By Jackson Smith and Kat Carranza Encinas
Web Editor and Staff Writer

For college students who are sick of fast fashion and searching to purchase secondhand, there are some thrift stores near Clackamas Community College that offer a variety of options at affordable prices for students.

These thrift stores allow college students to save their money and maintain environmentally conscious morals while still finding interesting and cool household items and clothes. 

The growing popularity of thrifting is due to the financial struggles of modern times. Groceries, minimum wage jobs and tuition are all stressful factors in the life of a college student. 

One CCC student, Maly Puth, has been thrifting her whole life. 

“My parents raised me to thrift and just be sustainable with money,” Puth said. “It’s cool that we made it a trend. I know people used to get made fun of for thrifting, but now it’s cool and also sustainable.” 

The option of thrifting can lift the burden of high prices and give young college students the opportunity to shop for low price items.

The closest spot near campus is Super Thrift. 

A look at some of the clothing Super Thrift has to offer. Photos by Wesley Northcote.

Its greatest strength is its furniture, especially couches. There are also mirrors, wall art, lamps and desks for student rooms. 

There are sofas within the $50-100 range, sometimes even less considering the sales Super Thrift holds. 

The furniture varies from vintage to modern, and the products are fairly unused with little damage. 

Super Thrift also has a variety of clothes at very cheap prices. Most adult pieces range anywhere from $6-10 depending on the item.

Super Thrift is the ministry of the non-profit ‘Adult & Teen Challenge PacWest’, that means any purchase made or donation to Super Thrift will help those in need. 

The 18 recovery programs under Adult & Teen Challenge PacWest help men, women and adolescents who are recovering addicts by setting them up with jobs at various locations.

A pricing guide set up in Super Thrift.

Operating hours are from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the store is located at 1809 Molalla Ave in Oregon City, next to the Bi-Mart.

Another option just north of Oregon City across Highway 213 is Red White & Blue in Gladstone. 

Red White & Blue is mainly known for its wide variety of clothes with rows of racks as far as the eye can see. They have options for mens, womens, youth and infant clothes.

Along with clothes, they sell unique jewelry, glasses and belts. They restock every Wednesday and take cash only, however they have no changing rooms.

A screen in Red White & Blue showcasing their cash only policy.

Pricing at this spot also remains low, seeing most items in the $7-25 range. There are more top-dollar items such as Carhartt or Patagonia apparel, which can cost a pretty penny. 

With high quality items like that, high prices would seem fit, however that doesn’t seem to be the case. For students like Brandon Jager, this can be very helpful.

“On top of good fashion they just have a lot of clothes. Usually really cheap, especially Red 

White & Blue, like some stuff you can get for a couple bucks,” said Jager.

Every day, Red White & Blue takes four colored tags to discount. There are a multitude of tag colors including: red, white, blue, green, peach, orange and yellow. 

Depending on the day, four of those tags will be selected to be discounted, one being 25% off, two being 50% off, and the other being 75% off. Items that have stayed on the racks longer than two weeks usually see the 75% off tag.

A screen in Red White & Blue showing that day’s color tag sales.

Operating hours are from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.. This store is located at 19239 SE McLoughlin Blvd in Gladstone.

Another location close to the college is Goodwill off of McLoughlin in Milwaukie. 

This spot offers a wide range of items to suit every need. Some main items here include lamps, picture frames, vases, and essential household items like Tupperware, pottery and ceramics. 

For crafty students, there are sewing machines and fabrics. For tech enthusiasts, there is a solid selection of functional electronics, as well as some broken down electronics that could be fixed up.

Goodwill offers a large selection of clothes along with household items, however their clothes selection is one a pricier option compared to other thrift spots.

A look down one of the clothing aisles in Goodwill.

Most items here will run you about $10-30, with most being high quality. Out of the options close to campus, Goodwill offers the widest variety of items while maintaining clean and quality products.

Another student on campus, Coda Schneider, believes thrifting can offer options not easily found elsewhere.

“When I go thrifting I’m looking for something specific that I can’t find online, or I’m using it for an outfit,” said Schneider

Operating hours are from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.. This store is located at 16255 SE McLoughlin Blvd in Milwaukie.

These three thrift stores offer low prices, sustainable items and new things students may not have known they needed. 

Whether it’s for a new apartment, a fashionable outfit or an everyday appliance, thrifting is an easy and accessible resource for students who need cheap clothes or are looking for a fun activity.