16 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.

com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE

Only 29
shopping days
‘til Christmas

Holiday S hopping Guide

Nell Thomas, left, and Martha Gillis, right, shop for Christmas at Pizazz. Thursday, November 26, 2020
2 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 15
14 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020
A guide to thrift store shopping
By Garrick Hodge
ghodge@cdispatch.com
I
n the holiday shopping
season, consumers tend to
flock to popular retail stores
like Wal-Mart, Belk and also use
online ordering from services like
Amazon.
There are also other local
options in the Golden Triangle:
thrift stores. Several area stores
offer secondhand clothes and
other household goods, while
most help raise funds for a chari-
table institution.
“I think they’re more conve-
nient than big retail stores,” said
Jessica Koger, the retail manager
at the Palmer Home Thrift Store
in Columbus. “People can come
in here and find a name-brand
shirt a lot cheaper than they
would elsewhere.”
Many items can be purchased
at thrift stores, including an-
tiques, bicycles, toys, books,
framed pictures and more. Koger
said the most popular items
sold at her store in Columbus
are home decor items, such as
The Palmer Home Thrift Store in Columbus offers a variety of merchandise available for
purchase.
candlesticks, furniture and other
items. To help ease concerns in
an era of pandemic shopping,
Koger said the store makes sure
all items are sanitized before put
up for sale.
‘We try to set everything up
where everybody can find ev-
erything.” Koger said. “We try to
keep it pretty organized.”
According to Amanda Henry,
the office manager of Starkville
Habitat for Humanity Thrift Store,
customers will find the best
items if they time their shopping
experience closest to the biggest
donation deliveries.
“I would say to find out
when they get restocked and go
visit them as close to that time
as possible,” Henry said. “For
example, we pick up donations
on Wednesday morning, so
Thursday is a good day to come
because that’s when we have all
our new stuff. Being aware of
that in different places is the best
way to get the best selection.”
Henry also advocated to
“measure and double measure”
furniture at the thrift store and
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 3
the location in your house for
best results, along with calling
multiple thrift stores asking if
there’s any flash sales at the mo-
ment. Flash sales vary by store on
both timeframe and items sold.
The biggest value of shopping
at a thrift store is definitely for
the savings, Koger said, as items
sold at these locations will likely
be cheaper than if bought brand
new at retail stores. While a
perception may exist of only buy-
ing hand me downs from thrift
stores, Koger said a good chunk
of the items donated are actually
quite worthy of owning.
“Honestly, I think sometimes
people don’t really realize what
they’re donating,” Koger said. A variety of holiday-themed merchandise sits available for purchase
“Sometimes people will donate inside of the Palmer Home Thrift Store in Columbus.
(some high value items) and
I’m not sure people always pay holiday specials this year at their they’d like to give away.
attention to what they have. locations, but there could be a Other thrift stores available to
Which makes that item cheaper, Black Friday sale. Golden Triangle residents include
and really more affordable than it Thrift stores can also be about the Salvation Army Thrift Store in
would be if it was sold at a place giving in addition to purchasing. Columbus, Habitat for Humanity
like Wal-Mart.” Most thrift stores in the Golden Thrift Store in Columbus, Car-
The Palmer Home Thrift Triangle accept item donations nice’s Thrift Shop in Starkville
stores in Columbus and Starkville on site from anyone who has and We Got All That & Grand
are unsure if there will be any excessive household belongings Stylz in West Point.
A variety of merchandise sits available for purchase inside of the Palmer Home Thrift
Store in Columbus.
4 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 13

To find that perfect gift, ... to a sleigh full !

12

try these local merchants 9 GLOCK HANDGUNS – $400-$600 — GunCo, Starkville

Gifts for $75 and more

10 LIGHT UP SIGNS – $159.99-$249.99 — The Lodge, Starkville

From stocking stuffers ...

11 HUFFY WOMEN’S BIKE – $179 — Military Hardware, Columbus
12 SHERPA JACKET – $59.99 (Reg. $79.99) — Mossy Oak, West Point
13 FLORSHEIM SHOES — Park Place, Columbus
14 THE GLENLIVET XXV SINGLE MALT SCOTCH WHISKY – $436.40 — 13 14
Gifts for $25 and less Mike’s Fine Wine and Liquor, Columbus
15 TEMPUR-PEDIC PILLOW – $99 — Bedzzz Express, Columbus
1 MAKE UP ERASER – $20 — Pizazz, Columbus
16 ETTA B POTTERY – $96.60 — The Purple Elephant, Columbus
2 MOSSY OAK TECH 1/4 ZIP – $19.99 — Mossy Oak, West Point
17 FRAZIER FURS, 7 FT. - 12 FT. – $68.99-$179.99 — Walton’s Greenhouse,
3 LIPID SERUM — Vitality Dermatology, Columbus
Columbus
4 NIGHT SCOUT BEANIES – $15.50 — The Purple Elephant,
Columbus
5 JACK DANIELS (750ML) WITH HIGHBALL GLASS – $25 —
Mike’s Fine Wine and Liquor, Columbus
6 BIG GREEN EGG SEASONING – $8.99; BARBECUE SAUCE –
$6.95 — Adventure ATV, West Point
7 COOKING ACCESSORIES — Military Hardware, Columbus
8 DECORATIVE ANGELS – Starting at $8.99 — Walton’s
Greenhouse, Columbus
9 EPOCH SUNGLASSES – $21.95 — Village Cycle Center,
Starkville
10 KOOZIES AND DECALS – $2.99-$12.99 — The Lodge, Starkville
7 8 15
1 2 3
9
16

4 5 6

9 10 10 11 17
12 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 5

... to a sleigh full ! From stocking stuffers ...

Gifts for $75 and more Gifts for $25 and less
11 READING GLASSES — Curtis
1 TRAXXAS CARS AND TRUCKS – $199-$239 — Village Cycle Center,
Optometry, Columbus 11
Starkville
12 BLACK RIFLE COFFEE – $14.99-
2 LAFON SILVER DIAMOND BY THE YARD – $165.95 — J. Parkerson
$17.99 — GunCo, Starkville
Jewelers, Starkville
13 ASSORTED JEWELRY, TYLER
3 OLIVER PEOPLES AND OAKLEY SUNGLASSES — Curtis Optometry,
CANDLES — Park Place, Columbus
Columbus
14 ASSORTED RUSTIC CHRISTMAS
4 BIG GREEN EGG GRILL – $1,249; TABLE – $479.95, — Adventure ATV,
ORNAMENTS – $12.99 — Hancock
West Point
Hardware, Brooksville
5 TEMPUR PROADAPT QUEEN SIZE MATTRESS – Starting at $2,999 —
15 PECAN PIES – $14.99 — Ole Country
Bedzzz Express, Columbus 1 Bakery, Brooksville
6 FALKEN WILDPEAK AT3W, COOPER DISCOVERER AT3, BFG
ADVANTAGE TA SPORT TIRES – Starting at $175 each — Lowndes County
Radial Tire, Columbus 12
7 KATIE LOXTON LONDON TRAVEL BAG – $119 — Pizazz, Columbus
8 FILLER TREATMENT — Vitality Dermatology, Columbus

2 3 4 5

6 7 8 14

13 15
6 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020
Pandemic brings uncertainty, hope for brick-and-mortar stores
As holiday shopping season
nears, local shop owners
anticipate uptick in business
By Yue Stella Yu
syu@cdispatch.com
B
y early November, Gloria Herriott
had decorated 20 Christmas trees
in her store. Wreaths hang from
the archway and the blue walls inside Hol-
lyhocks Gift Shop, a brick-and-mortar store
in downtown Columbus that Herriott has
owned for 23 years. Santa Claus dolls sit
atop a shelf next to the window. A Christ-
mas tree in the front is wrapped in so many
ornaments that one can hardly tell its color.
Herriott was preparing her store for the
Christmas open house, an annual event at
the shop that ran from Nov. 6-8 this year.
Spice cider and gourmet cheese plate, as
well as other southern delicacies, would
be available for customers, she said, and
decorations would be on sale.
Like Herriott, store owners across the
four-county area are decorating their shops
to prepare for the holiday shopping season.
Beverly Phillips, owner of Annabelle’s
Antique Mall in West Point, put up light
displays and decorated the furniture at the
store. Alan Senter, owner of Senter’s Hard-
ware & Gifts in Macon — a family business
of 107 years — said he began preparing for
the season in July.
This year, however, many are decorating
their businesses with a deadly pandemic in
mind.
At Hollyhocks, no customers would
be helping themselves like they used to, a
measure to reduce human contact, Herriott
said. Instead, a designated server would be
handling the refreshments, she said. Masks
are required for customers to enter the
store, she said, and social distancing will
be enforced.
“We are trying very hard to make it safe,
but really fun, too,” she said.
Senter said masks will be required,
and he has put up plexiglass barriers at
the checkout counters. Patience McRee,
owner of the Starkville branch of Magnolia
Soap and Bath Company, said her staff will
also require mask wearing and sanitize
the counter and high-touch areas between
customers. As a nurse, she said, she under-
stands the risk.
“We try to make sure everybody has an
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 11
Theo DeRosa/Dispatch Staff
Courtesy photo/Alan Senter Gloria Herriott, owner of Hollyhocks Gift Shop in Columbus, which she has owned for 23
Alan Senter stands in front of a shelf at years, and this year, she said the pandemic has made things a bit different. During an
Senter’s Hardware & Gifts, a downtown early-November Christmas open house event, she said, designated servers served re-
Macon store his family has owned for 107 freshments for customers instead of letting them help themselves. Masks are required
and social distancing was also enforced, she said.
years. For this year’s shopping season,
Senter said he expects a fair-sized crowd.
“(People) have been working on home proj-
ects, and then you have the government
stimulus (checks), which a lot of people
spent,” he said.
enjoyable shopping experience, and we are
more willing to do whatever we need to do
to make our customers more comfortable,”
McRee said.
Despite the stress induced by the pan-
demic, store owners say they have seen
and anticipate a spike in holiday shopping
traffic. In response, McRee said, her staff
is making batches of products in case they
run out.
“We’ve already started making in bulk,
not just for our floor, but for back stock,”
she said. “That way, whenever we do have
an outpour of customers, we’d be prepared
to restock our floor.”
Asked if they are worried about high
customer traffic on Black Friday this year,
most of the shop owners The Dispatch Tess Vrbin/Dispatch Staff
talked to said they do not usually have a Windows of Magnolia Soap and Bath in downtown Starkville are decorated to prepare
flood of customers during the season like for the upcoming Christmas shopping season. Patience McRee, owner of the shop, said
big retail stores do. Senter and Herriott she and her staff are making products in bulks to prepare for a large influx of customers
both said their shops have seen more early during the season.
holiday shoppers than usual, and that may have the government stimulus (checks), of hunker down. They want to go back to
help ease the traffic on Black Friday. which a lot of people spent.” the old-fashioned, happy Christmas they
“Overall, our traffic has been better this “People are home more than they have remember as kids. So this year, they are
year, so I’m expecting at least as good of a been in years past. They have more desire buying very traditional, very heart-ren-
season,” Senter said. “(People) have been to create a family Christmas … because dering ornaments and decorations. I think
working on home projects, and then you they have the time,” she said. “People kind that’s really nice.”
10 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 7
8 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 9

... to fits under the tree ... to fits under the tree
5 6

Gifts for $25-$75 Gifts for $25-$75

1 WINDCHIMES — Military Hardware, Columbus
2 BAR NECKLACES – $75.95 — J. Parkerson Jewelers, Starkville
3 MUDPIE SERVING PIECE – $50 — Walton’s Greenhouse,
Columbus
4 ANNIE GLASS HEARTS — Pizazz, Columbus
5 MATTRESS PROTECTOR, QUEEN SIZE – $49 — Bedzzz Express,
Columbus
6 SUCCULENT PLANTER – $29.95 — Busy Bee Nursery, Macon
7 WOODFORD RESERVE (750ML) WITH GLASS – $36.85 —
Mike’s Fine Wine and Liquor, Columbus
8 CHILDREN’S SUNGLASSES — Curtis Optometry, Columbus
9 MUDPIE CHRISTMAS SERVING DISHES – $50.99 — Senters
Hardware, Macon
10 CLOTHING — Park Place, Columbus
11 ATV RACK PAD – $59.99 — Village Cycle Center, Starkville
12 MOSSY OAK PERFORMANCE HOODIES – $29.99 — Mossy Oak,
West Point
13 ALA CARTE ALICE – $30 — The Purple Elephant, Columbus
14 BIG GREEN EGG CHARCOAL – $25.95 — Adventure ATV, West
8 Point
15 ELECTRONIC HEARING PROTECTION – $29-$59 — GunCo,
Starkville
7 16 CORDED SWEATSHIRTS – $55.99-$64.99 — The Lodge, Starkville
17 OBAGI VITAMIN-C COLLECTION — Vitality Dermatology,
Columbus
11 12

1 2

13 14 15

16 17

3 4 9 10
8 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 9

... to fits under the tree ... to fits under the tree
5 6

Gifts for $25-$75 Gifts for $25-$75

1 WINDCHIMES — Military Hardware, Columbus
2 BAR NECKLACES – $75.95 — J. Parkerson Jewelers, Starkville
3 MUDPIE SERVING PIECE – $50 — Walton’s Greenhouse,
Columbus
4 ANNIE GLASS HEARTS — Pizazz, Columbus
5 MATTRESS PROTECTOR, QUEEN SIZE – $49 — Bedzzz Express,
Columbus
6 SUCCULENT PLANTER – $29.95 — Busy Bee Nursery, Macon
7 WOODFORD RESERVE (750ML) WITH GLASS – $36.85 —
Mike’s Fine Wine and Liquor, Columbus
8 CHILDREN’S SUNGLASSES — Curtis Optometry, Columbus
9 MUDPIE CHRISTMAS SERVING DISHES – $50.99 — Senters
Hardware, Macon
10 CLOTHING — Park Place, Columbus
11 ATV RACK PAD – $59.99 — Village Cycle Center, Starkville
12 MOSSY OAK PERFORMANCE HOODIES – $29.99 — Mossy Oak,
West Point
13 ALA CARTE ALICE – $30 — The Purple Elephant, Columbus
14 BIG GREEN EGG CHARCOAL – $25.95 — Adventure ATV, West
8 Point
15 ELECTRONIC HEARING PROTECTION – $29-$59 — GunCo,
Starkville
7 16 CORDED SWEATSHIRTS – $55.99-$64.99 — The Lodge, Starkville
17 OBAGI VITAMIN-C COLLECTION — Vitality Dermatology,
Columbus
11 12

1 2

13 14 15

16 17

3 4 9 10
10 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 7
6 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020
Pandemic brings uncertainty, hope for brick-and-mortar stores
As holiday shopping season
nears, local shop owners
anticipate uptick in business
By Yue Stella Yu
syu@cdispatch.com
B
y early November, Gloria Herriott
had decorated 20 Christmas trees
in her store. Wreaths hang from
the archway and the blue walls inside Hol-
lyhocks Gift Shop, a brick-and-mortar store
in downtown Columbus that Herriott has
owned for 23 years. Santa Claus dolls sit
atop a shelf next to the window. A Christ-
mas tree in the front is wrapped in so many
ornaments that one can hardly tell its color.
Herriott was preparing her store for the
Christmas open house, an annual event at
the shop that ran from Nov. 6-8 this year.
Spice cider and gourmet cheese plate, as
well as other southern delicacies, would
be available for customers, she said, and
decorations would be on sale.
Like Herriott, store owners across the
four-county area are decorating their shops
to prepare for the holiday shopping season.
Beverly Phillips, owner of Annabelle’s
Antique Mall in West Point, put up light
displays and decorated the furniture at the
store. Alan Senter, owner of Senter’s Hard-
ware & Gifts in Macon — a family business
of 107 years — said he began preparing for
the season in July.
This year, however, many are decorating
their businesses with a deadly pandemic in
mind.
At Hollyhocks, no customers would
be helping themselves like they used to, a
measure to reduce human contact, Herriott
said. Instead, a designated server would be
handling the refreshments, she said. Masks
are required for customers to enter the
store, she said, and social distancing will
be enforced.
“We are trying very hard to make it safe,
but really fun, too,” she said.
Senter said masks will be required,
and he has put up plexiglass barriers at
the checkout counters. Patience McRee,
owner of the Starkville branch of Magnolia
Soap and Bath Company, said her staff will
also require mask wearing and sanitize
the counter and high-touch areas between
customers. As a nurse, she said, she under-
stands the risk.
“We try to make sure everybody has an
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 11
Theo DeRosa/Dispatch Staff
Courtesy photo/Alan Senter Gloria Herriott, owner of Hollyhocks Gift Shop in Columbus, which she has owned for 23
Alan Senter stands in front of a shelf at years, and this year, she said the pandemic has made things a bit different. During an
Senter’s Hardware & Gifts, a downtown early-November Christmas open house event, she said, designated servers served re-
Macon store his family has owned for 107 freshments for customers instead of letting them help themselves. Masks are required
and social distancing was also enforced, she said.
years. For this year’s shopping season,
Senter said he expects a fair-sized crowd.
“(People) have been working on home proj-
ects, and then you have the government
stimulus (checks), which a lot of people
spent,” he said.
enjoyable shopping experience, and we are
more willing to do whatever we need to do
to make our customers more comfortable,”
McRee said.
Despite the stress induced by the pan-
demic, store owners say they have seen
and anticipate a spike in holiday shopping
traffic. In response, McRee said, her staff
is making batches of products in case they
run out.
“We’ve already started making in bulk,
not just for our floor, but for back stock,”
she said. “That way, whenever we do have
an outpour of customers, we’d be prepared
to restock our floor.”
Asked if they are worried about high
customer traffic on Black Friday this year,
most of the shop owners The Dispatch Tess Vrbin/Dispatch Staff
talked to said they do not usually have a Windows of Magnolia Soap and Bath in downtown Starkville are decorated to prepare
flood of customers during the season like for the upcoming Christmas shopping season. Patience McRee, owner of the shop, said
big retail stores do. Senter and Herriott she and her staff are making products in bulks to prepare for a large influx of customers
both said their shops have seen more early during the season.
holiday shoppers than usual, and that may have the government stimulus (checks), of hunker down. They want to go back to
help ease the traffic on Black Friday. which a lot of people spent.” the old-fashioned, happy Christmas they
“Overall, our traffic has been better this “People are home more than they have remember as kids. So this year, they are
year, so I’m expecting at least as good of a been in years past. They have more desire buying very traditional, very heart-ren-
season,” Senter said. “(People) have been to create a family Christmas … because dering ornaments and decorations. I think
working on home projects, and then you they have the time,” she said. “People kind that’s really nice.”
12 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 5

... to a sleigh full ! From stocking stuffers ...

Gifts for $75 and more Gifts for $25 and less
11 READING GLASSES — Curtis
1 TRAXXAS CARS AND TRUCKS – $199-$239 — Village Cycle Center,
Optometry, Columbus 11
Starkville
12 BLACK RIFLE COFFEE – $14.99-
2 LAFON SILVER DIAMOND BY THE YARD – $165.95 — J. Parkerson
$17.99 — GunCo, Starkville
Jewelers, Starkville
13 ASSORTED JEWELRY, TYLER
3 OLIVER PEOPLES AND OAKLEY SUNGLASSES — Curtis Optometry,
CANDLES — Park Place, Columbus
Columbus
14 ASSORTED RUSTIC CHRISTMAS
4 BIG GREEN EGG GRILL – $1,249; TABLE – $479.95, — Adventure ATV,
ORNAMENTS – $12.99 — Hancock
West Point
Hardware, Brooksville
5 TEMPUR PROADAPT QUEEN SIZE MATTRESS – Starting at $2,999 —
15 PECAN PIES – $14.99 — Ole Country
Bedzzz Express, Columbus 1 Bakery, Brooksville
6 FALKEN WILDPEAK AT3W, COOPER DISCOVERER AT3, BFG
ADVANTAGE TA SPORT TIRES – Starting at $175 each — Lowndes County
Radial Tire, Columbus 12
7 KATIE LOXTON LONDON TRAVEL BAG – $119 — Pizazz, Columbus
8 FILLER TREATMENT — Vitality Dermatology, Columbus

2 3 4 5

6 7 8 14

13 15
4 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 13

To find that perfect gift, ... to a sleigh full !

12

try these local merchants 9 GLOCK HANDGUNS – $400-$600 — GunCo, Starkville

Gifts for $75 and more

10 LIGHT UP SIGNS – $159.99-$249.99 — The Lodge, Starkville

From stocking stuffers ...

11 HUFFY WOMEN’S BIKE – $179 — Military Hardware, Columbus
12 SHERPA JACKET – $59.99 (Reg. $79.99) — Mossy Oak, West Point
13 FLORSHEIM SHOES — Park Place, Columbus
14 THE GLENLIVET XXV SINGLE MALT SCOTCH WHISKY – $436.40 — 13 14
Gifts for $25 and less Mike’s Fine Wine and Liquor, Columbus
15 TEMPUR-PEDIC PILLOW – $99 — Bedzzz Express, Columbus
1 MAKE UP ERASER – $20 — Pizazz, Columbus
16 ETTA B POTTERY – $96.60 — The Purple Elephant, Columbus
2 MOSSY OAK TECH 1/4 ZIP – $19.99 — Mossy Oak, West Point
17 FRAZIER FURS, 7 FT. - 12 FT. – $68.99-$179.99 — Walton’s Greenhouse,
3 LIPID SERUM — Vitality Dermatology, Columbus
Columbus
4 NIGHT SCOUT BEANIES – $15.50 — The Purple Elephant,
Columbus
5 JACK DANIELS (750ML) WITH HIGHBALL GLASS – $25 —
Mike’s Fine Wine and Liquor, Columbus
6 BIG GREEN EGG SEASONING – $8.99; BARBECUE SAUCE –
$6.95 — Adventure ATV, West Point
7 COOKING ACCESSORIES — Military Hardware, Columbus
8 DECORATIVE ANGELS – Starting at $8.99 — Walton’s
Greenhouse, Columbus
9 EPOCH SUNGLASSES – $21.95 — Village Cycle Center,
Starkville
10 KOOZIES AND DECALS – $2.99-$12.99 — The Lodge, Starkville
7 8 15
1 2 3
9
16

4 5 6

9 10 10 11 17
14 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020
A guide to thrift store shopping
By Garrick Hodge
ghodge@cdispatch.com
I
n the holiday shopping
season, consumers tend to
flock to popular retail stores
like Wal-Mart, Belk and also use
online ordering from services like
Amazon.
There are also other local
options in the Golden Triangle:
thrift stores. Several area stores
offer secondhand clothes and
other household goods, while
most help raise funds for a chari-
table institution.
“I think they’re more conve-
nient than big retail stores,” said
Jessica Koger, the retail manager
at the Palmer Home Thrift Store
in Columbus. “People can come
in here and find a name-brand
shirt a lot cheaper than they
would elsewhere.”
Many items can be purchased
at thrift stores, including an-
tiques, bicycles, toys, books,
framed pictures and more. Koger
said the most popular items
sold at her store in Columbus
are home decor items, such as
The Palmer Home Thrift Store in Columbus offers a variety of merchandise available for
purchase.
candlesticks, furniture and other
items. To help ease concerns in
an era of pandemic shopping,
Koger said the store makes sure
all items are sanitized before put
up for sale.
‘We try to set everything up
where everybody can find ev-
erything.” Koger said. “We try to
keep it pretty organized.”
According to Amanda Henry,
the office manager of Starkville
Habitat for Humanity Thrift Store,
customers will find the best
items if they time their shopping
experience closest to the biggest
donation deliveries.
“I would say to find out
when they get restocked and go
visit them as close to that time
as possible,” Henry said. “For
example, we pick up donations
on Wednesday morning, so
Thursday is a good day to come
because that’s when we have all
our new stuff. Being aware of
that in different places is the best
way to get the best selection.”
Henry also advocated to
“measure and double measure”
furniture at the thrift store and
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 3
the location in your house for
best results, along with calling
multiple thrift stores asking if
there’s any flash sales at the mo-
ment. Flash sales vary by store on
both timeframe and items sold.
The biggest value of shopping
at a thrift store is definitely for
the savings, Koger said, as items
sold at these locations will likely
be cheaper than if bought brand
new at retail stores. While a
perception may exist of only buy-
ing hand me downs from thrift
stores, Koger said a good chunk
of the items donated are actually
quite worthy of owning.
“Honestly, I think sometimes
people don’t really realize what
they’re donating,” Koger said. A variety of holiday-themed merchandise sits available for purchase
“Sometimes people will donate inside of the Palmer Home Thrift Store in Columbus.
(some high value items) and
I’m not sure people always pay holiday specials this year at their they’d like to give away.
attention to what they have. locations, but there could be a Other thrift stores available to
Which makes that item cheaper, Black Friday sale. Golden Triangle residents include
and really more affordable than it Thrift stores can also be about the Salvation Army Thrift Store in
would be if it was sold at a place giving in addition to purchasing. Columbus, Habitat for Humanity
like Wal-Mart.” Most thrift stores in the Golden Thrift Store in Columbus, Car-
The Palmer Home Thrift Triangle accept item donations nice’s Thrift Shop in Starkville
stores in Columbus and Starkville on site from anyone who has and We Got All That & Grand
are unsure if there will be any excessive household belongings Stylz in West Point.
A variety of merchandise sits available for purchase inside of the Palmer Home Thrift
Store in Columbus.
2 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 15
16 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE

Only 29
shopping days
‘til Christmas

Holiday S hopping Guide

Nell Thomas, left, and Martha Gillis, right, shop for Christmas at Pizazz. Thursday, November 26, 2020