The r/ThriftStoreHauls forum on Reddit is all about folks sharing finds from their local thrift and consignment stores. One user is impressing the entire forum by sharing their jackpot: a pair of $1,500 vintage boots they found for a mere $9.
The poster shared that the boots were Ralph Lauren Selene cowboy boots, which retail new for a high price tag and sell used, in most cases, for several hundred dollars. The beautiful boots are in great shape, based on the photos they shared.
Shopping at a thrift store is more than just the great deals and fashionable finds. It also helps save the environment. Shopping secondhand, whether from a thrift store, consignment shop, yard sale, or resale site, decreases the amount of energy and resources into making new products. This includes the energy, as well as the raw material products that go into clothing production.
The leather industry takes an especially large environmental toll. Since leather is animal-based, cattle have to be grown on the land — which eats up water resources, feed, and land that could be otherwise used to grow crops and house people. Cattle are also highly inefficient at producing body mass per input, which means that they eat up resources to produce very little in return.
In a lot of cases, the cattle grown for leather production are grown on marginal lands with very little environmental protection. Governments in these areas prioritize the money gleaned from livestock agriculture, so they are often willing to overlook things like water pollution and nutrient runoff if it means generating more profit and supporting the local economy.
Buying secondhand leather reduces the need to continually replace and produce more leather, thus decreasing its lifetime environmental footprint.
Reddit users were impressed by the user's luck in finding the pair of boots.
"My God you hit the jackpot," one user shared.
"Omg! Goals! I would love to find a treasure like that," another user wrote.
Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more, waste less, and help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
