have changed, but when I went about 6 months ago, they were offering $ 1 for any item of yours they wanted to buy, or 1 trade. (Ie, you bring in a pair of jeans and they will either pay you $ 1 or give you credit for 1 item at their store). In reading other reviews, it looks like this may have changed.
Alright, onto my review for this location. Reasons this was a «not-​so-​great» experience:
1) I took in my standard trash bag of clothes to sell. It took over an hour for them to get through the clothes. I understand:
a) There was another person ahead of me who brought in a trash bag as well, I just don’t think it should have merited an hour’s worth of time.
b) They have to check the clothes for quality… but an hour seemed too long considering the task at hand. The woman checking was slow and steady in her inspection (which was fine), but did they really need to have another person check the whole bag after she just did? It just seemed a little excessive.
2) I had some store credit from the Iowa street store that I was ready to use. The woman working at the El Cajon store informed me that I couldn’t use the credit because it was missing a certain stamp they put on the credit slips.
She informed me that I would have to return to the Iowa street store and go when the worker who issued my credit slip (credit slip featured her first initial and last name) was working in order to use the credit.
a) First off, I received the credit at the Iowa store nearly a year ago. How can you assure me that the girl who issued the credit at the Iowa store is even working there anymore?
b) I don’t know about you, but I don’t keep track of the names of everyone at Thrift Trader, and I certainly don’t keep track of their schedules. How am I supposed to go there when she’s working!!!
I was frustrated because I was being «punished»…(well, inconvenienced) due to an error/​oversight that a Thrift Trader employee made. In my book, when a business makes an error, you try and make it right with the customer. This wasn’t the case. I don’t think this was a case of bad customer service necessarily, I think Thrift Trader just needs to adjust their policies in situations such as these.

We stumbled onto this shop while visiting the homebrew store a few doors down. Being a lover of thrift, I of course insisted we stop in. The store is laid out beautifully and they had many good pieces for sale. There was a serious lack of air movement in there, though, and I quickly over-​heated and had to leave without really getting a chance to dig through the racks. I simply cannot be hot and shop. It doesn’t work for me. But, upon just a 10 minute pass-​through of the store I can tell they have a lot to offer and I look forward to coming back either in the winter or once they get some AC going in that mug.
I didn’t realize there was more than one of these and I’m also looking forward to checking out their other stores.