FOLSOM, Calif. — Don’t call it “trash.” Here at the Folsom Goodwill, the saying goes - one person’s donation is another person’s treasure.
But in the age of ‘Tidying Up with Marie Kondo,’ the popular, new Netflix show that encourages getting rid of unnecessary items in your home, the phrase might be re-worked: What doesn’t spark joy for one person, might spark joy for somebody else.
‘Tidying Up’ is causing people to purge their homes of items that, as host Marie Kondo says, do not “spark joy."
That means local thrift stores are reaping the benefits.
ABC10 visited the Folsom Goodwill at 390 Plaza Drive. Managers there say an average day during the year might see as many as 120 people stop by with donations. This month, however, with people taking Kondo’s message to heart, the Folsom Goodwill is seeing as many as 200 donors per day.
"Just because an item doesn't spark joy for you doesn't necessarily mean it's not going to spark joy for somebody else," Goodwill retail district manager Robert Duran said.
Goodwill regular Rebekah Winger and her friends have been sharing this meme about Tidying Up with Marie Kondo while anticipating the influx of quality donations.
"I think I've been coming in a little more often, just hoping that people will be dumping things off more," Winger said. "I mean, today I bought a whole patio set. I've been waiting to find a patio set, and there was one today. So I don't know if that was someone de-cluttering, but I don't usually find something that good."
"We are seeing lots of donations coming in that are things people don't want to let go of, but for some reason they're like, 'It's time to let go,'" Goodwill retail district manager Michelle Lopez said.
But buying items at a discount at Goodwill does more than just spark joy for shoppers.
"We take those donations, we sell them and we create jobs for people who need them," Duran explained.
"The mission of Goodwill is to utilize Goodwill resources to help people with disadvantages achieve self-sufficiency," Goodwill chief mission officer Rachel Wickland said, adding that shopping at Goodwill "could spark a job, it could spark a meal, it could spark a week's stay in a hotel room if you're escaping a domestic violence environment."
So donating your clutter could be called a win-win -- or joy-joy -- situation.
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