Save money. Save the planet. Sounds like a win-win proposition, right?
It’s possible to turn your holiday shopping season into an exercise in thrift and ecological stewardship. Just click out of Amazon, shun the mall for a day or two and find your way to any of several Chattanooga-area thrift or resale stores.
When you make the shift from traditional retailers to re-sellers, even for a portion of your purchases, you are creating value for yourself. Plus, you are helping to keep gently used – sometimes new – merchandise out of landfills.
The Student Environmental Resource Center at the University of California at Berkeley reports that thrift stores help limit the nation’s carbon footprint by recycling some of the 10 million tons of clothing that Americans throw away each year, saving water that would otherwise be used to produce clothing – 1,800 gallons for a pair of jeans – and curbing pesticides used to treat cotton plants.
It’s also worth noting that each American spends almost $900 annually on holiday gifts according to the National Retail Federation. Denting that cost could free up money for other things.