I’ve mentioned that Target and Goodwill have a partnership. Neither company trumpets the relationship -- it's mentioned in this 2008 Target corporate responsibility report if you'd like a look - but presumably Target's motives are environmental and social responsibility and tax benefits, while Goodwill's are about driving traffic to its stores.

I thought I’d share what I know, and some stuff gleaned from other shoppers, about getting the best deals on Target stuff at Goodwill. I’m always wordy, but be forewarned: this is a long post.

It seems that Target sends to Goodwill three types of merchandise: Goods that A) haven’t sold after being placed on clearance, B) are damaged, or C) have been returned from online sales. There’s actually a fairly big difference in how all these things are priced, and whether it’s worth it to wade through the glory that is Goodwill in search of them.

Unsold Clearance Goods. Based upon my extensive research, prices for the nonsold clearance items tend to be about 50% of the original cost of the item, but the prices are often a bit arbitrary. Since Target clearance goods go to 75% off regular items or even 90% off for seasonal items, that means you can often get a better deal by scoping out your Target clearance than at Goodwill. Here, the clearance price is 50% off -- and the Goodwill price makes no sense:

Goodwill takes great pains to remove old price stickers from its Target stuff -- this was a lucky find.

Does that mean you should never shop Goodwill’s Target clearance stuff? Not at all, especially if you are looking for something specific. While one Target may still be selling its stuff, another may have already shipped that onto Goodwill. So if you found three curtain panels on clearance at the store and are desperate for a fourth, try Goodwill (along with other Targets). I once found a suit jacket in my size at Goodwill and then ran into the pants at Target the next week. Each store only had those pieces. And yeah, a suit from Target is weird. But it was cute. I still have the jacket. Similar stories abound.

Salvage Goods. This is the stuff that Target deems too damaged to sell in the store. Sometimes it just means ripped packaging, and sometimes it means actual damaged goods. This is where you can get some really good deals.

The bar cart in this very "before" picture was $25 at Goodwill - while it was still on clearance for $91 at Target. It is scratched on the top, but I have it so covered with tchotchkes (Fam room "reveal" coming soon), it doesn't matter. I really wanted that bar cart -- I'd been thinking about shelling out the $90 - so I thought the $25 was a great deal.

But on the other hand, I saw this hideous table today at Goodwill, clearly salvage, for, wait for it, $89.

These sheets are also outrageous at $45. More on pricing in a minute.

Online Returns. The rarest of thrifting/big box store marriages, this is the one that produces the prettiest children. (Too far?). Ah, the deals I have gotten on online returns. These curtains: $4 a panel at Goodwill in Pennsylvania while they were still being sold full-price for $30 online.

It’s worth noting that you can get lucky in the Target store with such things, but in general, it looks like Target is funneling more and more of its returned online-only stock to Goodwill.  

So, how can you target (heh heh) your shopping to get a great deal on the new stuff? It's tricky. I have not verified this myself, but I've read that Target sells containers of Salvage goods to stores at a set price, and individual stores set the prices of the goods inside. I don't know if Target sells or donates its goods to Goodwill, but the theory of individual pricing makes sense to me, given the discrepancy of prices for the same goods at stores in the same area. To wit: the same Target end table today was $25 and $20, respectively, at different Goodwills. Both tables were clearly damaged (dented metal legs) but the prices were different. And it’s worth noting that the store I’d say is in the tonier area of town had the lower price. Riddle me that.

Sometimes it seems like the pricing depends entirely on the whims of whoever's got the tag gun that day. I bought a new salvage/online return rug for $20 the other day – and today saw rugs for up to $150 at the same store.

$150! For a rug at Goodwill! I don't care if it's new -- it's not like you get an amazing shopping experience at Goodwill, returns are iffy at best, and the whole point used to be to provide goods at low cost while investing in job training opportunities. There's some thought out there about Goodwill's increasing prices reflecting a shift in its priorities, and I can tell you as a long time shopper that the prices have absolutely gotten steeper. The reasons and implications are for another post.

But, once a Goodwill sets a price on an item, I have never seen that price come down. No matter how ridiculously inflated the price is, and sometimes it’s painfully obvious there's been a mistake. A broken dish for $5. A frame with no glass for $13. Employee errors, or things got broken by customers later, but Goodwill won’t change the price. (There are sales, which are great, but that's another post).

So, that's probably everything you never wanted to know about Target and Goodwill. If you know more, holla. This is critical info! Thanks for stopping by, and have an amazing weekend!