A woman quit her day job back in 2020 and opened thrift store Enough Stuff – a free shop for customers to take whatever clothes and goods they want when in need
Quitting your day job to open a shop that gives away things for free doesn’t sound like the most financially responsible decision but for one woman “it was a very good decision”.
Enough Stuff is a free thrift store based in East Peoria, Illinois, US, which is stocked with donated items and give away those items for free to customers. They aim to meet the needs for those who are without the basic necessities of adequate clothing, home goods and food items. But the shop is for all, whoever is in need of items but also if people just want to change up their wardrobe.
In order to keep the place running they do accept donations: monthly memberships starting at $10/month or one time contributions on their website or when anyone goes into the shop. They highlight these contributions keep the shop running and bills paid. It comes after a high street chain launches 70% off closing down sales as 25 shops set to shut.
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Enough Stuff accepts donations like one bag or box of goods per visit if brought to the shop in opening hours. It helps to highlight how time and money spent is very valuable. Along with the free goods they have, the shop also has free Wi-Fi and chairs to sit and chat and enjoy a coffee.
Enough Stuff see the store as being a hub for the community to unite people that don’t always interact. They encourage building meaningful connections with one another, by having a bulletin board to post specific items they have to offer or things customers didn’t find in the shop that they would like to see.
The shop wants to work with shoppers and create ways to generate money to pay the bills and have more free experiences for everyone to enjoy.
The store’s founder Savvy Kutkat explained about its origins on TikTok page @enoughstuffclub. When the store was opened she paid the rent on the retail space out of her own pocket for one year. Savvy wanted the store to have a “fair start” as she knew there would be concerns on how it “could sustain itself”. Savvy said she knew if it was paid for in a year “it literally cannot fail” and she could gauge people’s thoughts for that year.
Whilst doing that, Savvy was working remotely as a graphic designer in the shop and was serving customers and accepting donations. At the time it was Covid lockdown so not many people were out and the shop was not as busy. She said “it was quite manageable for me to do two jobs at once” and she voiced how she was privileged enough to be living with her dad at the time and did not have to pay a whole load of bills.
She did however say she wants to be clear that, “quitting your day job to start a free store is not the best financial decision but at that point in my life, it was a very good decision for me to build this community and to be able to gift that money into it to see that it could succeed at least for one year”
Within six months there was steady success as “there were enough people donating money in person” and “online” “to start paying the rent on the space” even if people were donating spare change it was all “adding up every month to be enough to pay the bills” which was fantastic news for Savvy as she “wasn’t losing money on the space” and that they “could sign a lease for another year and keep giving stuff away for free”.
With people spreading the word and contributing financially they are able to still keep growing.
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