When Paying More Is Better (Part 2)

Another twist on when paying more is better.....

I love thrift stores.

Good ones are the coolest find ever. And every time I have to move to another town/state, I have to find the new ones. Hate that!

In our new location I haven't been able to find one I really, really like. There are 3 that are okay...but its less hit and more miss. I think that is partly because more people are shopping at thrift stores lately. Or maybe its just this particular area where that is true.

One of these stores is owned by a church. It is clean and well organized. Its in a rather large building. And its also the most expensive. Yet, I also know this church does a community feed once a week. They are also in partnership with 3 other churches in town running a local food pantry. They are very involved in their community. And I support that. So much so that I'll pay 4.99 for a large bulletin board that would be a dollar cheaper at Goodwill.

Because even though GW is a good company - I'm all about feeding the families RIGHT HERE, where I live. I will pay extra for that. That is my frugal choice as the money does not leave our town.

Same can be said about your locally owned hardware store. Or the local ice cream shop/dairy. Home Depot or bargain brand franchise ice cream might be cheaper. But the owners kids don't sit next to mine in school (owners, not managers).

And I want to support the small businesses in my town. I want to help the owner pay his mortgage. I want to see them out there coaching our kids sports team. (Not that employees of the large franchises don't do this - that's not what I'm saying.) I want to see people from my town have a dream and pursue it. Then succeed.

So frugal in my life actually has me paying a little more at the local shops than I would pay at Wally World. And I'm happy with that.