Thrifting in Downtown Ventura

When it comes to shopping in Downtown Ventura, many people stop by the thrift stores on Main Street. There are an assortment of different types of thrift stores a person can find when they visit Main Street. There are thrift stores that support different organizations or charities, resell thrift or “vintage” store, and up-cycle second hand clothes. Each of these thrift stores offer something to different people depending on what they are looking for. I took a couple of people with me, Devonte Stepter and Ahmad Albanez, to go thrifting in order to find out what thrift store is the best overall.

The first thrift store we went to was one that everybody has gone to at least once in their life, Goodwill.

When we walked in they had recently changed the layout of the store. Ahmad looked at the clothes first while Devonte browsed the T- shirts. Nothing was found in the clothes. While looking at what other items Goodwill had out on the floor Ahmad found a purple ceramic bowl he decided he wanted to purchase. After leaving with just a ceramic bowl Ahmad and Devonte were asked their opinion on what they thought about their visit to Goodwill. Devonte said, “The organization of the store was up kept but they did not have much to offer. This store is a good one for buying knick knacks.” Unfortunately nowadays goodwill picks through their inventory and pulls their higher end items and the more sought out pieces. They do this in order to send it out to their e-commerce website which is like an Ebay for Goodwill items. Ahmad also had some input saying, “I found a cool purple ceramic bowl that I can place my chopsticks in. Other than finding the bowl the store seemed grey and cold, there wasn’t any clothes that stuck out to me and that is a good majority of the stores space. I don’t think I would not revisit the store unless someone I was with wanted to explore it then I wouldn’t be opposed to it.” After talking about what they thought of the store both Devonte and Ahmad agreed Goodwill would be a 4/10 rating on their scale.

The next thrift store we stopped at was called the C.A.A.N Thrift Store. The name C.A.A.N stands for Child Abuse And Neglect. This thrift store proceeds go to helping support children who are victims to abuse, the Safe Haven Emergency Shelter, and the Safe Journey Transitional Shelter.

As we walked in we were greeted with the sound of the radio playing throughout the store on the store speakers. As Ahmad and Devonte browsed the different sections of the store they did not seem too thrilled when looking around the store. By the end of the visit to this thrift store neither one of them found a single item they were interested in buying. When asked what they thought of the store Ahmad commented, “The atmosphere in the store is cold and grey. There is nothing that is catching my eye but the cassette collection is enjoyable. I like seeing the old cover art for albums and the recordings of old comedy shows was interesting.” Afterward, Devonte said, “I’m not a big fan of this thrift store due to how unorganized it is. it makes it harder to locate anything I had on my mind.” At the end of the visit they decided that this thrift store would be given a 3/10 rating.

The third thrift store we went to was The Coalition thrift store. This thrift store used to be more of a thrift store before than it is now. Nowadays if you go to The Coalition do not expect to be paying thrift store prices because this “thrift store” specializes in selling vintage clothes at resell prices.

As we walked in we noticed that this store was way more busy than the other ones that we had been to that afternoon. There were people in every aisle searching through the racks trying to find the next vintage piece to add to their collection. There was clothes, media, furniture, hats, accessories, and old quilts. We all spent a good amount of time looking through everything because there was so much that would catch our eyes. When asked about what they thought of the store, Devonte said, “I instantly fell in love, the store is so well kept which seems to be important to them as well as how they keep it all so organized. it was very easy to find my size in shirts and pants which also made my shopping experience more enjoyable.” Ahmad also seemed excited to share his thoughts and said, “The Coalition is probably my favorite store that we’ve gone to so far. They offer a wide selection of clothes to household goods. Their media section is a good spot where I spent my time looking at their DVD’s. I bought “The Devil Wears Prada” and I’m so excited to watch it. I really enjoy physical media such as DVD’s. The employees are very friendly and helpful. The only downside is that due to the store selling a wide selection of goods it can be hard getting through the aisles when there’s a large amount of people shopping.” Unfortunately after this thrift store visit Devonte had to leave early but before he left he and Ahmad gave the Coalition a 7/10 rating.

The final thrift store that was on the list was Buffalo Exchange. Buffalo Exchange is more of a second hand/up cycle store. Customers can come in to buy or sell items that they have. The way it works is if you sell your old items to Buffalo Exchange you can get 50% of the total sold in store credit or 30% cash.

When coming into Buffalo Exchange it was a different vibe than the other thrift stores. The workers greeted Ahmad and I, they had a store playlist that played up to date music, and the demographic was people between their early 20’s to mid 30’s. As we looked around nothing seemed to catch Ahmad’s eyes too much to want to purchase. There were a few things he hatred on but decided not to purchase. When asked about Buffalo Exchange Ahmad responded, “The atmosphere felt welcoming and warm compared to the other shops. The only thing that I could see being an issue is maneuvering around the store can feel a bit like I’m a running back trying to find a gap in the O line. It doesn’t bother me though.” Ahmad also shared one of his favorite finds from Buffalo Exchange, “One time I found a dope Minnesota Viking’s Starter Jacket here and now it’s probably my most reliable thrift store that’s local. I love that jacket!” After our trip Ahmad decided the rating on this saying he would give Buffalo Exchange a 7/10.

Below are Ahmad’s and Devonte’s finds:

Ahmad found the ceramic bowl at Goodwill and “The Devil Wears Prada” Blu-ray DVD at The Coalition.

Devonte found both pants and the Don Jon Bluray DVD all at The Coalition.