2/15/10 Coffee table, given away on craigslistToday, we again saw the Power of Free.
I offered a coffee table on Craigslist.com at 9:14 AM. I had a response by 9:37 AM. Joel drove off with the table at 11:23 AM.
Joanna had been after me to downsize the table for a while, since it didn't exactly qualify as fine furniture. I'd bought it at Marden's in Lewiston, Maine, when I was packing up stuff to furnish my New York apartment.
If you're not familiar with Marden's, here's how I think of it: Imagine a truck, packed with dining room furniture (or women's clothes, or refurbished vacuum cleaners), is heading to some Mom & Pop store to restock their inventory. En route, the driver gets word that the store has gone out of business and he needs to unload the cargo, fast. The good folks at Marden's swoop in and buy it up for pennies on the dollar, toss it into their cavernous store, and pass the savings onto the rest of us.
Marden's jingle is "Should've bought it, when I saw it, at Marden's!"
Cheap crap that we're encouraged to buy on impulse. It's the anti-downsize store! I'm doing my best to never go in again.
When I bought it in 1999, the coffee table cost five, maybe ten dollars. That works out to less than a buck per year of use, so I gave the table away today with no regrets.
Besides, regardless of price, the coffee table still has value, it was just time for it to move onto another owner. For free.
With those prices, I can even compete with Marden's.
I love the idea of an anti-downsizing establishment; Go Marsden!
ReplyDeleteHolding steady......
ReplyDeleteOur entire family piled into Marden's last night after catching a tourney game at the Expo and grabbing a bite to eat at the Neighborhood Bar and Grill (aka Applebee's). We were in the middle of some sort of pre-teen dramatic breakdown with Shayla as we left the restaurant and Dajuan thought a trip through Marden's would solve it. This was an anti-downsizing moment waiting to happen. But, we were saved by a poopy diaper. Kendra quickly filled the aisles with toxic fumes leading Shayla and I to ditch the hair accessories we had carefully selected out of a clearance bin just 5 minutes before. We all headed to the van empty handed - no small feat considering the lure of bargains at Mardens. Thank goodness for poopy diapers...
What a great story, Amy. To emerge from Mardens without buying anything -- especially when you actually have something in your hands -- is a true downsize victory.
ReplyDeleteAnd if it takes poop to make it happen, so be it!
I love Marden's, but I don't always buy. I'm selective. Things are NOT always less expensive or a good deal there. I did however pick up a Bed in a bag for $50 LOVE IT. And a garden bench for $15 or $20 LOVE IT TOO. And my carpet squares for the basement. I try to shop around for what I really need. (not want) Love the Goodwill Stores too. :-)
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