Denver thrift stores divided on use of AI pricing and productivity tools
Thrift stores continue to grow in popularity. Over the last five years, the thrift store market has grown by 4.7%.
A new thrift store in Denver is the first of its kind in the market showing how AI technology is reducing manual work and helping make volume business more profitable. But not all thrift store aficionados are on board.
New technology designed to streamline the process of pricing and tagging items in thrift stores aims to make shopping easier for consumers and increase production, but some may say this technology could be interfering with the art of thrifting.
Inside Thriftly, employees are using what they call a "ring scanner" to determine the price and size of items.
Thriftly CEO Andy Downard created the system, which uses advanced technology to print tags rapidly and create descriptions for each item. He said the system helps make pricing more efficient when the employee may not know what items are or when dealing with a large amount of stock.
"What we try to do is really ease the burden on the pricer and shouldering the work for them so that they're not looking at a long list of fifty brands. But instead, the machine is considering and making the decision on their behalf," said Downard.
However, inside the buy-sell-trade fashion retailer Strawberry Mountain, owner Nadia MacKinnon is not on board with this technology.
"I personally don't like that at all," explained MacKinnon. "To me, that just feels so impersonal and we're all about connecting with people."
MacKinnon said pricing items is an art and skill that shouldn't be lost because of AI.
"Part of what makes this job so exciting and makes this store so exciting is that we are real human people putting value on these items and determining for the people great prices and affordable prices," said MacKinnon.
The technology aims to enhance efficiency, reduce manual work, and support the mission of larger thrift stores by increasing productivity and profit. It also includes self-checkout options integrated with Shopify and online options.
Downard said this will attract a new demographic that values convenience over the traditional thrill of the hunt.
"I just suspect that there's someplace where we can kind of tune it in, where we're going to be able to reach a broader customer base and engage them in more exciting ways," explained Downard.
Despite certain perks, MacKinnon said she will be sticking to the traditional way. "It's a skill," she said. "I went to school for it, so to be losing that due to computer competition is crushing."
