More shoppers are buying secondhand gifts this holiday season

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More consumers are buying used jewelry, toy cars and other gifts than in previous years, risking the disappointment of extended family and friends to keep their budgets in check because of inflation and other financial pressures. The shift is lifting ThredUp, Savers Value Village and other thrift retailers, which usually see sales slow during the holidays and have been taking steps to reduce the stigma around used items. Some 82% of roughly 1,800 U.S.

shoppers surveyed by eBay said they are more likely to purchase secondhand gifts this year compared with last year. Likewise, nearly half of the 8,200 American consumers the National Retail Federation surveyed said they might buy used to save money this holiday season. Carlee Wengel, who scoured secondhand aisles for presents for her daughters ages 3 and 5 in previous years, is also going to give used gifts to about a dozen friends and other family members to stretch a wallet squeezed by higher gas and grocery prices.

Carlee Wengel’s haul for her daughters this year includes a ‘Paw Patrol’ playset and Barbie jeep for less than $5. Her expanded list includes some family members whom she gave a hard-to-find version of the Clue board game last year but reacted with “kind of a weird vibe" about getting something used. “I could go to a Target, a Walmart, a HomeGoods," said Wengel, 33 years old, a stay-at-home mother in Olympia, Wash.